@islasmith: Totally feel that – reading aloud is like shining a harsh light on stuff you thought was smooth. I’ve had lines I loved collapse the second I tried speaking them. That thing you said about outside feedback is spot on too – sometimes you’re too close to the page and all you see is what you meant, not what’s actually there. Curious, when you got that feedback, did it change the way you approached new drafts from the start, or was it more like a polishing layer after you already had a full draft?

@Fretum: I get what you mean about structure sneaking in even when you don’t want it. It’s like muscle memory – your brain defaults to what it knows. But maybe that’s not always a bad thing? Like, could those structures act as scaffolding you later break apart once the draft’s alive? And that bit about style being such a personal thing – yes. I’ve dropped books mid-way just because the rhythm didn’t click with me, even if the plot was solid. Do you ever catch yourself resisting certain writing styles just because they feel “wrong” to your trained eye, even if they’re effective for other readers?

@Hydrogen: Starting the outline early is a power move – respect. Five words last year is still five more than zero, so maybe this year’s the breakthrough. Do you see yourself actually sticking to the classic NaNoWriMo “write now, edit later” chaos, or would you still want the outline to feel polished before diving in? Also – what’s your gut telling you the theme will be this time around?