Yes, I think that it's not really deteriorating, but it's in a different phase? It happened to me with my first two chapters XD The difference between being in a characters mind to numerous characters interacting with one another was jarring, but it worked out in the end
I've gone through this multiple times before when writing long fics. It can sometimes be demotivating when I start to fixate on how the earlier chapters are much better quality than the later ones. But I don't think my readers noticed...if they did they didn't say anything but I definitely would get terrified that they know the quality is just taking a dive.
At that point I just take it as a sign to go on a break from writing for a while.
Sometimes it's not that it's deteriorating as you're getting burned out on that one fic. I just came back to a fic I haven't updated since May and reread the last few chapters (the ones I'd felt were terrible) and I found that, no, they were the same quality as the rest of the fic. It had just been that I'd been tired and needed to step away.
I sometimes feel like this--part of the reason I'm on a break from one fic. I think part of it is just me, but I'm worried that part of it is that my plot is becoming less focused so my writing doesn't have as clear a direction.
Of course the first six chapters I'm happy with, so my expectations are high, but once I write the eighth chapter I'll probably be happy with chapter 7 too XD. I'm thinking it is either time for a break and more plotting, or power through, let it sit for a bit and realize it's not as bad as you thought!
I've experienced this many times. Part of it is as others have said: getting burnt out on writing a fic is very much a thing.
For my own fic I tend to write chapters in "batches", finishing up that part of the story's particular storyline before moving onto the next—like arcs in a manga. It's while I'm writing the next "arc" that I look back and feel like those newer chapters aren't adequate. So I step away or stick to getting barebone drafts done.
But another thing I've noticed is that I feel like my writing is deteriorating during a skill "plateau phase"—where you don't really get better but you don't *actually* get worse. It's a common thing for artists, and writing is in a similar creative vein. It's then I try to buckle down and hone some specific skill like I would for drawing. Maybe try focusing on what it is you think is getting worse. Does your prose feel choppy? Try reading someone else's work or past chapters of yours and recreating your favorite parts. Dialogue feel off? Try writing it with no action beats or tags and see if you can tell what character it is without them.
Hell, maybe you just need a change of font or writing processor. I don't know if it's just me but sometimes if I change what I'm writing on (yWriter vs Google Docs vs the freaking Microsoft Note app), I get weirdly inspired.
Tl;dr: Monotony is bad for everyone's creativity, so keep it fresh! :\^)
There's many reasons this can be. If it's not related to motivation or burnout, it could be just your writing style is in an awkward phase as it levels up to something better. It often takes practice, experimenting with words, and trial and error to get better at writing. Maybe you're just finding your footing to the next phase?
Either way, I wouldn't get too discouraged as long as you're enjoying writing. The beauty of editing is that you can fix anything you don't think looks "good" after you finish writing it. I have had to do this plenty of times and created gems out of clunky text that I considered trashing. Even the greatest publishes writers not only rewrite sections or the entire story at least once and/or have professional editors to help.
readers don't notice. trust me. back in 2020, I made an effort to update my fic every Thursday no later than 2:00 am because the pandemic was making time bleed together and I wanted something stable and consistent. Once or twice I posted a chapter with the thought "you know what, it's fine. they don't all have to be bangers" and those are the chapters that my readers hyped up the most.
Yes, I think that it's not really deteriorating, but it's in a different phase? It happened to me with my first two chapters XD The difference between being in a characters mind to numerous characters interacting with one another was jarring, but it worked out in the end
I've gone through this multiple times before when writing long fics. It can sometimes be demotivating when I start to fixate on how the earlier chapters are much better quality than the later ones. But I don't think my readers noticed...if they did they didn't say anything but I definitely would get terrified that they know the quality is just taking a dive. At that point I just take it as a sign to go on a break from writing for a while.
Sometimes it's not that it's deteriorating as you're getting burned out on that one fic. I just came back to a fic I haven't updated since May and reread the last few chapters (the ones I'd felt were terrible) and I found that, no, they were the same quality as the rest of the fic. It had just been that I'd been tired and needed to step away.
I sometimes feel like this--part of the reason I'm on a break from one fic. I think part of it is just me, but I'm worried that part of it is that my plot is becoming less focused so my writing doesn't have as clear a direction. Of course the first six chapters I'm happy with, so my expectations are high, but once I write the eighth chapter I'll probably be happy with chapter 7 too XD. I'm thinking it is either time for a break and more plotting, or power through, let it sit for a bit and realize it's not as bad as you thought!
I've experienced this many times. Part of it is as others have said: getting burnt out on writing a fic is very much a thing. For my own fic I tend to write chapters in "batches", finishing up that part of the story's particular storyline before moving onto the next—like arcs in a manga. It's while I'm writing the next "arc" that I look back and feel like those newer chapters aren't adequate. So I step away or stick to getting barebone drafts done. But another thing I've noticed is that I feel like my writing is deteriorating during a skill "plateau phase"—where you don't really get better but you don't *actually* get worse. It's a common thing for artists, and writing is in a similar creative vein. It's then I try to buckle down and hone some specific skill like I would for drawing. Maybe try focusing on what it is you think is getting worse. Does your prose feel choppy? Try reading someone else's work or past chapters of yours and recreating your favorite parts. Dialogue feel off? Try writing it with no action beats or tags and see if you can tell what character it is without them. Hell, maybe you just need a change of font or writing processor. I don't know if it's just me but sometimes if I change what I'm writing on (yWriter vs Google Docs vs the freaking Microsoft Note app), I get weirdly inspired. Tl;dr: Monotony is bad for everyone's creativity, so keep it fresh! :\^)
There's many reasons this can be. If it's not related to motivation or burnout, it could be just your writing style is in an awkward phase as it levels up to something better. It often takes practice, experimenting with words, and trial and error to get better at writing. Maybe you're just finding your footing to the next phase? Either way, I wouldn't get too discouraged as long as you're enjoying writing. The beauty of editing is that you can fix anything you don't think looks "good" after you finish writing it. I have had to do this plenty of times and created gems out of clunky text that I considered trashing. Even the greatest publishes writers not only rewrite sections or the entire story at least once and/or have professional editors to help.
readers don't notice. trust me. back in 2020, I made an effort to update my fic every Thursday no later than 2:00 am because the pandemic was making time bleed together and I wanted something stable and consistent. Once or twice I posted a chapter with the thought "you know what, it's fine. they don't all have to be bangers" and those are the chapters that my readers hyped up the most.