High End, ‘Magical’ Product Development And Timelines

I have a buddy
who is playing
the mid-range quality game
in Romance Novels.
She writes ‘okay’ books,
books that are good for one read
and then are set aside.
She writes quickly,
doesn’t invest much time in editing,
releasing them as quickly as possible.
Every book she writes
is released.
There are no ‘misses.’

The timelines for development
for these mid-range products
are short and reliable.

I, on contrast,
target the high end
for Romance Novels.
They are designed to be read
multiple times.
I don’t release the stories
unless they are magical.

Which means
some of the stories
are reworked for months
and some of the stories
are never released.

The timelines for development
for these high end products
can be long and unpredictable.

Seth Godin
shares

“The high end is magic,
but magic isn’t reliable.
On purpose.
That’s what makes it magic.”

If you’re producing
high end products,
factor in
some extra time
for rework and failure.