Are you doing the Writer’s Waltz?

I love to dance, but not when I’m writing.I didn’t know there was a name for the steps I repeated as I played the same tune over and over in my head.
Write chapter one, chapter two, chapter three. There’s a great contest with the final judge from the publishing house I want to submit to.
Rewrite chapter one, chapter two, chapter three. Make it perfect.
Ooops, didn’t finish first. Rewrite one, two, three.
No grammatical errors, the plot moves, characters reveal their conflicts and goals. Another contest, so rewrite one, two, three.
It's so good, an editor requests the manuscript.
Only you’ve been so busy doing the one, two, three steps, the rest didn’t get finished.
Ask any editor and she’ll tell you how many manuscripts have chapters one two three polished like diamonds, but the remainder is poorly done.
The secret is to finish that first draft before doing those rewrites and edits.
Hard? Sure. I know that waltz very well. I did it for years.
Did I learn anything?
Yes. Not to listen to the pretty music.