This is something I've really wrestled too. You've got lots of company, Anna!
I rarely read my own stuff on the archive. I know if I do, I'll see all the things I could have done so much better. And I'll just be dying to get my hands on it. To rework, tweak, edit, add to, and delete like all get out.
My fear is that if I ever started down that path, I'd never get anything put back.
So, here's what I tell myself. (And it is through clenched teeth, sometimes, but try it on and see if it helps.)
It's kind of neat to be able to see the evidence of your progress as a writer. The archive is a real time capsule. If you follow it year by year, story by story, you can watch yourself growing and learning and all kinds of other good things. So, it's sort of nice you can look back and see how far you've come.
That's the approach working for me, and it's the reason Mayson Says the Magic Word is still there, along with all the head hopping in Lois Unbuttoned...
My two cents.
CC
