So, my novel is nearing the end its last edit.

* Story idea - I think it's original and has intrigue.

* Plot - this, in my humble opinion, is the main strength. I think I've plotted it well, so the reader is never sure of anything until the last page. I think there's enough hooks to keep a reader going.

* Opening - Not shocking, but sufficiently unsettling, I think.

* Characters - I think they're believable, and readers can empathise with one or the other MCs, maybe and hopefully both.

* Character arcs - Another strength, IMO. The changes are credible.

* Technicalities - I believe it's as near as flawless as it can be, although punctuation is not a black and white thing.

But now I go into less well-charted territory:

* Voice - I use two. Close first for my male MC, In-out third for my female MC. I have struggled to maintain authentic voices, and I can only hope I've now succeeded. But ... ??, and it's so important. Maybe even the number one?

* Tense - I've used present. I like it. I think it suits the plot. But I know others are iffy about it.

* Content - Now here I am genuinely in 'don't know' land. Earlier drafts have been criticised for being sleazy and voyeuristic. I have taken this on board and limited these elements, but further cuts would reduce the impact, IMO. The settings are grim. To have no 'grittiness' would be untrue to my vision.

So, what to do next? As I've said before, any kind of 'putting-out-feelers' won't be done until I'm ready, and that means as damn near perfect as I can get it.
What does anyone else do when they've finished a piece, but still have doubts over something or other, but realise there might not be a ready solution?

What most people would suggest is putting it in a drawer for a month at the minimum - preferably three - and then taking it out, and reading it like a reader (though with pen in hand) to see whether it all hangs together.

What most people actually do is give it one last read, correct five teeny errors (and thereby introduce three others they don't spot) and send it out. As I said here, there will be four trivial typos, one hilarious one, and one hideous continuity error you won't spot till a reader points it out, but in 100,000 words that's okay, and they won't break a deal you would otherwise have made.

On things which are vastly important but very subjective, like voice, and is-it-too-grim (or voyeuristic, or fluffy, or whatever), I think if you've made use of beta-readers and done your best by that, and other means, to get a sense of how others read it, in the end you have to say, "Here I stand. I can do no other" and get on with it.

In other words, with book-length projects, at some point you have to forgive yourself and it a) for the tiny flaws you can still see, because nothing made on that scale can be perfect: something which is a flaw in itself is serving a bigger purpose most of which is elswhere. And b) you have to forgive it for what it can't be - gritty enough to please the grit-lovers without alienating a single fluffy bunny boiler, voicy enough for the voice-lovers without ever having to lapse very slightly in order to convey necessary information or turn an awkward plot-corner smoothly.

I know an awful lot of would-be writers who send stuff out way too early. But, equally, I know a good few would-be writers who spend five years tweaking and doubting, largely (though unacknowledgedly) from horror of that Protestant moment of "Here I stand". Those teeny tweaks really aren't going to make the difference between the book being bought and not being bought.

that's all very good advice, Emma, worth hanging onto.

I'm sure somebody, somewhere, must have made a collection of the hilarious unintentional typos...

In other words, with book-length projects, at some point you have to forgive yourself and it a) for the tiny flaws you can still see, because nothing made on that scale can be perfect: something which is a flaw in itself is serving a bigger purpose most of which is elswhere.

I tend to be ruthless with myself, so there'll be no forgiveness if this novel ever goes out with errors. I couldn't stand even one typo, because they are avoidable.

Since I wrote the original post, I have become aware of another potential glitch. I knew it was there, but it didn't overly bother me (blindspot), but now someone has picked it up, I'm seeing how bad it is.

It's the use of one word (adjective) that the MC almost certainly wouldn't use, but I as the writer, would. Now it stands out like a lemon in an otherwise okay sentence.

Yes, beta readers - or ANY readers are utterly vital. Even the most innocuous comment can be highly significant.