Did you ever get the feeling that something was missing?

Last week we packed up and headed to Grandma's farm for a well-deserved spring break week in the country. After we arrived, I took a deep breath of that good country air. There would be few phone calls and absolutely no internet. I had all my art stuff in multiple bags and rolling carts. It was going to be great. That is, it was going to be great until I realized I had left something important far, far behind at home.

My suitcase.

After a good laugh at myself, I headed out to Walmart and pick up a few things I absolutely had to have to make it through the week. With those purchases and a couple of t-shirt donations from my brother and my mom, I was in good shape. After all, I reasoned, it's not like I needed a lot of special clothes to burn brush, play with barn cats, and hike in the fields.

But for that split second when I realized I had left something fairly important behind, I could have kicked myself. I really do hate it when I mess up.

Which brings me back to writing. Have you ever finished a story, chapter, or book and gotten the uncomfortable feeling that something just isn't quite right? What do you tend to leave behind in your writing? Is it your characters? your dialogue? or (heaven forbid) your plot?