Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Method To The Madness

Writing and editing are two different things. It’s important that you allow yourself to write a rough draft by writing all the way through to the end without editing heavily. A little bit of tweaking here and there is alright, but if you stop the momentum, well, you’ve stopped the momentum. It may never pick up again, or could be disjointed or discordant.

Whether you’re a pantser (write by the seat of your pants) or a plotter, there must be a method to your madness, a routine that you follow to help you reach the end.

While editing it’s even more important that you have a structured system of your own design to follow. Yep pantsers, that means you too. Having a system for editing makes it faster, easier, and much more thorough. Chances are, even if you’re a pantser, you probably have an editing routine that you follow. I have a five step editing process that helps me polish to a shine that keeps my editor happy with me.

Your editing method should be tailored to what works for you. Maybe five steps is too many, maybe it’s not enough. It all depends on how you want to do it. Some authors I know print out their manuscript and lay it out on their floor with sticky notes on each page (so cool, I’d love to try this method!), others use editing software that allows them to list things out and rearrange, and even other print out and do a red pen edit. The important thing is to try different methods, ask other writers, and find what works for you.

So what is your editing method?


8 comments:

  1. Speaking of madness. . . here's my new editing method. I've completed a first draft (yay!!) and now need to seriously shake it up, make it less linear, but make all the threads pull together where they should. I did what Bill taught us in Hawaii--put a few words for each scene on a separate index card. NOW, I think I'm going to throw all the index cards in the air and start playing with them like jigsaw puzzle pieces where they land on the floor. :-)

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    1. That's fantastic Linda! Whoo hoo! It will be ready for our retreat in May. So glad to hear!

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  2. I keep notes as I write about the edits that I need to make. So, after my first draft is complete, I have a list about a mile long of edits that need to be done. After the list is complete, I'm on draft two, and I go through it again and create a new list. Once the new list is complete, it's draft three and that goes out to betas. Based on their feedback, yet another list is created. And...well, you get the idea. :)

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    1. Great idea Tina. In fact, I think I might try that.

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  3. I outline the story in pretty finite detail, then write the first draft. I do edit somewhat as I go to avoid carrying a crack that widens. However, I neither write nor edit if I don't feel a certain passion for what's at hand.

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  4. I'm not sure which method I like best. I think when I work through the last stage I like to keep a running note on what I've done, thoughts on anything that seems out of whack, and things I need to put in, or check.

    Printing it out is a good way to look back to see something very quickly--like repititions.

    But I do like the notes on notecards. But I don't quite go to the extreme of throwing them up in the air. I might loose them (^;
    I'm, in fact on the last edit (I think) for third book, so your post comes at a good time, Heather!

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  5. Hi, Heather,

    Well, this post is PERFECT for me. I am yet, on, I hope, to be the final edit for my current MS. I have interest in it and I wanted to do one more to polish. Man I am glad I did.

    What I do is wait a few weeks and go back with fresh eyes and when you think it's finished go over it at least one more time. I just did that and I am glad I did, but I plan one more fast one before sending out to agents/editors.

    How are you?

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  6. Heather, excellent advice! This is how I got the story out. And then the editing began. Otherwise we never move forward.
    Thanks for the great advice!!!

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