Edits! Revisions! My worst nightmares, second only to writer’s block. Editing for me is a repetitive process. Some times I’ll print out a section of my writing and edit it by hand. Most of the time, I edit from the computer. There are times I’ll read aloud, especially when my brain stumbles over the wording while I’m reading it. Reading aloud can be particularly helpful to make adjustments to the sentence until it sounds correct. Basically editing is refining my particular piece of artwork.
I will edit a book at least twice before I hand it off to friends to read and give feedback. I think I’m fairly particular, but I still miss stuff. Don’t we all, though? In the books that come out of NY, I sometimes find errors.
In my editing I discover plot holes and character issues. There are times I’ll edit the same paragraph a dozen times until I get it to my liking. I struggle with the beginning chapter. Oftentimes that beginning chapter changes before the book is finished. To me this chapter is the most crucial because that is when I’m trying to hook the reader into saying, “Ooo, I gotta read this!” and really meaning it.
This week’s blog is short, but what can I say about editing. It’s got to be done regardless of how much I dislike it. What I dislike more is trying to condense my book down into a synopsis. Ugh! That is frustration at its finest!
Have a great weekend everyone!
Friday, May 2, 2008
Revisions & Edits...Gracen's style!
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2 deadly screams:
When my first galley arrived, I was thriiled about seeing it on the screen and didn't find any mistakes. But then someone told me to read it out loud to myself. So I did, and caught the goofs! Still left about 5 of them behind, but not many people have noticed!
Good luck with the edits. I just discovered I need to cut about 1K from my current ms before I submit it.
Great blog, Gracen. I know how you feel, revision isn't my favorite part of writing by no means. But it's a needed task. I wish I could write a perfectly polished ms the first time through, wouldn't that be great!
Sierra
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