Wow…seems Goblin (aka, Jen) decided to write some haiku for me after I entered her writing exercise game. Then she dared others (and I mean, dared, with bold font and everything) to join her, which they did. Totally unexpected, but it started my day with a grin.
For the day’s writing bizness…
When I finish the first draft of my story, I both look forward to and dread the revision process. I look forward to it because I know it helps make my story stronger, and part of me actually enjoys slicing off clunky phrases, polishing up rusty word imagery and amputating whole sections of prose because they add nothing to the plot.
I dread it because it means I’m going to be scanning these many pages quite a few times before I deem them even worthy of the light of day, and, let’s face it, reading your own work–especially with the mindset of finding everything that’s wrong with it and needs fixing–can get old real quick.
David Louis Edelman has provided a handy step-by-step method to line-edit your manuscript, focusing on 10 key factors that will heavily improve the final product. 10 principles aren’t too many to follow at once, are they?
http://www.deepgenre.com/wordpress/admin/craft/line-editing#more-363
A couple that I constantly employ:
Searching for extraneous that‘s and had‘s.
When in doubt, try the Delete key.
And here’s my solution to #6 and 7.
WordWeb. A handy, free dictionary which runs on your computer and has a lot of alternate word suggestions, as well as antonyms.
Where are you strengths and weaknesses in revising your stories? Do you enjoy it, or does just the thought of it make you sick?
I see that smile.
I have no problem admitting that this is exactly the reason I am NOT a writer, nor would I wish that fate on my worst enemy. hehehe. But, I do enjoy well-written pieces quite often.
Dean Koontz once said, “I don’t do a written draft. I work only on the computer and I do one page at a time. I work on a page 20, 30, 40 drafts, whatever it takes, before I move on to the next page. That way I feel that I’ve done as much as I can on that page and have left nothing to correct later.” (taken from this source).
Personally, every time somebody refers me to ‘writing tips’, etc. I squirm. It almost feels as if they are taking my creativity and flushing down the toity. I am terribly sensitive to criticism, however constructive it may be.
Good luck on your revision!
I marvel at Dean Koontz’s writing process almost as much as the stories he produces. I know I could never write in that way, because 1. I’d drive myself crazy redoing the pages that many times, and 2. I’d lose the momentum of the story in my head if I took too long on one spot. Every writer has a different way of going about it.
hehehe, I like to think he embellished a little with that answer. He is a fiction writer, after all, and we the gullible readers.
I think the point he was making was that he likes to make sure each point is clarified and not overly so.
OH! And I forgot to mention, you’ve been awarded with a little something… stop by my blog to pick it up (if you want it).
Goblin is pleased to
upgrade your smile to a grin
and to echo it
I have a similar technique to Koontz, although mine is not quite that psychotic. I try to work on a single scene until I think it’s exactly right.
Of course, when it comes time to do my final revision, I inevitably find I was wrong. 🙂
I do enjoy rewriting. It’s easier than writing the initial draft and I’m more likely to get excited about the revised version. While working on my first draft, I’m never quite sure whether it’s all dreck or not.
Phoenix: Thanks for spreading the blogging luv. Very kind of you.
Goblin: There’s always a point where we think our work is dreck. It’s inevitable, I believe. I usually hit it around halfway through a story draft, and my word counts for the day usually cut in half because I have to struggle through the belief that everything I write is worthless, the plot is crap, or whatever. But the nice thing is, I know I’ve experienced this before, and I will again. Probably with every manuscript I write. So knowing that, and knowing other people experience this doubt to, reminds me that it’s transitory, and in another day, or two, maybe a week, I’ll get over it and enjoy the process and story all over again.
While it feels presumptuous somehow to compare myself to Koontz. I tend to work that way too.