Editing; its pitfalls and importance

As much as writing scares people with the blank page being a major obstacle, so editing terrifies them.
Thinking about editing seems to bring on different reactions:

1. Complete paralysis

I know many people who manage the writing phase fine. They pour out what they know, enjoy putting the words on the page then they’re stuck. They maybe look back at the text, but because they’ve poured out so many words, they don’t know how to re-work it and are afraid to start.

2. I’m a writer syndrome

This reaction is common among many creative writers but isn’t confined to them. They believe that because the words came from their unconscious mind, they must all have equal value and shouldn’t be touched. This results in 1000 page novels and woolly text on websites.

If you understand the writing stage as being simply that, the stage when you pour out what you think you want to say, then you understand that your work will need pruning. In this stage you’re going to be like a persuasive hairdresser who works on a head of hair to reveal the beauty of the person underneath the hair.

3. The grammar has to be right syndrome

Grammar is important. I spent many years in school learning it. And I’ve had to unlearn some of it to become a business writer. Why? Because the main point of writing, indeed probably the only real point is to make a connection. The connection between you the writer and your reader is sacred, is vital and without it you may as well not bother to write.

So how can I make it easier for you to edit your work? As always I break processes down into smaller stages. It makes it simpler to deal with and work through. I believe there are three stages in editing.

Major editing

Under this heading I include altering the layout of the piece you’re writing. Which if you’ve done your research and you’re clear about why you’re writing, should not be a problem for you.  If you still need a major rethink then one way I do it is to print off all the pages, lay them out on the table or floor and re-assess if each piece is in the best place. It’s odd but physically handling the writing brings new thoughts and connections.

 Minor editing.

Here we’re talking about taking the piece section by section and checking it for inconsistencies of headings, fonts and styles. If you’ve set up all your styles at the beginning you shouldn’t need this but it’s always best to check it out because we all slip up sometimes.

This is where you do your grammar, spelling and sense check. Just because your spellcheck says something is spelled right, doesn’t mean it’s the right word. Think of the differences between their, there and they’re. Spell check programmes show you multiple choices which don’t help you choose.

This is also the place to take out all the prhases you use too much. We all have them and yours will appear without you remembering you used them.

Use the readability stats that you find in tools in Word. After you’ve done the spell check these should come up automatically. They’ll show you whether you have too high a level of passive sentences. Active is better. The text is more alive and moves along faster.

Proof reading

Even when you’ve done major and minor edits you need to proof read. Or better you need to find someone else to do it for you. If you’ve written a major piece of work then this is vital. It will cost you because proof reading is not cheap. Or rather good proof reading isn’t. but it makes all the difference.

If you really don’t have a budget for proof reading then find someone who has the skill and offer barter. Cook them a meal, dig their garden or do whatever it takes.

But please don’t skimp on this stage.

Depending on the length of your piece then this stage can be done in an hour, a day or it could take several weeks. It’s important because clear editing can make the difference between an okay piece of text and a good one. Or the difference between a good piece and one that knocks your reader sideways with amazement.

Editing

I remember a quote I think from Michaelangelo that when sculpting he took a block of marble and waited for the figure to emerge.

This morning I've been editing a long piece of text which I've written over the last few weeks.  Some writers hate editing their work but I love it.  The first draft to me is to set down all the thoughts in your head.

Editing is when you give it a shape and refine it.  Often we write as we speak with all kinds of hesitations, slang and ill formed sentences.  We've poured it all down on paper in a flood.  Now we channel it till it's controlled and effective.

It's interesting that as I progress through the text, there are fewer mistakes.  I've written myself in to the style and subject of the text. 

I'm looking forward to finishing this stage of editing, then I can move on the tightening the text even more till a word taken out destroys the meaning. 

That's the goal anyway!

Why your first draft is unlikely to be your last

'If you never change your mind, why have one?' Edward de Bono

E-mail is great isn't it? It means you don't have to worry about postal deadlines and you can work on your writing until the last moment.

Which means multiple drafts... at least if you're wise.

Why?

That's because our first drafts are almost a spontaneous dumping of what is in our heads on to the screen or paper.

Now if you've done your research, it will be steeped in the subject and relevant. But you can always improve it.

Here are 3 ways to add polish to your first thoughts.

1. Check out the order - can you be more logical, capture their interest faster or produce that well crafted example to offer the clincher of a proof.
2. Check out the wording, cleaning out all the weak words and replace with strong images to glue themselves to the inside of your reader's brain.
3. Check out the spacing. White space in abundance and in the right places makes it easier for your reader to navigate your text. And easier navigation means easier understanding and more connection.

Force yourself to read it again or find someone suitable to comment. It will pay dividends for all your writing.

James Michener on editing

"I find that three or four readings are required to comb out the cliches, line up pronouns with their antecedents, and insure agreement in number between subject and verbs. My connectives, my clauses, my subsidiary phrases don't come naturally to me and I'm very prone to repetition of words; so I never even write an important letter in the first draft. I can never recall anything of mine that's ever been printed in less than three drafts.

You write that first draft really to see how it's going to come out."

James A Michener

Rewriting for writers: when it's necessary

Would be writers often get very hot under the collar about changing their text. Especially if they've sweated over it for a while. So it's always encouraging then to hear about writers we might revere who have struggled like us.

I was reading an article in the Guardian at the weekend, taken originally from The New Yorker about Norman Mailer and his struggles with one of his books.

In a letter to his editor, he talks about knowing that there are parts of the book he describes as 'dead places' and needing attention.

It's his intention to clean up those parts and he's very firm about it. In a humble way I agree with him. No matter what text you write, there are very few times that it can't be improved, sharpened and re-focused.

But to do that you need a bit of distance from writing it and then put on another hat to become that editor who can quite firmly tell you to lose part of what you've written and the whole thing will stand out clearer and sparkle more.