E - Editing/Rewriting

Hi Writers! This week's letter is E, and is written by Frindlesmith! Thanks, Fridlesmith; I appreciate you sharing with us! Everybody, be sure to leave a comment and let him know any questions or comments you have. -Cari

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E – Editing / Rewriting

by Frindlesmith

What is editing and how is it different from rewriting, which is sometimes called revision? Don’t feel bad if you don’t know. A lot of people confuse the two terms.

According to dictionary.com, to edit something means

1. to supervise or direct the preparation of (a newspaper, magazine, book, etc.); serve as editor of; direct the editorial policies of.

2. to collect, prepare, and arrange (materials) for publication. [This is the definition most applicable to writers]

This is different from revision, which means

1. to amend or alter: to revise one's opinion.

2. to alter something already written or printed, in order to make corrections, improve, or update: to revise a manuscript.

In other words, revising a work is to improve it or change the content matter in some way, while editing a work is to prepare it for publication without changing the content matter. Chronologically, revision comes first.

Okay, but when should you consider editing or revising your piece, be it fiction, poetry, or otherwise? Based on our definitions, it makes sense to do both after you’re finished with your first draft. You can only manipulate something if you have a something to manipulate.

Picture this. You’ve just finished writing the last chapter of your novel for the first time. Depending on who’s in the room, you may dance and sing some. Usually you thank the Lord for bringing you through such a grueling process. But then what do you do? Do you try and get it published? Do you move on to your next work? Do you immediately begin reworking that one chapter that you kinda-sorta remember being less than great? A lot of writers make the mistake of immediately going forth and changing up everything they think is less than spectacular. Unfortunately, that leads to this.

Read any how-to-write-fiction book, and they’ll tell you (figuratively, books don’t speak) that your first move should be to lay aside the work for as long as you can. Don’t add any new words, don’t think about it, and don’t even read it. The recommended separation time-frame is a week, but if you’ve limited time, one day will work. The purpose of this step is to allow you to approach the work as objectively as you can so you won’t let your love for you work interfere with your revision process.

Now, people have written entire books on the subject of revising and editing, so I would be arrogant to assume I could sum up the process in one blog post. However, here are the steps that have worked for me in revising/editing my work. Remember that editing and revision are different for different people, so feel free to do what works best for you.

The Seven Steps to Revision

Step I: Monitor Information Amount

One of my habits when I’m writing drafts is to get all the necessary information down on the computer without paying any attention to how it reads. I’ll tell, not show; I’ll summarize (“After a grueling fistfight, George ran to the door . . .”); and I’ll leave notes to myself on where the reader might need more information. That’s perfectly fine for your first draft and might actually be helpful to get through it if you’re pressed for time. When you’re rewriting, however, the first thing you should do (after your break) is go through your piece looking for all the places that might be summarized or unclear to the reader, making each one more concrete. I might, for example, actually include a “grueling fistfight” in George’s story. In general, you should be asking questions along these lines at this point in time: Is this a place where I should show or tell? Can I clearly see this in my head? Does it seem like I’m just dumping information on the reader here? One thing you should not do at this point is cut anything out. That’s a later step.

Step II: Check Your Connections

                At this point, you should now go through your work, making sure that everything makes sense to the reader. Here you are looking for places that might be confusing, vague, or unclear to a reader who doesn’t know the whole story and everything that went into making it. While it’s okay to have some mystery in your piece—if you’re writing a mystery novel, for example—it makes for an unpleasant read if things are confusing for no good reason. Questions to ask at this point: Have I answered all the loose ends I brought up? Have I answered all the questions my readers might be asking? [for fiction writers, primarily] Have all of my characters acted in ways that are logical and not out-of-character?

Step III: Investigate Subplots [probably more for fiction writers]

                Once everything makes sense, now is the time to consider adding mini-stories that go along with, but are not necessary to the main storyline. The purpose of a subplot—among other things—is to add character development, provide backstory, or add tension. If you’re adding in a subplot just to fill in space, or if the story seems long enough already, consider skipping this step. Questions to ask here: Does this develop my main character in any way? Does the reader learn anything new from this extra mini-story?

Step IV: Examine the Information Accuracy

                At this point in time, you should make sure that all of your facts, extra information, and references are accurate. For more information, a post on research will be coming later. Questions to ask at this point: If someone were to do a Google or Wikipedia search on something I talk about, will they find something different? Why? Are there any reputable sources I can double check my facts with?

Step V: Trim the Excess Content

                This is probably one of the hardest parts of revision, since you have devoted so much time to your project by this point. Most writers (me included) feel as though we’ve worked so hard on this that there can’t be anything needing to be cut. It’s fine the way it is, thank you very much. For the benefit of your story, however, it’s best that you remove whatever scenes, chapters, paragraphs, or even words that take away from your story. Not only will your readers appreciate it more, but you’ll end up with a better story overall. The less unneeded material you have, the quicker you can get to the climax. The best way to know whether or not something adds to your story is to ask the following questions: Does the thing I’m about to cut add anything new to my work? If so, is it necessary to the story? If I take this out, will the story read the same, or better?

Step VI: Reread

                For me, this step has to be the hardest part of revision, probably because it is so closely tied to step V.  Now that you have your mostly finished work in front of you, read it through from start to finish. Don’t stop and correct a single thing. Just read it. If there’s an adjustment that you need to make, grab a pencil and paper and write out notes on corrections, but don’t touch the work. Read it all the way through. Once you’ve done that, then go through and make the corrections you noted before. Another reason this step is the hardest is because the questions you should be asking now are pretty much all the ones I’ve just listed. It’s painful, but worth it. After this step, the draft is usually near being “done.”

Step VII: Edit the Language

                The last step is not as hard as one might think. Now that the draft is finished in terms of revision, you must now go through and clear up the language. This includes grammar, punctuation, sentence construction, and word choice. There are no particular questions associated with this step, but I’d recommend that you get a reputable grammar guide, go through each point, and make sure that it’s being applied in your work. Read the chapter on commas and make sure you use commas correctly. The best part about this step is that the more you know about grammar, the less you’ll need the guide.

A final note, even though I’ve written all these steps like it’s a guide, I urge you to take breaks in-between steps. I would especially recommend a break of at least a day between steps V and VI (but no more than a week). Writing is fun, but not if you try and cram it all in one sitting.

Any other editing tips?

Recommended Reading:

How to Write and Sell a Christian Novel by Gilbert Morris

                In addition to being a very good reference on the entire process of writing a novel from a Christian perspective, the chapter on editing is pretty good.

Revision and Self-Editing by James Scott Bell

                For those who’ve read Plot and Structure, the same author wrote a book completely devoted to revision. There is a section on the subject in his other book, The Art of War for Writers—which I also recommend—but it makes several references to the book mentioned above.

The Elements of Style by William Strunk and E.B. White

                Arguably the quintessential text on the English language, this little book is easy to read and can answer just about any question you might have about grammar or punctuation.