Creeping revisions - a bad thing?

[SandraMustard]

I can't leave my story alone. It's at the editor but every time I read it, I want to revise it more before he gets it back to me. As a rookie using editors, is this a no-no? If I change it later after I get it back, should I have it re-proofed?


(I can't help myself. I've already revised it twice today.)

 

[damppanties]

Well, you'll just end up with three versions of the same story and you'll have to reconcile an edited version of the earlier story to an unedited version of the changed story. Good luck with that.
So, yeah, I'd go through multiple times before sending it to an editor and then leave it alone until it gets back.

 

[Recidiva]

Conversely, I wouldn't send it off until you get to the "eyes sliding off" sense. I tend to read and reread and reread...but I do get to a point where I feel I've done enough on at least enough sections to be exhausted at the idea of reading it again. If you're obsessed with it still, hold onto it until you think you've done what you can do, then send it off after you're no longer compelled to review over and over.

 

[SandraMustard]

Hell's bells, I'm in trouble then. I have ALREADY sent it to the editor and ALREADY revised it after I sent it.

 

[Recidiva]

Hell's bells, I'm in trouble then. I have ALREADY sent it to the editor and ALREADY revised it after I sent it.

Okay, general rule of thumb as far as I'm concerned, is that sending something to an editor is essentially the first step in putting your work up for adoption. You should have already said your goodbyes, final hugs, nice warm blanket, and then let it go.

Hang onto it until you're ready and ideally are working on something else and no longer waking up when your baby cries in the middle of the night.

 

[_Lynn_]

I can't leave my story alone. It's at the editor but every time I read it, I want to revise it more before he gets it back to me. As a rookie using editors, is this a no-no? If I change it later after I get it back, should I have it re-proofed?


(I can't help myself. I've already revised it twice today.)

If someone sends me a story to edit, I expect it to be the final version (unless we've discussed the issue already). I don't want to mark errors and/or make suggestions on text only to discover they've deleted several paragraphs or sentences or changed entire sections of the story. That's a waste of my time. And I believe it shows a lack of respect for the person volunteering their time to edit as well.

Just my opinion.

 

[Stella_Omega]

If someone sends me a story to edit, I expect it to be the final version (unless we've discussed the issue already). I don't want to mark errors and/or make suggestions on text only to discover they've deleted several paragraphs or sentences or changed entire sections of the story. That's a waste of my time. And I believe it shows a lack of respect for the person volunteering their time to edit as well.

Just my opinion.

Yes. What an author might be best looking for at that time are what some writers call "Beta readers" who just give commentary and advice-- possibly spelling or grammar corrections if they notice them.

 

[_Lynn_]

Yes. What an author might be best looking for at that time are what some writers call "Beta readers" who just give commentary and advice-- possibly spelling or grammar corrections if they notice them.

Very true. They can help a great deal at that point.

 

[DeeZire]

Not being a very good writer, I like to set a story aside for a while and revisit it days or weeks later so I can give it a fresh read before determining that it's actually done. I don't know how many times I've "fixed" a story, only to reread it the next day and discover it's still broken.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Yes. What an author might be best looking for at that time are what some writers call "Beta readers" who just give commentary and advice-- possibly spelling or grammar corrections if they notice them.

Good point.

 

[Handley_Page]

There's a bit of a snag here, it seems to me.

For example, every time I read my latest attempt at literacy, I find something wrong; not a weird story twist, not continuity, but a grammatical error or some such; particularly in the light of discussions with said editor.

In an attempt to put it right, I'll scamper through the document looking for [ ", ] and changing it to [ ," ] or similar, just so she doesn't waster her time on my stupid mistakes and can concentrate on higher things.

God Bless a helpful editor

 

[estragon]

As a copy editor, I grit my teeth any time someone sends back a story I've already worked on. There is no point in doing work twice, unless there is some serious unforeseen problem, or unless I've really blown it.

If the writer has any possible reservation or doubt before sending the story to an editor, as opposed to a beta or second-set-of-eyes, don't send it, let it sit even for a week (if not on deadline), go back to it, go through one last time, and then send it. Davy Crockett said it best: "Be sure you're right; then go ahead."

That said, I'll never discourage an author who's sincerely trying to do his/her best, however s/he does it.

 

[SandraMustard]

A rookie mea culpa. I was so eager to get it to the edit phase, I should have known I was still massaging the story. Won't happen again.

 

[Hotcappucino]

Google Docs

You can also try using Google Docs (now Google Drive). That way, both of you can work on the same document, even at the same time (when another person is working on the same document simultaneously, their cursor will appear in a different color than yours). When you add or change something, you can use a different colored font, eg, green, and when your editor has taken a look at the mods, he can change it back to black.

Google Docs will also allow you to add comments to the document, which appear as little boxes off to the side. So if you've made a change somewhere, you can mark it off with a comment, or if your editor has a question about a certain section, he can also mark it with a comment for you to look at. I would seriously give this a try.

 

[topace]

I've often noticed lately as I'm working on a chapter of one of my stories in progress that every time I read it (when I come back to write some more), I tend to see how I can improve something in the story to make it better.

I've also noticed I tend to do that when I'm adding the allowed HTML tags as I'm posting them as well. It just goes to show that the more you read one of your own stories, the more likely you are to spot poor story flow and other errors.

 

[damppanties]

I've often noticed lately as I'm working on a chapter of one of my stories in progress that every time I read it (when I come back to write some more), I tend to see how I can improve something in the story to make it better.

I've also noticed I tend to do that when I'm adding the allowed HTML tags as I'm posting them as well. It just goes to show that the more you read one of your own stories, the more likely you are to spot poor story flow and other errors.

Not quite. That's true to a certain extent, but I don't send it for editing unless I'm quite sick of seeing it. That means I go over and over multiple times looking for issues. Then there comes a point where I'm too close to the damn thing and it stops making any sense to me at all. It's then that it needs to go to an editor who can see it as a whole, not like my own myopia, and do a proper edit.

As for including HTML tags, Find & Replace is my friend. I would mess up something awful if I had to do it separately in each place.

 

[estragon]

As you see, there's no one-size-fits-all, but in the majority of cases the author should be finished before sending a story for editing.

 

[Villanueva1]

sounds good

 

[TinyBeth]

I have done the same thing since I sent my story to multiple editors. I haven't made any major copy revisions that haven't been suggested by one of them, but I have changed a few things here and there to make it read better generally using other suggestions I have gotten from here. In the future I will know to do things differently and also know I need to let it go and get it submitted because if I keep agonizing over it I never will.

 

[RedMonkeyButt]

You can also try using Google Docs (now Google Drive). That way, both of you can work on the same document, even at the same time (when another person is working on the same document simultaneously, their cursor will appear in a different color than yours). When you add or change something, you can use a different colored font, eg, green, and when your editor has taken a look at the mods, he can change it back to black.

Google Docs will also allow you to add comments to the document, which appear as little boxes off to the side. So if you've made a change somewhere, you can mark it off with a comment, or if your editor has a question about a certain section, he can also mark it with a comment for you to look at. I would seriously give this a try.

As a volunteer editor who has actually done this with Google Docs, I have to say I don't like it. If you're on at the same time as the other person, you can see them working and chat with them and it gets distracting when you're trying to do edits. It gets worse when they say they changed something, and it just makes it difficult to make progress on an actual edit. It's a great idea if the author is capable of leaving it in the editors hands until they're done. Otherwise, it's just like looking over their shoulder and bugging the hell out of them while they try to work on your stuff. I much prefer the author to send me the piece when they're done with it.

Also as an editor, I prefer the story to be completely finished when I get it. I don't mind doing the beta-reader stuff, but tell me that's what you need. Otherwise, I'm going to assume you need a copy edit done and will be royally pissed when I find you need a whole lot more done than spelling and grammar.

As an author, I have to be fairly certain I'm done with the story before I send it out. I am guilty, however, of sending the story to the editor more than once for additional edits after I address their issues from the first round. Those corrections on the second edit were to tie up problem areas the editor caught, though. I also tend to write longer pieces, so I make sure the person who agrees to take on the story doesn't mind editing novel-length stuff.

 

[JustaSCOUNDREL]

I do a lot of self editing before submitting the story to my editor. Quite honestly by the time I'm ready to submit it I am sick of the damn thing. Since I trust my editor implicitly I only give it a quick scan and send it off to Lit.

Honestly I think it is rude to ask someone to edit my story and then change it before she has a chance to finish her original edit or to change her edit unless there are major problems with her final version.

Mike

 

[RedMonkeyButt]

I don't change the edit. The last story I had edited had holes that my editor caught while she did her read-through. Fixing it called for adding to the story to clear up some muddled points, so I sent it back when I was done so she could make sure it worked. Apparently it did because Rain has a little red H beside it.