Editing- What's your style?

[FallingToFly]

I'm milking the juice out of my muse while I've got her chained up and howling in the attic. Naturally, this means a lot of editing and rewriting on projects that never made it to completion. *I'm glaring at you, Impossible Gifts!*

So how do you do it? Do you just start at the beginning and let 'er rip? Do you carefully read the whole piece, then go back and start editing and making changes? Or do you just start over? Do you edit one piece at a time or several?

Right now I'm stuck in the line by line edit of several pieces at once, with the occasional leap ahead to add or rewrite a scene as inspiration hits. This has resulted in six files open on my laptop and a minor meltdown when I typed a paragraph meant for one piece into another, and then cut it and it vanished from my clipboard. (I fixed that, but it was terrifying for a few minutes there.)

I keep looking at this ungodly tangle of words and scenes and thinking there has to be an easier way. I just haven't found it yet!

 

[Euphony]

Wouldnt it be based on if you are a focused type personality or a multitasker?

personally, i dont cross stories. I find I am best focused on the people in front of me and can tell their story best staying in their heads for as long as my patience will allow. I do, however, have great patience.

I dont think there is a right/wrong answer to your question. You do whichever way works best for you and gets to job done.

Simple as that.

 

[sun_sea_sky]

Personally I do one story at a time. Write it pretty fast, then go back for multiple re-reads (for editing).

Sometimes I run out of steam in the middle of it. Like now.

 

[FallingToFly]

Thanks guys. I guess I just feel like there has to be a better way than having EVERYTHING out at once and bouncing around. And like SSS pointed out- I'm afraid of running out of steam.

 

[Tx Tall Tales]

In the works

I'm guessing you write a little like me, FallingToFly - I write when I'm inspired, and slow down when I'm out of steam. By having several stories going, when one doesn't float my boat, I can work on a different one.

Unfortunately, most of mine are pretty long, and take forever to finish. When I get back to working on a 20 chapter story (average 3-4 pages per chapter) it can take me a full day just to reread enough to remember where I'm at and where I'm going.

Right now, on Lit, I have 2 major unfinished stories (although I don't know if I'll ever finished CvsN started back in 2001 - I do have 30 chapters done), and five smaller stories I'd like to do followups on.

Unfortunately my 'working' directory has 25 multi-chapter stories in the works, two of them huge. After CvsN, I'm not posting any of the longer stories until they're completely done. Two of them I really like, and they get more attention than most.

I edit chapter by chapter. One quick write, very little editing, two edits for content and continuity, at least a week apart, and a couple of more edits line by line for spelling, grammar, and my usual writing issues (weak words, echoing, passives, etc.) Still seem to miss a few every story. I usually spot them as soon as the story is posted.

I haven't had much luck working with editors. One good one back in 2001 (WeirdHarold) and one very good one I just started working with. Not sharing her name until I get my latest 4 chapter story through final edit and submitted. Yes I'm greedy.

 

[TE999]

I usually edit as I go, especially when I hit a scene break; I'll reread the previous scene before proceeding with the next one. I have my spell checker and sentence construction ogre set on kill, so not much gets by them on that score. I've used editors in the past, but it's never worked well with my writing style, so any mistakes in a story now are my own ... and there have been some beauts! But that's life in the writing game.

 

[sun_sea_sky]

I had a couple of my stories edited by someone I had been chatting with in the AH forum. Her suggestions were very valuable, it's strange how you miss stuff no matter how many times you read it!

 

[annanova]

I had a couple of my stories edited by someone I had been chatting with in the AH forum. Her suggestions were very valuable, it's strange how you miss stuff no matter how many times you read it!

This is why I don't self-edit beyond running a spell-check. My editor combs through everything and then we go over all his edits via IM to make sure my story is still in my voice.

Not wanting to lose that proper voice is why, when I edit, I only go through spelling and grammar before suggesting word changes if something needs to be tidied up. As it happens, I'm working with someone who is nearing the end of a multi-chapter series, so his voice is established.

 

[Bramblethorn]

So how do you do it? Do you just start at the beginning and let 'er rip? Do you carefully read the whole piece, then go back and start editing and making changes? Or do you just start over? Do you edit one piece at a time or several?

I do a lot of editing as I write, so by the time I get to the end of a piece it will be very close to its final shape. Then I'll re-read once and hand it over to my editor/beta reader. Usually she only has a couple of minor changes. Then reformatting it for posting on Lit serves as a final read-through, and I'll tweak a few sentences here and there.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I cant imagine anyone editing a musical score or painting or sculpture, but with writing the author is usually the last to know what she cobbled together. Weird.

If you self edit spelling is the place to begin. Correct the spelling.

Then I swap short words for long words. Mark Twain said long words and short words pay the same, so use short words and spare yourself a lot of typing and time.

I rid the writing of helping verbs and their passive voice.

Next I eliminate nominalizations. A nominalization is a process we try and cram into a noun hole. If you cant tote it in a wheelbarrow its prolly a nominalization...liberty, love, courage, industry, indolence, fear, etc.

Tighten each sentence till its almost poetry but not quite. Every sentence should be like a short skirt. You want it to cover what needs covering but not destroy hope and interest and enthusiasm.

 

[Brandie69]

"Every sentence should be like a short skirt. You want it to cover what needs covering but not destroy hope and interest and enthusiasm."

Love that.

 

[TxRad]

Possibly more metaphor than maxim, this memorable advice regarding the length of a composition came from Dr. Douglas Starr, one of my journalism professors at Texas A&M:
“It should be like a mini-skirt–long enough to cover the subject thoroughly, but short enough to hold your interest.”

This is what I got when I googled it. Unless JBJ is Dr. Douglas Starr, this is the second time he's took credit for something someone else wrote.

 

[TinyBeth]

So far I have focused on one story at a time....and I am starting to think that, even with my limited writing time, that working on more than one at a time may not be a detriment. I have the beginning of an idea of a Halloween contest story, but I am in the middle of a story I had originally planned to be a "quick one-off" that I would get out of the way fast. It hasn't worked out that way. Instead I have spent weeks working on the sex scene (excellent practice, but not great for getting anything done and up) I think I am going to start the Halloween story and hope inspiration to finish the other comes.

 

[HeyAll]

I just re-read it from top to bottom. It's painful because I already know what the story is and all that and then you have to comb through it.

A few mistakes slip through every now and then after it gets posted, but in my opinion, it's not worth getting an editor. If I wrote an entire story and came up with all the ideas, I'm not going to share credit with someone just for checking my mistakes. I've always found that odd that people would put an editors name on top of a story for just looking through it for errors.

 

[MarieWriter]

how I do it

I cross write stories all the time. My mind seems to work like that. However I don't normally have two or more of them opened at once. I will just work on one, if I write something that I like for another I throw it on the clipboard and then write a bit more then jump stories and pull off the clipboard and write into what I saved. And I find I do this best when there is some serious Latin Jazz playing on my computer. That or the Eagles!! http://forum.literotica.com/images/icons/icon12.gif LOL

 

[MarieWriter]

icons

Guess someone needs to show me how to use the stupid little icons. LOL

 

[TxRad]

Guess someone needs to show me how to use the stupid little icons. LOL

Are you using the quick reply at the bottom of the page? If so , click the advanced side and you will have the icons to the right of the screen. click on the ones you want. You can use up to 10.

 

[TxRad]

To help with self editing, try changing the font when you reread it or change the background to blue if you use word. That will give you white letters.

Also try reading the story aloud. That will catch even more plus it will catch rough spots and flow problems.

 

[lovecraft68]

I start the story and get as far as I can.

the next night when I go back to it, I edit what I wrote to get me back in the feel of the story then write some more.

Next time in I do the same thing. The only drawback is I imagine the beginning of the story is most likely better edited than the end, because I've gone through it so many more times.

 

[nicecthulhu]

I try to work on only one story at a time, primarily so I don't start confusing the two. Often one will be with an editor and while they're going over it (I tend to write long stories) I start up another one. Not my preferred way to do it.
Once I have a story, I try to reread and edit it at least three times. I change words and sentences to improve the message and the emotional (or subconscious content). I delete where something just doesn't seem to fit in or seems superfluous. I add where something more is needed. I remove or change as much of the garbage (that spewed forth from my brain when I first wrote the story) as I can.
If I cannot enjoy rereading my own story then I'm not going to inflict it upon any of the fine people on this website! In parts that seem to drag, I make additions to tease the reader or spice up the story (sex or adventure-wise).

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

Possibly more metaphor than maxim, this memorable advice regarding the length of a composition came from Dr. Douglas Starr, one of my journalism professors at Texas A&M:
“It should be like a mini-skirt–long enough to cover the subject thoroughly, but short enough to hold your interest.”

This is what I got when I googled it. Unless JBJ is Dr. Douglas Starr, this is the second time he's took credit for something someone else wrote.

Maybe smart minds think alike. Maybe Perfesser Starr adapted the old comparison of barbed wire and bikinis.

Anyway, get back to work looking for sumthin to hang on me.

 

[lovecraft68]

To help with self editing, try changing the font when you reread it or change the background to blue if you use word. That will give you white letters.

Also try reading the story aloud. That will catch even more plus it will catch rough spots and flow problems.

Reading aloud helps me out a lot with comma use

 

[lovecraft68]

Possibly more metaphor than maxim, this memorable advice regarding the length of a composition came from Dr. Douglas Starr, one of my journalism professors at Texas A&M:
“It should be like a mini-skirt–long enough to cover the subject thoroughly, but short enough to hold your interest.”

This is what I got when I googled it. Unless JBJ is Dr. Douglas Starr, this is the second time he's took credit for something someone else wrote.

To be fair JB wasn't saying "Its like I always say" he was just making the statement.

People don't always quote the source of where they've heard something before.

So on that note, let me clarify something.

Several times on the boards I've said "See ya in the funny papers." I will make sure everyone knows I got that from Spider-man written by Stan Lee. I believe anyway, too lazy to google.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

To be fair JB wasn't saying "Its like I always say" he was just making the statement.

People don't always quote the source of where they've heard something before.

So on that note, let me clarify something.

Several times on the boards I've said "See ya in the funny papers." I will make sure everyone knows I got that from Spider-man written by Stan Lee. I believe anyway, too lazy to google.

TEX RIFF-RAFF is being a cod for the usual reason, he never thinks of anything new or old.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

To help with self editing, try changing the font when you reread it or change the background to blue if you use word. That will give you white letters.

Also try reading the story aloud. That will catch even more plus it will catch rough spots and flow problems.

THEFT ALERT!

TEX RIFF-RAFF stole the READ ALOUD suggestion from George V. Higgins book, ON WRITING.