Ah, editing. Some people love the first draft of a novel; the heady, breathless rush to put words on paper (metaphorically speaking for me) and see thoughts become form. Not me. My favorite part is planning with extensive outlines and offshoots and what ifs. Since I can't spend all my life just planning things...well, I could, but part of the fun in life is finishing those projects too...editing a novel is my second favorite part.
For me, editing is where I prove to myself I know what I'm doing, I know what I'm trying to say. The first draft of Wishful Thinking had promise but it wasn't until I re-wrote most of it that I could see the direction I needed to go in. I consider my re-write the first editing pass I took since I reshaped the plot and basically made it make sense. (If it doesn't make sense, it's worthless - going on a sticky note push pinned in my drywall) In editing, I'm starting to look at the individual scenes and their role in the whole package. And I'm ruthless. Forward the story or GTFO. I'd push pin that into my wall too but my eight year old is very interested in colorful language and I'm not talking aubergine.
So far, I've noticed a flat scene, a scene that needs a follow-up scene, a scene I chickened out on, etc.... I can't wait to get back in to those scenes and let the characters tell you what they really think. No holding back. Time to make the story better, give it a fresh coat of paint.
Photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos.
No comments:
Post a Comment