.
I’ve talked about writing and sprints and pushing through
the blocks that come up, but there is another level to the writing process I
haven’t discussed. Revisions.
The steps in between first draft and …. The 20th.
Ther’e is no limit to the amount of rewrites that can happen between the first
draft and the last. The aim is perfection, or as close to it as you can come.
Where the first draft is a race to the finish, and you
should finish it before you begin to work on revisions, the next step really
should be taken with a bit of patience and a keen eye for detail. It’s the step
that takes the longest if done right.
Revisions should add layers to the story. Deepen it, enrich
it, add those wonderful little quirks that readers will pick up on. And I know
it sounds counterproductive to what I just said, but revisions and rewriting
can also be a place to cut and trim out the fat. You hone what is right and
remove what is not with the goal in mind of having something truly complete in
the end.
For me, this is the process that is the most frustrating as
I hate to cut any words and I often find all those pesky plot holes that need
filling. It’s a hard process, but a necessary step to take before you go to
beta readers or editors for the finish.
And as I write this I am avoiding working on my own
revisions, so I’d better get back to that.
Authors, how do you approach revisions?