I think you'll find that most of us over edit... I put a work aside for a period of several weeks at least (after posting here and revising my original story) and then I reread and always find more descriptive ways of saying something AGAIN. So, I edit again, and eventually get to the point where I think it's as good as it's gonna get, and then I leave it alone for several more weeks... I'm thankful and happy with the critiquing by a few faithful readers here and have not submitted my writing to "professional" editors. But then again, I don't have anyone beating down my door to publish my work either Hope this helps...

crazeesharon wrote:

Often times when a work is fairly fresh to us, we think it's in good shape. If a reviewer or editor were to make a suggestion to change something, our mental outlook may not be in the "right" place to accept that criticism. We find ourselves arguing or defending what we wrote. However, anytime a piece gets to be a chore, put it away and tackle a new project. The longer you let the old piece sit, the more it will be like reading someone else's writing when you look at it again. Which is helpful because more glaring errors will come screaming off the page at you. Then those suggestions made by others for changes make more sense to us.

It is always a good learning experience to hire an independent editor. A few aren't that expensive -- a penny or a penny and  a half per word. And it helps teach you to self-edit by looking at what they point out or suggest. The better you get at self-editing, the further ahead you will be, both for the quality of your writing as well as the condition of your pocketbook.

Don't bang something out and hope its good. Take real control of your project and make it good. Educate yourself. There are tons of free articles online on writing/editing. Agent websites often have tips for writers. Buy books on these subjects (try Abe Books, they are the cheapest on used books) put in "editing" in your key word search and see what's available. The Great Courses have college level classes you can purchase -- "How to Engage and Write About Anything" and "Building Great Sentences." You buy the book and CD, and study at home.

The more educated you become, the better editor you'll be. And today's writer has to be an editor, too, if they want to succeed.

This is great advice, Sharon, and not at all "Crazee".  I always like to re-read things I've written, as well as other people's stuff that I already reviewed because I find that after I've let it stew, or ferment, or maybe putrify for a while, I can see or hear or feel or smell or taste things in the writing that I did not see or hear or smell the first or second time though.

But I also think it is helpful to not go too far in either direction--taking every bit of "advice" or "suggestion" or, on the other hand, rejecting every bit of advice and believing you were correct in the first place.

brosna11 wrote:

Obcessive? Try Obsessive.

Haha, dammit! I wanted to be the one to point out the irony. Oh well. But seconded.

duchesnay, I'm convinced that you have to have a fair amount of neurosis to even be a writer. I am prone to neurotic tendencies in general, and they only get exaggerated when I sit down to write. Editing is obviously a very good skill that all writers need to possess if they want to be successful and be taken seriously by their peers and colleagues. That being said, nothing will squash the life from a piece faster than overediting. I have seen it happen on the site time and time again. A writer posts a good piece that needs a little tweaking. They receive a slew of advice from people of all genres and writing backgrounds. The next time they repost, the piece is 10x worse off than it was previously. So be selective in whose advice you follow. You will get a lot of wackos on here who think "their way is the only way" and it's best to ignore them (which is hard, because they can be persuasive. )

I second deb. I like to let pieces sit and percolate for a while before I go back to editing them. Novels vary, but when I write a short piece I generally wait for 3-6 months before looking at it again. Then I can approach it with fresh eyes and insight. Having others look at it certainly helps, but as I said, don't overdo it. When a piece is finally done, I have my girlfriend password protect the document so I can't access it anymore. LOL. I let it sit for another couple weeks (depending), and then I do another quick run-through looking for grammatical errors. Then it's time to slap my name on it and get it out to editors. It's an exhaustive process but, for me, highly rewarding.

I'm glad I ran across your thread, duchesnay, I erroneously called your short story The Mailman Caper a beginning to a novel in my review. I apologize, but still think it could be the start of something big. Your MC is so engaging I would like to know more about him and about the thieves who thought they were taking something valuable, only to be told it was garbage. You are very good at characterization, which is why I am interested in what happens to your characters. Please consider enlarging the plot into a novel.

Welcome to our little writing community,

dags

Last edited by dagnee (05-06-2012 10:17:16)

For me it's most important to the get story down in its entirety.  Then I can edit later.
I'm not as compulsive as some of my friends about editing as I go.

The problem with trying to perfect as you go is that the story is likely to change as you write it.
So adjustments made early on may not seem as perfect later.  So I don't like to waste time.

brosna11 wrote:

Obcessive? Try Obsessive.

Like I said, that's why I re-read stuff.  I freely admit I'm a horrible speller and even worse proof-reader of what I write.