Editing With Style

What's your editing style?

a) Do you revise as you go?

b) Let the words fly and edit later?

c) Employ a mix of both a and b?

My style is a definite c, as my inner editor never shuts up. It's been a road of ups and downs, but I've learned to reign in little miss mouthy editor for a pretty happy balance. 

I'm curious about your editing process. What tricks help you jump the hurdles? Aside from Spell Check, what essentials do you use before hitting send?

I use a combo and I...

1) Allow myself to write badly. I'm not good at this naturally, as the inner editor combined with perfectionist tendencies wants to get everything right the first time. However, I've learned that it's okay to crank out less than perfect stuff at first. 

2) Print it. There's something different about reading words on a screen versus words on a printed page.

3) Let it rest. Stepping away for a few hours to a few days offers a fresh perspective.

4) Read it backwards. Don't do this often, but once in a while it helps

5) Get an outside opinion. Sending it off to a fellow writer offers benefits galore.

6) Read it aloud. Then read it aloud again. Slowly. The ear is a great editor, catching typos and rough spots the eyes miss.

Simple stuff, right? But good tools to polish and perfect, I'm thinking.

While we're on the subject, I thought this article, 4 Ways to Revise as You Write offered interesting editing alternatives. See if you agree.

So what's your editing style? Do you have any tips to share? What are you editing these days?


Happy writing,

Karen

Photo Credit: Stock Exchange

The Inner Editor

Winner!

Congratulations to Lisa Ricard Claro, the winner of  A Path Less Traveled by Cathy Bryant.  Thanks to all who participated!


The Inner Editor

I was planning an upcoming post to discuss our internal editor, and to see how my writing friends write and edit. Lo and behold, Monday's post, Straight Furrows, generated a few comments along those lines. We're so in tune, you anticipated my next series of questions! No actually, the topic of straight furrows tied in well. Here are a few of your thoughts:

Jennifer Shirk likes to "do editing as I write. Every time I start a new day of writing I go back and re-read what I wrote the day before and usually will end up chopping a lot or tightening sentences."

I like how Linda O'Connell brings nature into play. " I am now at a point where I edit as I go, then once again when I reread. Think of your writing as a flowering bush that requires pruning."

"When I start out on a project I try and make it as clear and polished as I can," says Lindsey Edwards. "Of course I always straighten it out in the end."

So, About That Editor

Does the inner editor hinder us from getting the good words out and letting things flow? If it does, how do we shut it down? Or wait, do we want this sometimes tyrannical, annoying editor to spout off ideas?

Malinda Lo offers suggestions in this post when she defines the difference between the inner editor and the inner critic. Ah, so maybe we're getting it all wrong, and our critic is disguising as an editor. Or vice versa.

Jon Morrow, Associate Editor of Copyblogger, suggests writing a letter to your internal editor. By confronting it, he says, we might shut it down. Well, if not, it makes a good writing prompt...

Wordplay's K.M. Weiland says that we battle this editor because we don't know how to utilize him/her properly. Her post, Embrace Your Inner Editor, explains that we need to turn the "diatribes into lessons for improvement." So if you can't beat 'em, join 'em?

Sometimes I arm wrestle with my inner editor. And sometimes she's off somewhere taking a nap (and I'm totally jealous). It depends on what I am writing. I would however, prefer to call a peaceful truce and work with her, utilizing the benefits and meeting the challenges of the grouchy moments. I am interested in more of your input. Anyone else arm wrestling? Or napping?

 Awards

Rachna Chhabria, of Rachna's Scriptorium kindly passed along the Helping Hand award. Thank you, Rachna! I appreciate it. Rachna's blog offers her insight on writing. She's always got a great conversation going.

At Trying to Get Over the Rainbow, Jules is spreading love and appreciation for her followers with the Pass The Love 2011 Award. Jules and I both live in KY, and connected through blogging. I enjoy her perspective on writing and life. Thanks, Jules!

I'm going to do as Rachna and Jules did, and pass these along to you. Thanks to all of you for lending me a hand, and for being a wonderful and friendly support system!

Contest at Lisa's

Lisa Ricard Claro is having a February Giveaway over at Writing in the Buff. She's celebrating followers and other fun stuff, complete with three great prizes. If you head over and follow, please tell her I sent you. We both gain more entries that way. :)

So tell me, how do you deal with your inner editor? Is it a problem? Does he/she rest quietly while you write, or chatter and fuss until you listen?

Happy weekend,
Karen

Photo credit: Dsoons http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1319321