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| Photo credit: Léoo on Flickr |
Now don’t get me wrong—I still love first drafting for all
of the same reasons and more, but over time I’ve come to realize that first
drafting is no longer my favorite part of writing: revision is.
It feels like a strange confession considering it wasn’t
that long ago that I was still trying to teach myself to learn to love the editing process, but I can honestly say that my view on a process that I once
dreaded has changed entirely.
Because yes, the discovery process is easily one of my favorite
aspects of writing, and I love meeting new characters and worlds with new rules
and norms, but there’s something even more satisfying about diving into the
story and really getting to know everything about it. I love learning all about
my characters and watching them come to life on the page a little more after
each revision. I love taking a rough draft full of potential and excitement and
carving it into something better—into a fully realized story with depth and
nuances and characters and situations brimming with so much energy that they
feel real.
I love writing. And I adore revision because it reminds me
of why I love writing so much in the first place. It reminds me that all of the
time and effort I’ve put into this WIP is worth it, because I can see my work
improving before my very eyes.
So while for me, first drafting is fun, revision has become
even more exciting. And that’s fine by me.
Let the discussion begin: What is your favorite part of the writing
process and why?
32 comments:
I've felt the same morph lately. I can't say that revision is my favorite, but now I'm first drafting with revision in mind (not ending as go just thinking about revisions in the future.) I just keep telling myself that it's okay to have a crazy becasue I can revise later.
I've found that writing with editing in mind makes first drafting easier because, as you said, I know I can always revise later so I don't have to worry about how terrible this chapter is or how many plot holes need filling or how many characters need work. I can focus on getting the story down and worry about the rest later.
Over the years, I've worked with hundreds of writers. I've found they fall into two camps: those who HATE writing first drafts but generally don't mind editing (this is by far the majority) and those who LOVE writing first drafts but who vastly dislike self-editing.
I used to fall into the first camp as well, but after much work on myself, now feel equally happy with writing a first draft AND with editing. The secret, as you say in a comment below Ava, is that you really need to separate the writing process from the editing one.
There are so many things to enjoy about both first drafting and editing. Both, of course, can be insanely difficult at times, but to me the joy of creating and refining something that is yours makes the rest worth it.
Naturally, I agree that separating the two processes (writing and editing) help tremendously. At least in my experience, the separation has made my expectations for each step more realistic, which is turn has made the process overall a little easier.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Daphne!
Considering how I'm struggling with revising, I would say that I loved writing the first draft.
Both processes definitely have their challenges. Best of luck with your revisions! :)
A few months ago, I would have said first draft writing was my favorite. But now that I've started the editing/revision of my novel in earnest, I find I'm rather enjoying it. I love the thrill of new discovery and making up stuff from scratch, but polishing something that's already good into something great (I hope) is becoming quite exciting too. Thanks for another great post, Ava. :)
I agree entirely--it is exciting. Difficult and frustrating, at times, but exciting. :)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Grace!
Revisions used to be such a pain for me. I think a lot of that stemmed from revising my work loooong after I had written it, so the gap between my writing skill when I wrote the first draft and when I revised it was substantial.
Even though revisions seem less of a chore for me now that I've narrowed the gap between writing and revising, I think I'll still go with writing the first draft as my favorite part of the process. I love the raw creativity of it.
Cool topic! :)
Thank you! I understand what you mean about the gap between writing and revising. On one hand it's a good sign--it means that you're improving your skill as a writer, but on the other hand it also means it's going to be a lot of work to revise, and oftentimes it means a lot of rewriting. While you're first drafting you don't have to worry about any of that, so it can be a highly enjoyable experience. :)
I'm the same! I used to love the NaNo draft - but now it's the bane of my existence b/c I usually have to rewrite it completely and it takes so long. (I'm a pantser who feels like I'm catching up to the plotting game). Now I love revisions because they make my novel not crap.
I think my favorite "omfg this is what it's all about i need a cigarette now" moment of writing is when you get so in the "zone". Whether it's writing the first draft or revising, you know when you're in that zone and god help anyone who interrupts you! ;)
I felt that recently while writing a first draft of a scene (which was an addition of an older scene). Let's just that zone is the only way I can write five pages in two hours, haha.
Well, I know my writing field is different, I am a songwriter and for me the best part is to finally finishing a song, it's hard for me to write songs, lyrics are so important, the message within is a "must" and seeing it all complete and singing it is my favorite
Agreed on all points! Especially about the interruption, lol!!
You have actually made me look forward to the edit portion with you post. Thanks for that. I am still a little scare. I love the first draft. Whether the novel or the short story. I really like making something out of nothing and actually finishing it.
It's definitely a time-consuming process, but the end result is worth it, IMO. :)
Agreed! I love it when you really get into your writing and you're entirely focused and whipping out words like it's nobody's business. I also understand what you mean about the interruptions...heh heh. :D
Wow! So cool to get a glimpse into the songwriting process. Can't say I'm too experienced in that area, myself. Thanks for sharing! :)
Editing can be a little scary, but it's not unlike drafting in that if you take it one step at a time and handle it in manageable chunks, it's not nearly as intimidating as trying to tackle the whole project at once.
On another note, I agree that creating something out of nothing and completing it is really special. It's truly something that pulls me to the arts, even beyond writing.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Sydney!
Definitely writing the first draft. Revision is painful for me, not because of the editing aspect so much as the amount of time it takes. And not having a definite end is annoying, too. You can edit forever if you want. When does it end? (I suppose technically you could continue writing a story forever, too - but I usually know when I've reached the end.)
My favorite part is the writing because you are in the "zone" and you're at the part you actually begin to create the thing that will end up being your novel. I also like creating characters and plots because that is the part you really get to know about your characters and your story, so you grow attached to it.
I don't exactly revise and edit in the traditional way. I take a break after writing the first draft. Then I read the first draft as I'm writing the second draft, changing things as I go. This is probably not the best way, but it makes me feel like I'm moving faster. The first novel I ever wrote was like 12 pages (on Microsoft Word) when I first became a writer, but over the years it became 150 pages on Microsoft Word. I think that is an achievement for me. I should probably start editing and revising my novels differently.
I read a quote somewhere that basically said a book is never finished; just published. You're right that you could technically continue editing forever if you wanted to--the key is to just let go when you know you've made it the best it can be, which, I'll admit, isn't always an easy call to make.
Dragon dictation for the first draft, natural and quick!
Put your time into the revision, and another, and another. Very rewarding.
I have to agree with you there! Writing is rewriting, right? I like how revision means you're done with first draft, past the writer's block and not knowing what comes next. You're that much closer to getting the book where it needs to be. And it's where you hopefully bring it up to its potential. It's your chance to really shine. Take your words, polish them, and transform the story into what it really wants to be :)
I haven't tried Dragon dictation, but I have to say, it's definitely peaked my interest. I'm not sure how I'd feel about verbally dictating a manuscript, but I'll have to try it out, sometime.
Yes, yes and yes. I agree entirely--it's for those reasons and more than I've really learned to love revision. :)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Yesenia!
I just like writing, full stop. I don't mind editing, either, but I love just writing for a few hours straight, and getting so engrossed that I can hardly remember the differences between the characters and myself. I'm only young yet, as a writer, but I already know it would be my dream to do it for a profession.
I think it's wonderful that you've found your dream at an early age--not many people can say they have any idea what they want to do as teenagers, and figuring it out early on is truly wonderful. :)
As for writing, I know exactly what you mean. I love when you really get into the zone and you block everything else out and it's just you and your words and the story. It's an incredible feeling.
Like you, I love the revision process. In fact, sometimes in the first drafting stages, I find myself just pushing through to get my thoughts onto paper, but as I go back through it and rewrite sentences, move elements around to make them fit more smoothly, or even remove some sentences or phrases all together, I'm able to see the finished work developing in front of my eyes and I love that.
When talking about your characters, you said, "...watching them come to life on the page a little more after each revision." I think that summarizes how I feel as well. Not necessarily just referring to characters (as I don't write fiction), but to thoughts and concepts. Each revision brings the ideas to life more and more.
Excellent post, my friend.
Thank you, Nicholas! It sounds like our writing process is pretty similar--I also often find while I'm first drafting, I mostly focus on just getting it down on paper. It's when I'm revising that I really start to have fun with the nuances and layers of the story. :)
Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!
I'm the same way. A lot of times, I'll begin by jotting a little outline or a few notes on a piece of paper and then I jump into the draft just pouring my thoughts out.
Gold is the same way. You've got to refine it if you want to really see it shine.
I like the analogy! I'll have to remember that next time I'm neck-deep in revisions.
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