Rod Duncan's Blog - Posts Tagged "editing"
Editing Vs Writing
Happy New Year - for those of you who follow the Gregorian calendar.
My writing goal for last year was to finish the first draft of the next novel, which I achieved with a few days to spare. I have allocated January and February for editing.
The editing will begin with a broad-scale rewriting. Chapters will be deleted. Now ones will be written. Then I'll start on the finer work, reading out sentences to see how they sound, tweaking the wording. On the final couple of read-throughs I'll change the odd semicolon into a comma.
Looking further ahead, in March 2017 I'll move on to the fifth book set in the Gas-Lit Empire. But here, I anticipate a problem.
The truth is, I enjoy the process of editing. It satisfies my inner perfectionist. By the time March comes around, I'm going to be so far into that process that it will be very hard to start something new. By then I will be in love with book 4 and nothing I write in book 5 will seem good enough. The transition from one novel to the next has always been difficult for me.
But today - January 1st seeming like a portentous date - I opened up my computer and instead of getting on with the editing process, I created a new document, typed a title, and then: "Chapter 1".
I will need to get back to editing book 4 tomorrow, or perhaps the day after. But for now, it feels good to have launched into a brand new story. And when March does arrive, I will already have a few words on the page to kick start the next adventure.
Thank you for your friendship and support during the last year. I can't tell you how precious it has been to me, and how helpful. It gives me the confidence to carry on. Whatever you do in 2017, I hope it brings you joy and fulfillment.
PS As I mentioned in an earlier post, I hope to be making an IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT on the 5th January, which may include the names and dates.
https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
My writing goal for last year was to finish the first draft of the next novel, which I achieved with a few days to spare. I have allocated January and February for editing.
The editing will begin with a broad-scale rewriting. Chapters will be deleted. Now ones will be written. Then I'll start on the finer work, reading out sentences to see how they sound, tweaking the wording. On the final couple of read-throughs I'll change the odd semicolon into a comma.
Looking further ahead, in March 2017 I'll move on to the fifth book set in the Gas-Lit Empire. But here, I anticipate a problem.
The truth is, I enjoy the process of editing. It satisfies my inner perfectionist. By the time March comes around, I'm going to be so far into that process that it will be very hard to start something new. By then I will be in love with book 4 and nothing I write in book 5 will seem good enough. The transition from one novel to the next has always been difficult for me.
But today - January 1st seeming like a portentous date - I opened up my computer and instead of getting on with the editing process, I created a new document, typed a title, and then: "Chapter 1".
I will need to get back to editing book 4 tomorrow, or perhaps the day after. But for now, it feels good to have launched into a brand new story. And when March does arrive, I will already have a few words on the page to kick start the next adventure.
Thank you for your friendship and support during the last year. I can't tell you how precious it has been to me, and how helpful. It gives me the confidence to carry on. Whatever you do in 2017, I hope it brings you joy and fulfillment.
PS As I mentioned in an earlier post, I hope to be making an IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT on the 5th January, which may include the names and dates.
https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
Editing and the number 100
"Editing continues."
There are many occasions when a report of my writing activities looks drab and unexciting like that. After all, what could be so dull as editing?
My friends, if only I could share with you the feeling. A story is emerging before my eyes, formed by the incremental sifting of language. I'm making discoveries about the characters - things that might have been buried in my unconscious mind, but which are brought to light by the process of continually rewriting sentences and paragraphs. The Queen of all Crows is at the cusp of becoming a novel.
So far, a handful of people have seen the opening act of the book. But no one has seen the whole thing. Once I've finished editing through the entire novel - in the next few days - I'll be able to show it to some of my trusted Beta readers. All my experience tells me that the book is working, that it is going to be well received. But my emotions are shouting: "Help! What if they hate it?" We will soon find out.
One Hundred Reviews
Mathematically, the difference between 99 and 100 is 1. But emotionally, 100 seems to carry an added significance. A few days ago, I noticed that...
The full article can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
There are many occasions when a report of my writing activities looks drab and unexciting like that. After all, what could be so dull as editing?
My friends, if only I could share with you the feeling. A story is emerging before my eyes, formed by the incremental sifting of language. I'm making discoveries about the characters - things that might have been buried in my unconscious mind, but which are brought to light by the process of continually rewriting sentences and paragraphs. The Queen of all Crows is at the cusp of becoming a novel.
So far, a handful of people have seen the opening act of the book. But no one has seen the whole thing. Once I've finished editing through the entire novel - in the next few days - I'll be able to show it to some of my trusted Beta readers. All my experience tells me that the book is working, that it is going to be well received. But my emotions are shouting: "Help! What if they hate it?" We will soon find out.
One Hundred Reviews
Mathematically, the difference between 99 and 100 is 1. But emotionally, 100 seems to carry an added significance. A few days ago, I noticed that...
The full article can be found here: https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
Editing Editing Editing
Here are two versions of a paragraph from book 2 of The Map of Unknown Things:
“She began probing inside the keyhole with the tip of the nail. The crudeness of finish suggested something easy to pick. A simple ward lock perhaps. But locks could be as deceptive as people."
and
"She began probing inside the keyhole with the tip of the nail. The crudeness of finish suggested something easy to pick. A simple ward lock perhaps. But locks can be as deceptive as people."
One word has been changed: 'could' for 'can'. The difference in meaning is slight. But there is something interesting about the way each version positions the narrator. Are they inside the story or outside it?
Read the full article here:
https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
“She began probing inside the keyhole with the tip of the nail. The crudeness of finish suggested something easy to pick. A simple ward lock perhaps. But locks could be as deceptive as people."
and
"She began probing inside the keyhole with the tip of the nail. The crudeness of finish suggested something easy to pick. A simple ward lock perhaps. But locks can be as deceptive as people."
One word has been changed: 'could' for 'can'. The difference in meaning is slight. But there is something interesting about the way each version positions the narrator. Are they inside the story or outside it?
Read the full article here:
https://www.facebook.com/gaslitempire...
