The Editing Process and Why I Enjoy It.

Unlike many writers, I enjoy the editing process that followsthe white hot period of creation. This is the time when you find the rightwords to replace those that flew off the end of your fingers in the rush to getthe ideas down before they escaped into the ether. This is your opportunity toturn a banal phrase into something poetic and memorable. It's the time to hone,sharpen, tighten and close up the text to build in the pace that carries thestory forward. It's the chance to spend some prime time with your charactersand understand them better than was possible at the beginning of the story,since even the most well-drawn characters have a tendency to diverge from theauthor's view of them as they grow during the story. It's the place to do thathardest of all things every writer must do in order to succeed; to murder yourdarlings. Most writers will understand this expression. For those who don't, itsimply means that you have to examine your writing critically and decidewhether that exquisite phrase you used to describe the heroine, the scenery,the hero, is actually necessary to the story. If it isn't, you cut it out andtoss it away. Your darling infants consigned to the bonfire of vanities.
I've always held to a short but, for me, true mantra onwriting: write from the heart, but edit from the head.
I've also always placed a distance between the writing of apiece and the editing. If you can come to your work with a fresh mind,following a break without reading or thinking about it, you're far more likelyto spot problems within it. So, after the creative phase, I always lock awaythe piece for a period, the length of which is more dependent on circumstancesthan any formal programme. But when I return to it, I work methodically.Whether my method will work for you, however, depends on the type of writer youare.
I do a first read through, quickly and without stopping forchanges I see as necessary - merely marking these points as prompts for thenext read through. This first read I do more or less as a reader, rather than awriter. It re-acquaints me with the work, allows me to see whether the ideashave translated into something that will interest readers, and highlights anyglaring inconsistencies in plot, character or setting.
Next, I read through and look at those marked places, makingwhatever alterations seem necessary. As I do this, I also make any changes thatmight affect pace by removing redundancies and repetitions.I then subject each chapter, or section, to the http://www.wordle.net/check. This wonderful and simple program provides a graphic (see theillustration for this post) that highlights words used according to frequencyand is an invaluable tool for identifying overused words. I thoroughlyrecommend this free editing helper.
The next stage is the crucial one, which I advise every writerto do, regardless of genre, habit, type or experience. I read the entire workaloud, from a typed script, marking it as I go along to indicate any areas oferror, confusion, repetition, clumsy construction etc. Reading aloud makeserrors far more evident, and reading from a printed source, rather than thescreen, makes mistakes and inconsistencies far more obvious. I can't emphasisetoo strongly how important this step is. If you do nothing else in editing, atleast do this.
Once I've been through and made the changes indicated by theread-through above, I subject the piece to the mechanical spell and grammarcheck. This highlights a number of issues and, in spite of its shortcomings andinadequacies, often reveals odd things missed during the manual process.
A final read through allows me to ensure consistency inplotting, characterisation, timeline, setting and theme. I keep a spreadsheetfor the timeline, so that I know where each character is at any given time.This includes a hyperlink to each character's sketch, so I can ensure I haven'tinadvertently changed hair or eye colour or suddenly made an atheist into agodbotherer, or aged a youngster, etc. I also include phases of the moon andsunrise/sunset times on the timeline, so I can keep track of such items whenI'm describing activity or scenes.
You will no doubt note that I haven't described a sessionwhere I make changes to improve the language of the piece. That's because I dothis as I go along, as part of all the other checks and alterations.
That's it. I know I could go through the piece again andagain, and find other faults or places where improvements could be made, but Iwrite to be read and there comes a time when the piece must be revealed to readers.Some writers find this final phase the most difficult and I suspect theirreluctance to get their piece out in front of an audience is due to eithermisplaced lack of confidence or an unwillingness to let go of their child andsend it out into the world.
There are writers, particularly amongst the indie writercategory, who don't bother with even the most basic editing. Their work isreadily identifiable by its numerous spelling errors, lack of grammaticalaccuracy, inconsistencies in expression and poor story planning. It puzzles anddistresses me that readers give such writers the time of day, but perhaps Iconsider such things as correct language use, basic spelling and grammar, astools of the trade and see their lack as insults to the readers; insults that,perhaps, certain readers don't perceive as such.
So, there you have it: the process of refining the initialpiece of created fiction into a story worthy of exhibition before my readers.Yes, it's a lot of work, time and effort. But nothing worthwhile was evercreated in ease. I can only hope that my efforts produce stories that readersfind entertaining, illuminating and enjoyable.

An unrelated question for you to ponder: Why do doctors leave the roomwhile you undress, since they're going to see you naked anyway?