What Do I Know About Revision?
When Meg asked me to write a blog post, my first thought was what do I know about revision?
Hmmmm. I hate it. I love it. It’s a pain. It’s bliss. I avoid it. I avoid it. I avoid it. But then, I sit down and do it.
I hate revision. It means I’ve made mistakes and my brilliant masterpiece, sucks. It means dissecting my story and figuring out what works and what doesn’t. It also means critiques. Yikes…critiques are scary!
I love revision. It means my tale is on paper. Sure, there are flaws but there’s hope too. My tale has a beginning, middle and end. I no longer fear that it’ll be lost in the fickle gray matter inside my head. (Not to say it won’t be lost in the jumble of files on my computer or in the disorganized mess I call, my office.)
Revision is a pain. It means reading my work over and over, one word at a time, aloud. It also means dragging out my dusty thesaurus. But wait, this is where revision is bliss. This is where I leave my story and find a distraction. Sometimes I clean my house, really clean it from top to bottom. Other times I read a good book, or start a new project and sometimes I just take to walking and walking and walking (think Forest Gump). Whatever I do I put some distance between myself and my work in progress.
I forget my revision and let my mind wander. Revision is bliss when I avoid it. I avoid it, avoid it and avoid it.
Then, one day I see a flash in my mind’s eye. It may be a word or a character that I needed for that story. Which story was it? What was it about? Did it have a title? My gray matter can’t recall it or even remember what it was about. I dig through the pile of papers on my desk. Not there! I pull up the file on my computer titled, “Stories needing revision.” There it is!
I sit my keister in the chair and revise. It’s breezy- easy!
I send it off to my critique group. That, as I said earlier, scares the beejeebers out of me. Why? Because I know they will want me to revise it.
Thank you Doris!!
Doris has spent her life surrounded by children. She's been called friend, babysitter, mother, teacher and "Nana". From everyday experiences she crafts stories. Her hope is they will enhance lives of youngsters and help them understand and enjoy the world around them. Doris is the creator of the Fearless February 28 day 28 minute Challenge. http://doriskstone.weebly.com/
9 comments :
ah the joys of revising and I ran out of milk, I can't do it anymore,not without milk and I discovered while revising that i am bordering on insane because I had a seriously strong emotional reaction to a story I had put to one side for several months. Crazy writer plus. Thanks Doris, I am glad the professionals are just as mixed up about their revisions :)
Revision definitely can be a love hate relationship!
Thanks, Doris. I have a feeling that even those who say they love it experience those moments of hate.
Revisions, revisions! Glorious yet like pulling teeth. Some days I love them, some days I hate them. But it must be done. Thank you, Doris. And to Meg, too!
SO true! Love this post. Makes me feel normal (and that is HARD to do LOL)
She nailed it!
Thank you, Doris! Everything you said is true. I have to have my time away-glad I have lots of company :)
AHHH! I'm not the only one who successfully avoids her work...for a time, anyway. ;) Always glad to get some revisions done, though. Now, how about a party for all of us? With lots of chocolate? :D
Thanks Doris and Meg. "I hate it. I love it. It's a pain. It's bliss." -- If that doesn't sum it up, I don't know what does!
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