Etta Grace Guest Post - Write Now, Edit Later

(This post is from the wonderful Etta Grace for a collaboration between our blogs. Check out my post "The Art of Visual Editing is all in the Blink" on her site: www.ettagraceauthor.com)

Write Now, Edit Later. It’s advice that’s handed down from generation to generation of aspiring creatives and enshrined in the principles of the once-ubiquitous NaNoWriMo challenge which encouraged its participants to write a 50,000 word long story in a month.

Write Now, Edit Later. When writer's block plagues the empty page, or imposter syndrome rears its ugly head, this advice becomes a mantra to help weary authors meet their word count goals.

Write Now, Edit Later. For new writers, chasing inspiration for the first time but paralyzed with indecision, this advice helps people gain confidence in their stories as they learn to pursue their dreams with reckless abandon.

It's great advice I’ve lived by for many years.

But what happens when Later comes? When the first draft is over, you’re forced to confront all the plot holes ignored, the bracketed placeholders, and the awkward dialogue that you ignored in the Write Now phase. Of course, you can post the first draft and there’s no shame in that if you write for a hobby, for yourself, or for a small circle of friends. But if you want a polished piece to submit to contests, or intend to pursue publication, the next steps may be daunting.

My name is Etta Grace. I’m publishing my debut YA fantasy novel on October 31^st, but before Runaways was ready to hit the shelves, it went through two major rewrites, two rounds of beta reader feedback, a professional line/copy edit, and professional proofreading. After rejecting and approving thousands of changes and comments, I’ve learned that to be a writer is truly to be an editor, and to embrace this part of the process.

Here are some of my tips for picking up your red pen, wielding it with care, and not losing your mind in the process:

#1. Keep your theme in mind

In the edits, you shape the message of your work with every choice you make. In the dialogue, do the characters argue, or discuss, or bicker? What words they choose to use when interacting with each other gives us more insight into their relationships and their mindsets. How does your POV character describe the scenery? If they’re curious about their surroundings, they will interact with it differently than if they’re disgusted, or indifferent. You can use unreliable narrators, subtext, timelines, and conflicting POVs to build up intrigue or drama. In the first draft, the goal was merely to move onto the next scene, but now you can take your time. Think about the emotions you want to provoke in your readers, and the ideas you want them to take away from each scene as they journey along with the characters. If you base each of your decisions in this core framework, the process becomes a lot less overwhelming.

#2. Don’t be afraid to make major surgery

After you’ve finished the first draft, you’ll want to take some time away from your manuscript and come back to it with fresh eyes. With those fresh eyes, you may realize that the story needs significant structural changes, like killing off or adding entire characters, moving around whole chapters, adding 50k to the middle of the book to develop a subplot, or even changing the entire tense of the novel. (Sounds crazy, but I speak from personal experience.) You may be tempted to skim over these changes to save yourself the work, or to preserve the “vision” you had for the original draft. The magnitude of the changes may feel so overwhelming you don’t know where to start, or if you’re even doing the right thing.

Save the original, then make a new copy. Now you can’t do anything that can’t be undone, and you have the freedom to make all the big changes you see fit. If your gut is telling you that such a major change is the right choice for the story, it probably is, so take the time to put in the work, and your future self will thank you.

#3. Choosing the right people for feedback

There are personal friends, and then then there are WriterFriends™. Personal friends are wonderful people who want to support you and your writing career, they love to hear you talk about your stories, and enjoy hanging out with you, but when it comes time for giving feedback they are sometimes unreliable. You know how busy their lives are, so they may not feel the need to finish the manuscript by a given deadline, and because you are such good friends, they will hesitate to give you the constructive criticism you really need. They are well meaning, but if they are not creatives, they will not understand the process. Share your work with them, let them know how much you appreciate their support, keep them in your corner for when the other feedback is harsh, but do not stop there.

Go online, go to workshops, book-fairs, and conferences, go library writer-groups, go to discord servers, and find critique partners. Other writers will understand the point of constructive criticism is to make your story the best version of itself it can be. They will start as strangers, so they will act somewhat polite and professional. You will get some duds, who try to make your story into what they think it should be, who ignore deadlines, but write them off mean strangers on the internet. Go back to your real friends and cry on their shoulders. Often though, you will find wonderful folks who become WriterFriends and your strongest supporters. They will understand your pain, they will share your joy, they will gasp at the plot twists and give you ideas for more. These friendships have challenged my writing skills to grow further than I could have possibly expected, and I am so grateful for them.

If you’re in the editing trenches, I wish you the best of luck! Thank you so much to Gates Annai for hosting this article! If you’re interested in reading her post about editing on the Blink, or if you want to see more of my writing advice, be sure to check out my blog: www.ettagraceauthor.com.