Comments on: What Happens to an Author When She Finishes Editing?

By: Belinda

Belinda — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 14:17:28 +0000

Haha, this is not a normal thing at all, Word Nerd. I usually throw all my edits into an existing document on the screen. But this time, my edits require a new document. Both because I’m switching from present to past, and because there are extensive changes to the scenes/pages/chapters, some of which I’ve taken out completely.

Plus, I’m a really fast typer. I’ve already retyped chapters 1-3.

By: word nerd

word nerd — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 13:12:36 +0000

You retype the entire manuscript? That sounds like a huge investment of time…
Maybe the past to present switch makes that easier, but I would think that just working with the electronic file and editing on screen (without retyping the good words) would be faster.
Either way… congrats on being done with a draft and hitting actual revisions.

By: Belinda

Belinda — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 20:58:23 +0000

You are not the first, by far. My dedication to my craft is borderline obsession sometimes. But I can already tell the difference. I started transcribing to past tense and everything is much tighter this time around, so it’s paying off!

By: Zoe Winters

Zoe Winters — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 19:49:38 +0000

hehe yes, I’m convinced you’re insane. :P But that just makes you a “real writer” Welcome to the club. ;)

By: Belinda

Belinda — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:42:17 +0000

So there is a method to my madness! I hope to post comparisons sometime in the near future as I transcribe from present to past tense.

By: Eliza

Eliza — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:14:16 +0000

I had no idea that was why you were writing in present tense; that makes sense now. :) I’ll look forward to seeing the occasional snippet in past, if you’ll be posting any.

By: Belinda

Belinda — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:12:10 +0000

You have no idea how glad that makes me. See, it’s a good thing to leave your writing alone for a while! I hope you post a couple and let us know where they are so we can see what you’ve done.

By: Ruth

Ruth — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 15:40:30 +0000

I actually remembered you yesterday, when I opened a box where I keep a lot of short stories that are years old. I left them there because I thought, back when I wrote them, that they were not good enough to send to any contest, but guess what? I like them a lot better now. So I’m taking that red pen and I’m going to be brutally honest with myself, because, basically, I have nothing to lose! I had even forgotten they were there, so I don’t feel like I’m defacing my little ones.
Good luck with your project!