Revising

Revising "Capes"

This is what the process of revision looks like for this project, a tale of two Real Life Superheroes. I find that each time I start revising, the process looks a little different; I don’t have one process that I follow, I just do what seems right for each project.

Writers, how do you revise your work? What’s your process from getting from first draft to draft two? And from two to three?

The Reluctant Revisionist

I’m going to admit something to you. I don’t like revision. I don’t like the editing of the versions of the drafts. I find the process tedious and dull.

After all, writing something new is sexy. Its exciting, isn’t it? There’s always some new idea, tugging at my brain strings just begging me to start writing it. Why not start on the latest new idea? After all, I finished it, didn’t I?

But its not finished. Its a draft. And a first draft at that. And it probably sucks. I gave myself permission for it to suck and I took that opportunity. The entire purpose of the first draft was to sprint through to the end and get the story told. I told myself it didn’t have to be good, that I would fix the problems when I revised it.

So I need to buckle down and do the revisions, don’t I?

If only it wasn’t so tedious.

Writers: how do you keep yourself motivated during revisions?