Tuesday, September 17, 2013

WIP Challenge Day 17: What was your honest review of your work when you did your first edit?

There is a quote that says, "Write drunk, edit sober." Well, I don't drink so I just have to rely on my moody muse for help at times. When I am on a roll, my writing can be very driven. Then when I go back for rewrites and edits I find myself thankful for the wonderful idea, but wondering what the hell  was going through my mind when I used certain words.
When I got my first set of edits through my former publisher, I will be honest and say I feel it got butchered. I didn't really know what I was doing either, I had never dealt with edit tracks on a computer, and thought I had every red mark out of the manuscript only to get the PDF and realize--horrifyingly--that was not the case.
Then I got the edits on my second book and was very pleased. I was able to figure out the edit tracking more easily and what's more wonderful was the notes I received. I was proud as I realized some twists I had used in the story had the exact effect I had hoped for.
 I must admit, sending my work through an editor has definitely made me more vigilant as I work on rewrites and my own bit of editing before submitting to the publisher. I catch myself out of habit now, changing certain things, remembering editors comments from the past as I correct a word or a line in the book.
The entire experience has benefited me as a  writer. When I actually get a wonderful idea and become fueled by the passion of it, it becomes a goal to really concentrate and fully give it the attention it deserves.

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