Monday, December 7, 2009

Getting it Right: The Satisfaction of a Good Revision

Writing is hard work. I don't mean to make it sound like it isn't, but it's fun hard work, right? To us writers, at least. We write because we enjoy it, the way math people enjoy solving long, complicated equations with odd symbols and way too many letters. The easy stuff isn't as gratifying, for math people or writing people, and finishing a novel is definitely the easiest part of the writing process.

There IS a huge rush of excitement in completing the first draft. I think sometimes though, writers tend to focus on the joy of that draft-- the story and characters and the world itself-- and see revisions as a time of frustration. We know things aren't right... pacing or character development or plot or dialogue (or all those things and more) and it seems impossible to fix them. But those things are what make a story great. And it's fun (weird, writerly fun) working on them, don't you think? Even if it's hard? There's nothing more satisfying in my writing than seeing a story I've written finally look less like the lump of clay I started with and more like something someone might want to look at. Satisfying isn't a strong enough word to describe it. It's intensely gratifying. I envisioned something incredible in my mind, and my first draft is not that incredible thing. I want to know what's wrong and I want to fix it, and I get all sparkly-happy inside when a scene or a chapter finally gets there... or at least, as close to "there" as I can make it.

Maybe you're great at reducing passive voice, or maybe you're awesome at improving dialogue. Or maybe I'm alone in enjoying the revision process, but here are my favorite things to work on: tightening up the writing, increasing intensity, and (one that I'd been forgetting but absolutely LOVE when I remember), adding sensory imagery. What about you? Is there anything you enjoy about the revision process?

26 comments:

  1. I love when there is a passage that is just bugging me and I finally figure out exactly how I want it. It's immensely satisfying.

    Strangely enough, my word verification was "fixed". Hmmm?

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  2. I love reading everything that I've written. Sometimes, I really surprise myself.

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  3. Hi Tina :) I know exactly what you mean. Sometimes a passage or scene (or... whole chapter! Cringe!) bugs me so much-- I KNOW it's not right-- but then I go back and somehow it clicks, and it's time for a happy dance :) Your word verification was eerily poignant, lol!

    Hi Steph! I like doing that too, especially after a month or so. The problem scenes glare a little brighter, but the good writing gives me a nice ego-boost too :)

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  4. You're crazy. I was going to post about how much revision sucks today, but a passive aggressive note from a neighbor killed even that mood. Revision sometimes gives me the same feeling as paying bills--a big yay when it's done--IF you can do it--but otherwise something that sucks rocks. I like writing a lot more. Revision is a tedious but necessary evil.

    Anyone who says differently is selling something.

    Ha! So there.

    Wendy grumbles, "Stupid passive aggressive notice that my dog barks. Of course he freaking barks. He's a guard dog and a big one. You moved in KNOWING he was there. Oh, and you're not really keeping it anonymous if you're the only one to move into the neighborhood in over a year, and you're right next door. Just come talk to me for crying out loud."

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  5. WENDY you know I'm crazy! But don't you feel a little excitement after you've figured out what's wrong? Isn't it sort of like a puzzle? Okay, it's hard, but the first version always bothers me so much-- it just doesn't feel right!

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  6. The first version does bug me and the first revision--done myself isn't too bad. It's when other people are saying, "This doesn't work. Fix it," when it becomes less fun. Plus, I start to feel a little like I'm Frankensteining it into a monster at some point around the fourth or fifth revision. It seems like cohesion slips--and you've got this THING all sewn together like a freak and sure it's still yours "technically" but it feels foreign and wrong.

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  7. I used to hate revision, but now I've grown to enjoy it because it makes my story read more like I intended it to be.

    "I'm not a very good WRITER, but I'm an excellent REWRITER."--James Michener

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  8. Okay Wendy, I see your point, and this needs to be a two-part post then. "When Revisions Go Bad- Avoiding Frankenstein." Revisions can be awesome, I DO enjoy them but they are freaking hard work. I like the puzzle-aspect and the incredible surge of satisfaction from getting it "right" so much that it can I must classify the feeling as "joy," I think. However, if I gave in to other people's (in my case, my family and friends) desires for me to write their hopes and dreams INTO my story, I would indeed hate the process. I've mentioned a hundred times at least that my sister in law wants every story to have a side character portraying herself and my brother in some romantic way (stable boy and bar maid, particularly), and my mom wants the MC to always reflect ME and how I would respond to the situations... I could go on and on, and if I listened to them I would definitely butcher my manuscripts.

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  9. Hi Catherine :) We must have been posting at the same time. I love that quote by James Michener. I also love this one by Brandon Sanderson:

    "To begin is human. To finish is divine. To revise is hell. But you have to do it. Great writers are even better revisers."

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  10. I want to be a great reviser. I'm not there yet. Need to finish the story first. I get frustrated with revising when I'm not sure how to fix something. There are times when I think what I wrote is really good and then someone else reads it and they see a million problems with it - so frustrating.

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  11. I'm doing a no no by editing as I write. I know, you're not supposed to do that, but I can't help it. I write a chapter, edit it, then post it for my crit group. But I really like doing this. A guess a part is that I am a revision nerd - I actually like it. Particularly when I find that perfect word or phrase to insert that makes a passage sing.

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  12. Hi Mary :) I like when people I trust tell me what isn't working. Even if something is working in my mind, it's worth seeing why it isn't working for someone else. It's hard when they point things out in a scene I thought was alright, but better a beta notice than an agent. That being said, I always turn to my gut-feelings before I make changes-- especially major ones.
    Hi Melissa, I'm on Team Revision too! I don't let myself revise as I go, only because once I finish the story I feel like the MC's voice is so much stronger. I like using that stronger voice in the beginning.

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  13. You have such a great attitude, Diana!

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  14. Oops on the lack of a paragraph break, Melissa and Mary. I was on my Blackberry and sometimes I forget to hit enter that extra time. :)

    Thanks Corey, likewise! Just ignore the occasional rant, ha!

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  15. I love, love, love the revision process. :D I love writing, but revision, I must say, is my favorite, even if I do rant about it at times. I think my favorite part about revision is going back and fixing description and making sure I have all the details just perfect. Great post! :)

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  16. I love revision. My favorite part is hacking out whole sections. I love reading through a big passage, maybe even a couple pages, realizings its unnecessary or even detrimental, and just gouging the whole thing out. It's a very satisfying purge.

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  17. Thanks Jenna :) I love it too, even if I complain. I'm not able to knock out my vision in a first, second, or third draft, so I revise, smoothing away the rough edges until at some point it's what I want to be.

    Hi Nevets, welcome! Be still my heart, you just described my favorite part of the revision process. It's what I meant by "tightening up the writing," Nevets! Wendy knows, at least partially, how deep I cut. The bottom line (as far as I see it): it doesn't matter if the scene is perfect, it flows, whatever-- if it doesn't belong in the book, it DOESN'T belong in the book. End of story.

    Awesome discussion people. :)

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  18. The only thing that's frustrating to me about cutting something out is when, as just happened to me, I look at the 5K I have in the second chapter of my WIP and think, "Oh, crap, that entire chapter's gotta go." But even then it's kind of satisfying. lol

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  19. LOL Nevets, so true! But don't you feel like writing the chapter-- and figuring out AFTER that it needed to be cut-- gives you a better idea of where your story's going... or a deeper understanding of a given character? I think I have to write it out to know, for sure, if it's meant to be in the book or not. At least, that's what I tell myself!

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  20. I totally agree!

    There's a lot of stuff I love about the revising process- I think my best descriptions come in the revisions, because I leave a lot of them out in my first drafts- I'm all action and dialogue in the first drafts.

    It's nice to have a template to work off of too. I love writing itself, but when you're going through it, you really get to the good stuff :o)

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  21. I agree with Wendy, revision sucks but a necessary evil. BUT I also agree with you Diana, when you do revise the bumpy parts, the high from finally getting it right can be so satisfying.

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  22. You know me though, I am the WASinator! I have to edit out my useless passive voice after each chapter. I said useless, because sometimes we all need a little "was" in our coffee.

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  23. I learned a lot about revising from you, Diana. You are very good at it - so that may be the reason you like it. I hear your voice as I critique other people's work now. Also hear it as I revise my own. An experienced and honest beta is an invaluable must in the revising process - in my opinion.

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  24. Erica- YES, the template-thing you said is right on. I find that I get through my first draft a lot faster when I think of it as a skeletal story that I can fill in later, once I get through it.

    Gwoe- You ARE the WASinator! You have great ideas for rephrasing that passive away. I may like revising more than a lot of writers, but I'm always grateful for the people who read my work and point me in the right direction. Thanks Gwoe!!

    Mary- Wow, thank you. I know I'm not as sunshiney in my critiques as I am in my blog posts, but what you can really count on is total honesty. A lot of people say they want honesty when they really don't, but that's what I give, and it's cost me a writer pal in the past. I'm glad you didn't take it personal, and I hope I helped. :)

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  25. Revisions are like In-laws, they'll always be a part of your life (If your an author anyway), so it's best to just get drunk and deal with it....... oh wait, I mean, suck it up and just deal with it :)

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  26. Hi Void, welcome! I've seen you over on Gwoe's blog and I'm glad you stopped by. Ha ha, your analogy makes me think of a bunch of drunken writers arguing in slurred voices about plot points and backstory. I've done revisions half-asleep and if it's anything similar, the outcome ain't pretty lol!

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