Editing Editing Editing!

Writing is about 9% actual composition and 91% editing. Anybody who says different is either is in their right mind, which means they don't write, or their lying!

Everybody has different methods of editing. What are yours?

I print parts of my manuscript out at a time [a few chapters here and there] when I finish with it and put it in a really big 3 ring binder when i finish collecting the whole book. I'll let the parts I've printed out sit from between 3 hours to 3 weeks before i look at it. Then I pick it up and get my nifty highlighters out. I have one for each thing i need to do.

Pink - Change Names
Orange - Edit word choice
Green - Delete
Purple - Spelling
Blue - Edit way it's written
Yellow- move

Then I'll go and start writing it all over onto the computer to make sure i don't' miss anything [since i have it written in front of me this doesn't take that long. Then I do several read-troughs, in which I make notes about what still needs to be included and/or changed on the actual document on the computer. Then I go back and change it if it really needs changing right then and there. I do this several times, and I don't do ANY editing while writing. it takes away the flow and hurts my brain. I need that thing to write so i don't like hurting it.

So what about you guys? What are your editing/proofreading methods?

Wow. That sounds like a nifty system! Very organized and colorful.

When I hit writer's block in my plot, I usually go back and edit previous chapters, so I don't have to do all of the editing at once. Plus, I'm still being productive in my story. Usually reading over chapters gives me ideas for later ones, so it's extremely helpful. Though when I'm writing, I'm not as descriptive the first time, so when I'm editing I go back and do things such as describe the room my characters are in or show their feelings more.

But at the end, when I finally finish the piece, I print it out and get out a pen, and write all over it. Moving, changing, editing, etc. It's easier to see errors on paper than on the screen for me.

mmhmm it usually is unless you train your eye. I like your way, if i didn't have so many ideas i might do that too.

I hate my system. TOO colorful XD

that is why i do extensive editing, make my dark/Gothic fantasy a rainbow [ :icky: ] and then try to no have to do it again.

When i changed some of the names in my novel i almost cried. I hate pink -waaah-

Well, when I finish about 4 or 5 scenes, I go back and reread them to make sure they make sense. If they do, I continue writing 4 or 5 more scenes and if they dont make sense, I highlight it using my computer and I see if I need to delete it, add to it, reword it, or take things away from it. Then I reread the 4 or 5 scenes again to see what I can do to fix it up. Since I'm actually writing a script, its probably a lot harder then writing a book and editing that. But I could be completely wrong so yeah.

But I like both of your systems very much XP they both sound like good ideas

lol i think writing a novel is harder because you have SOMUCH detail and language and stuff going on. you really have to watch. where as scripts are diologe mainly and background detail so you know wahts going on.

yeah thats also true. And in a way, they are both the same. I mean, just think about it

yeah. speaking of edditing. did you get my review on Urbis?

no, i gotta look. i havent been in a while

i did a full edit of your script. i hope its ok ^^

its totally fine =]

Thats good! tell me if you wat me to edit it any more

can do