Finally revising

I’ve decided that now is the time.  I have six first drafts – five of which are actual stories.  Now it’s time to start revising.  It’s an interesting time in my life – a crossroads of sorts, if you will.  And I think that now is the time that I should start to get serious about writing and what I leave behind as my legacy.

So, the worst part, really, is deciding which novel to rip apart and shred into small little bits.  I know they all need a lot of work, but I am still not sure where to start.  I suppose I should take an older one, one where the novelty of the characters has worn off, and just dig in.

I think an important part of editing something like this is taking time to have new creations, too. After all, you are taking something that, at the time, you poured your heart and soul into, and then ripping it apart.  It can be a daunting task.  First and foremost, you have to be willing to show yourself how wrong you were:  how your word choice was wrong, how you had your characters behave in a way that they never would have, how your plot lacked luster and how you really missed the mark in so many ways. 

In the end, all of these things will make you a better writer, of course.  But it’s getting to that point that can be difficult.  This is one of the reasons I’ve chosen a novel that has been dormant for a while.  Any “improvements” that I make to that novel can be easily explained away as the fact that I have learned so much since I wrote the work.

To be an author, one really needs a tough skin.  The first step in toughening that skin, then, must start with oneself.  One must be willing to tear apart and rebuild, send it out for approval, and then tear apart and rebuild again.

I have been very lucky in that the feedback I have received thus far in my writing career has helped me greatly in my search to be a better writer.

So, on I go.  I must chop, cut, revise!