Cutting out writing.
Any writer knows that everything in the first draft is not there to stay. Most of it does, but even the best writer needs to cut out some parts – the unimportant scene, the poorly written conversation, the plot point that was flawed. Often, this is why editing gets a bad name. Authors spend so much time perfecting their work that to remove even a paragraph can be a painful job.
During the last stages of editing Shadow Glyph I realized that an entire chapter of mine should not occur. It added another loophole to the plot, one which would have a negative effect on books to come… It was so hard because I enjoyed the scene so much, but I managed to delete it. Looking back, the book functions much better.
On a different note, I decided to cut about 70 pages of writing I had done for Book 2. The chapters in question I had written during last semester. While they are interest stories nonetheless, they are not important to the plot and make one character much harder to understand. I hardly had to think when I decided to delete them, unlike the 5 pages of Shadow Glyph that had me frustrated for a week! Sometimes cutting out writing is a painful process, but sometimes it is easy to accept that it must be done.
Rather than drive yourself crazy, approach your writing with an open mind. Perhaps impossible advice, but a worthwhile goal.
PS: Don’t worry that I’ve been set back on Book 2. More than 50 pages done already.
I love these writting tips that you have. I really try to find ways to put them to use. You should have some for people who are just starting writing and are figuring out how they want to write and what to write about and things like that. Writing for beginners! 🙂
That’s a great idea! Every year I do a presentation to elementary students to give them the idea that people do have careers in arts like this, so it’s really angled towards beginners. Never thought of including that here, but I’ve got plenty to say on the topic. Thanks!