Introspection on editing
Posted: Tue Sep 27, 2011 11:39 pm
To preface, I have a habit of writing down my thoughts just to clarify them. This is simple stuff which many people could greatly expand on. But it may catalyze a good creative thought or two.
Initial Editing
What to look for:
Conveyance
Digestion
Suspense
What to do:
Component replacement
Expansion/Contraction
Distance
Brainstorming
Suspense
Good introspection is required. You must be able to feel the most minute ‘tug’ on your motive, where you are interested for any reason in the book. You must also be able to sense the strength of that pull. There are tactics for increasing suspense when it’s already established. I will devise my own first. Suspense Max. If none of the techniques work, brainstorm another carrot through “component replacement”, using “renew” if you’re in a rut.
Conveyance
This has to do with how well you’ve expressed something. This filter is applied by distancing yourself from your work. Once a few days/weeks have gone by, and the nuances of the concepts have faded from memory, you can see how well your work reinforms you.
Digestion
This has to do with how abrasive the writing is. It helps to find points where your conveyance is murky as well. Easily digested writing is such that you can begin reading, and not have any mental ‘hiccups’ from lousy wording, clumsy phrasing, or anything at all that disrupts the simple flow of words to brain. Any good author can do this intuitively, homing in on problem spots in their work. Some spots are a bit harder to detect, since the friction is minor. If you have to read a sentence twice, or engage a bit too much of your brain to understand it, it’s difficult to digest.
This category is rather large, it encompasses many potential problems. Grammar, spelling, phrasing, repetition.
Component replacement
If there’s a chunk of story that’s larger and doesn’t work, but you don’t want to replace it, you’ll need to isolate the constants you want to keep then brainstorm around them.
A complex storyline could have constants that you’re not aware of, so beware replacing any component without a bit of thought put into it. Isolate the constants to some abstract form, and start brainstorming ideas that will meet all the constants. Location is almost always a constant, as are characters. If a plot point is not one of the constants, you have the option to discard the section altogether. Unless it’s necessary for conveyance.
Expansion/Contraction
This is the most common part of editing. Removing an unnecessary sentence, or adding a new sentence for better conveyance. Making two sentences out of a single run-on, or rewriting a sentence for better effect.
This would apply in larger chunks as well. Add a paragraph to draw out a suspenseful moment. Or deleting a paragraph which isn’t plot-critical.
Brainstorming
For nearly anything you want to think up, there are constants. If you’re thinking of a brand new plot, you may have the condition that it abide by the laws of physics, and that there be a female with red hair, or whatever tickles your pickle. The constants start to pile up as a story is developed, cementing the more fundamental ones in place. These plot-critical points will have to be brainstormed around, whereas some of the weaker constants can be replaced.
If coming up with an idea is taking too long, try to hold the constants in an ever more abstract form. The more abstract you go, the less hidden barriers there are to your creativity. Meaning, in your mind’s eye you always visualize the scene with something that doesn’t need to be there, but you didn’t realize it. If it doesn’t work, figure out which constant is most easily eliminated or replaced. If that doesn’t work, perhaps you need help brainstorming.
For a boost of creativity, always brainstorm 3 interchangable ideas that fit all your conditions. Apply your own personal filter to pick the correct one. Intuition may be best. Apply any number of rubrics if you’re not confident. If the first idea you think of is a good one while brainstorming, be disciplined and think up 2 more. If the first truly was the best, it will win anyways. But beware that we’re sometimes lead astray by our own minds. We may think an idea is good, only because it “clicked”, it fit into place, all the constants fit. The most creative people don’t simply think up the best ideas the very first time and stick with them. They think up many ideas, then apply a filter. It is an evolutionary algorithm applied to recombination of knowledge.
Distance
Getting distance from your work at some point during editing is critical. It is useful for gauging suspense and conveyance. Let your work sit for a few days, in chapter-sized chunks. The longer the better, let it fade from memory so you can see it with fresh eyes. I’d be interested in other people’s thoughts here.
Initial Editing
What to look for:
Conveyance
Digestion
Suspense
What to do:
Component replacement
Expansion/Contraction
Distance
Brainstorming
Suspense
Good introspection is required. You must be able to feel the most minute ‘tug’ on your motive, where you are interested for any reason in the book. You must also be able to sense the strength of that pull. There are tactics for increasing suspense when it’s already established. I will devise my own first. Suspense Max. If none of the techniques work, brainstorm another carrot through “component replacement”, using “renew” if you’re in a rut.
Conveyance
This has to do with how well you’ve expressed something. This filter is applied by distancing yourself from your work. Once a few days/weeks have gone by, and the nuances of the concepts have faded from memory, you can see how well your work reinforms you.
Digestion
This has to do with how abrasive the writing is. It helps to find points where your conveyance is murky as well. Easily digested writing is such that you can begin reading, and not have any mental ‘hiccups’ from lousy wording, clumsy phrasing, or anything at all that disrupts the simple flow of words to brain. Any good author can do this intuitively, homing in on problem spots in their work. Some spots are a bit harder to detect, since the friction is minor. If you have to read a sentence twice, or engage a bit too much of your brain to understand it, it’s difficult to digest.
This category is rather large, it encompasses many potential problems. Grammar, spelling, phrasing, repetition.
Component replacement
If there’s a chunk of story that’s larger and doesn’t work, but you don’t want to replace it, you’ll need to isolate the constants you want to keep then brainstorm around them.
A complex storyline could have constants that you’re not aware of, so beware replacing any component without a bit of thought put into it. Isolate the constants to some abstract form, and start brainstorming ideas that will meet all the constants. Location is almost always a constant, as are characters. If a plot point is not one of the constants, you have the option to discard the section altogether. Unless it’s necessary for conveyance.
Expansion/Contraction
This is the most common part of editing. Removing an unnecessary sentence, or adding a new sentence for better conveyance. Making two sentences out of a single run-on, or rewriting a sentence for better effect.
This would apply in larger chunks as well. Add a paragraph to draw out a suspenseful moment. Or deleting a paragraph which isn’t plot-critical.
Brainstorming
For nearly anything you want to think up, there are constants. If you’re thinking of a brand new plot, you may have the condition that it abide by the laws of physics, and that there be a female with red hair, or whatever tickles your pickle. The constants start to pile up as a story is developed, cementing the more fundamental ones in place. These plot-critical points will have to be brainstormed around, whereas some of the weaker constants can be replaced.
If coming up with an idea is taking too long, try to hold the constants in an ever more abstract form. The more abstract you go, the less hidden barriers there are to your creativity. Meaning, in your mind’s eye you always visualize the scene with something that doesn’t need to be there, but you didn’t realize it. If it doesn’t work, figure out which constant is most easily eliminated or replaced. If that doesn’t work, perhaps you need help brainstorming.
For a boost of creativity, always brainstorm 3 interchangable ideas that fit all your conditions. Apply your own personal filter to pick the correct one. Intuition may be best. Apply any number of rubrics if you’re not confident. If the first idea you think of is a good one while brainstorming, be disciplined and think up 2 more. If the first truly was the best, it will win anyways. But beware that we’re sometimes lead astray by our own minds. We may think an idea is good, only because it “clicked”, it fit into place, all the constants fit. The most creative people don’t simply think up the best ideas the very first time and stick with them. They think up many ideas, then apply a filter. It is an evolutionary algorithm applied to recombination of knowledge.
Distance
Getting distance from your work at some point during editing is critical. It is useful for gauging suspense and conveyance. Let your work sit for a few days, in chapter-sized chunks. The longer the better, let it fade from memory so you can see it with fresh eyes. I’d be interested in other people’s thoughts here.