Revision is how to get ready;
it's also a great place for a writer to hide when you aren't stuck
Discern. Dissect. Devolve. I know there is a better word than that…head scratch.
Of course you need to be absolutely certain you have used the best words. This belief that we should spend all the time we want hiding in revision serves my love of wordsmithing, too. I see you. In my course What’s Your Word? I offer up a whole bunch of my favourite tools to access a mountain of words before you distill down to your Word of the Year...that nugget of gold that you will lean into when you need support bolstering the defenses against the writer’s constant companions, negative self-talk and the inner gremlins.
Revision is where the draft takes shape. In the act of revising, we take shape too, I think.
When we revise (and I do NOT mean edit) we apply mental filters in order to test if the writing is "true" in the way that carpenters use the term. (Glossary for truing lumber: Something which is accurately placed, shaped, or sized. To "true up" two pieces of wood is to make them align. (thank you workshopcompanion.com.)
First we test the "trueness" of the writing. This is for us. Does it sit right in our mind?
The second step in revision is the functional filter—does it work? This is us reading it out loud (my preference) and hearing it as if for the first time; for an instant we can be objective. This is like seeing your home with a stranger's eyes after you've been on holiday and being surprised by features that you take for granted in the everyday.
The next revision is, how does this sound? This is the careful inaugural crack in the polished stone of your creation...someone else's mind will be interpreting this, you dare to consider how an objective reader might respond.
Write for you, and write many drafts. Revise like you’re panning for gold. Hide there as long as you want, I say. I hide in revision because it helps me dip my toe in the water and wait until I hear this: Yes, I am ready to put this vulnerable slice of myself out in the world.
This reworking time is the savouring in writing and you will NEVER regret it. When the writing sings, so will your heart.
Write on.
Hey, I have this cool method called DISTILL, that I use when I’m revising. When I want unforgettable content I work through the stages of DISTILL..check it out over here…(it’s just the right thing to work on over the holidays…when you really get into revision.)
