Writing vs. Editing

[AritheAlien]

Writing is joy. It is entertaining. Sure, it is hard. But it is sustenance.

Editing is shoveling a mountain of 'excrement' of the said sustenance.

-Not sorry for my morbid analogy.

What are your experiences then? Which is easier for you?

 

[Golden_Hyde]

Editing is easier. You can spot what doesn't work, what feels totally off, and what needs to be polished. Writing takes a lot of your brainpower to unleash that creativity, even if it's generally a rough scribing.

However, it was relatively cumbersome, especially if you're messing up in some parts.

 

[Eldoria]

Writing is fun (because you pour out your ideas and soul into it), while editing is a hassle (it's time-consuming and requires a high level of precision).

 

[Zenftiy]

Yeah, editing is easier, but for some reason I never do it.

First draft is alwyas my last draft

 

[AritheAlien]

Writing is fun (because you pour out your ideas and soul into it), while editing is a hassle (it's time-consuming and requires a high level of precision).

And it... cringes the fuck out of you.

Yeah, editing is easier, but for some reason I never do it.

First draft is alwyas my last draft

Fellow we die, we die person. Yeah, I did the same, now migrating all those chapters and re-reading them and editing them sent me into an existential dread. Thank God, it was not truly awful.

 

[Bobple]

Editing is a PAIN, takes a lot less time, but it always the most mentally exhausting part for me.

But it still has to be done.

Me doing it at midnight has nothing to do with my problems.

 

[AritheAlien]

Editing is a PAIN, takes a lot less time, but it always the most mentally exhausting part for me.

But it still has to be done.

Me doing it at midnight has nothing to do with my problems.

Especially the first chapters... And yeah, I mostly edit after I finished the entire book. Which is a mistake so grave, I am never ever editing after writing an entire book.

 

[Deleted member 84247]

I like editing, but I hardly do it for my own work due to laziness.

 

[AritheAlien]

I like editing, but I hardly do it for my own work due to laziness.

Yeah, I was not doing it, too. Which I regret immensely.

 

[Hoshino]

Writing is a pain, while editing is a drag-nya.

 

[Bobple]

Especially the first chapters... And yeah, I mostly edit after I finished the entire book. Which is a mistake so grave, I am never ever editing after writing an entire book.

oh that is the worst. I edited after 30 chapters once, and that was already bad... editing after a whole book

 

[AritheAlien]

oh that is the worst. I edited after 30 chapters once, and that was already bad... editing after a whole book

The pain. The cringe. The needlessly long sentences. Broken structures. Unnecessary dialogue. Typos. Grammar errors.

 

[GreenLemonShark]

I normally edit as I go. If I leave things messy, with bad grammar or whole sentences that dont make sense, then when I come back later I get super confused about what I was even trying to write. So I try to clean it up a bit while I’m writing.

But I definitely still miss a lot of mistakes, mostly punctuation and a little bit of grammar here and there. To catch those, I just run my chapters through Grammarly. It usually only takes me 5–10 minutes per chapter, and that quick pass is enough to smooth everything out without me getting stuck in editing hell.

And I totally agree with you, the writing itself is the best part. Thats where you can be as creative as you want, add as much as you want, and let things flow naturally. Editing feels more like work, but writing feels like the fun part. ?

 

[A_veil_of_red_ink]

Writing is like a blank canvas that you have to fill; editing is refining mistakes in your art.
My experience is that writing is more difficult because filling a blank canvas is challenging.

 

[Representing_Tromba]

Writing usually takes less effort than editing. Not because one is easier than the other but rather, because one allows for the author to be fully immersed in the world that they are writing from a creative point. Editing, on the other hand, exists as a means to better the language used to express that world. It takes a lot of time to fully translate from your mind to the page in a way that others understand that ultimately pushes the author to see and fix their mistakes, no matter how cringe.

 

[Clo]

I find editing much easier than writing.

When I write, I fight the white page syndrome and I beat up against writer's block. I have to figure out how to take my story from where I left off to somewhere that feels satisfying, all the while steering the story closer to its predetermined outcome.

Editing? It's just fixing problems. Continuity, grammar, clarity, pacing.

 

[AritheAlien]

Writing usually takes less effort than editing. Not because one is easier than the other but rather, because one allows for the author to be fully immersed in the world that they are writing from a creative point. Editing, on the other hand, exists as a means to better the language used to express that world. It takes a lot of time to fully translate from your mind to the page in a way that others understand that ultimately pushes the author to see and fix their mistakes, no matter how cringe.

Thank you, exactly.

 

[lambenttyto]

What are your experiences then? Which is easier for you?

I don't edit. I do fix typos and grammar mistakes that I won't want, otherwise, if something isn't working, I redraft the section. Editing removes your author imprint from the prose. It's deadly. Plus, as you say, it's boring and no fun and it doesn't make the writing better.

 

[AritheAlien]

I don't edit. I do fix typos and grammar mistakes that I won't want, otherwise, if something isn't working, I redraft the section. Editing removes your author imprint from the prose. It's deadly. Plus, as you say, it's boring and no fun and it doesn't make the writing better.

I do not find it boring exactly. It is more like...
-Your ideas are perhaps jumbled, incoherent while you are writing. Let us say an arc is finished, key plot points are explained, the characters are shaped. But, it does not happen in two chapters. It is gradual. There are times, often what makes writing spectacular, when an unassuming side character, enters the scene, then quietly, even without your will steals the spotlight.
-Or, a random piece of dialogue from a hundred pages before suddenly clicks in your mind. Then you write a whole new twist.
-Therefore, you need to go back, lay the groundwork better for foreshadowing and balancing.
---> Most importantly, it takes time to set the correct voice and narrative for your characters and dialogues. The first section of any work may fall flat. Because right now, it is a blank canvas. Yes, the premise is there, but what about anything else? You see, editing is not always fixing grammar but, for me, rewriting dialogues or scenes entirely. (Which is such a pain in the ass, because when you write countless pages, everything, including your prose, becomes more polished. Then you return to chapter one. It is... tumbleweeds. It is akin to enjoying the feast at a high-end restaurant then returning to instant noodles.)