WRITER'S BLOCK: OVERCOMING EDITING FEARS

One of the important aspects of the editing process is freewriting.  Usually we don't think about editing as involving freewriting.  Yet, in the editing process, we often run into obstacles that prevent us from moving forward.  When that happens, we know from experience that freewriting gets our writing voice active.

My experience working with writers is that they dread the editing process.  Sometimes they'll say that it's simply "boring," or "uninspiring."  But, more frequently they anticipate being stuck and unable to move forward.

A few writers I've worked with have said that once they make major revisions in the editing process, they often need to re-evaluate where the new work "fits in."  And that can be a huge task.

While in earlier posts I've talked about the possibility that the more you write, the more you can find that your editing process becomes shorter.  Still, there is no guarantee.

So what can we do to overcome these editing fears?

I've already mentioned that freewriting is a major way to open up our voice and therefore get our creativity going.  In terms of the more comprehensive work of putting the new pieces we've created into place, I've discovered several tools:

* Have confidence that you WILL get it done.  You are unlikely to give up if you are confident that the task of integrating WILL get done.

* Visually lay out the various sections so you can more easily see where the new piece(s) fit in.

* Decide on a certain amount of time you will work at the revision so you can keep your mind fresh.  You can always return to the revisions again at a later time if you don't finish in one designated time period.  In fact, I suggest setting a timer so you can allow yourself to "get lost" in the work.  Csikszentmihalyi (Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience and a number of of books on "flow" by the same author) has demonstrated that we work most effectively when we are in flow.

*Last, but by no means least important is to set your mind to having fun.  This is a core principle in my writing groups.  While having fun does not happen all at once, it does occur over time once we've set out minds to it.  In fact, in my groups we've agreed to put a post-it saying "FUN" on our computer screens or in our writing areas.   It is phenomenal how our minds take "FUN" in.

Likely editing will be with us writers as day follows night.  Why not embrace it freely?