Since the new year, I’ve written early in the morning, every day, usually for an hour or two. Aside from my blog posts (which I write on the weekends) and work articles (which I write during the day), my total writing output for the year stands at far less than 1,000 words.
What have I been doing? Why don’t I have anything tangible to show for my efforts?
The answer is simple, I’ve been editing. Editing is tedious. Editing requires gumption. Editing demands focus. And editing is required.
I liken the process of producing a book for a home construction project. Writing my first draft is like framing in a wall. Progress is fast; the project takes shape; satisfaction follows with ease.
Doing the final edit is like sanding the final coat of drywall compound to finish a wall. It makes a mess, induces boredom, and necessitates patience.
Without the proper attention to detail, I urge this step forward too quickly, which becomes obvious to all in the finished product, be it a painted wall or a printed book. A lack of diligence in this stage results in embarrassment later.
So for six weeks, I’ve been editing my work. First were a couple of miscellaneous projects, then a short story for a contest. Lately, I’ve been editing blog posts from my first blog to make into a book, originally Woodpecker Wars and republished as Bridging the Sacred Secular Divide.
Then, having just received feedback from my editor, on Monday I’ll start another round of edits on my book 52 Churches. Then I’ll do the same for its prequel.
After that will be final edits on a revision of my dissertation The Convergent Church.
The disheartening reality is that I’ll spend all year in editing mode. But editing is a critical part of writing, a step we dare not skip.
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Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD, is a full-time, career author. He’s published scores of books, hundreds of articles, and thousands of blog posts, with experience as a publisher, editor, and commercial freelance writer. A passionate wordsmith, his goal is to change the world one word at a time. Learn more at PeterLyleDeHaan.com.
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