#ISWG: Should You Revise or Rewrite?

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

Personal Update

I know it’s been a long time (2 years!) since I posted. Ack! Well, although 2023 was a challenging year, it did lead to me being able to step down from my teaching position in 2024. Although I do miss my students and wonderful colleagues, I am so enjoying having more brain space for writing. My mind is exploding with ideas!

I’m so happy to be back, and God willing, I will be posting regularly again in this space more consistently.

To revise or rewrite?

Years ago, I attended a conference where a best-selling author made a bold statement. “I never revise.” He said revising makes writing lose its freshness.

At the time, the comment confused me. How could you not edit your writing? It wasn’t till much later that I realized what he meant. It wasn’t that he didn’t change his writing before submitting to his publisher. He just meant that he rewrote scenes rather than just edit what was already there.

I’ve thought about this comment a lot lately. Last fall I read a new craft book Refuse to Be Done by Matt Bell. He said something similar: “When in doubt, rewrite instead of revise.” (93)  He suggested for the second draft of your book to rewrite it from scratch, but use the first draft as a starting point.

Wow, I thought at the time. I couldn’t do that. But after more thought, I realized that that’s exactly what my current WIP needed. I’d been spinning in circles and moving words around for at least a year. Based on some feedback I knew I needed to make major revisions—and I couldn’t easily do that just by revising.

So, I’m currently rewriting the whole thing. And I’m loving it. Mostly. It’s not like drafting the first time, where I feel like I’m going about blindfolded, feeling my way to the end of the story. This time I know my story and characters well. Which I guess, however you do it (rewriting or revising), is the key.

Maybe rewriting isn't for every writer or even every manuscript. But it’s the best thing I’ve ever done for this one.

This month's question: Is there a story or book you've written that you wished you could go back and change? Oops! I didn't really answer that question. I wouldn't change any of my published work. For me, it's out there and out of my head.

But my works-in-progress? I can keep redoing as much as I want.

How about you? Do you rewrite or revise?

Or does it depend on the story?

Do you want to change any of your books/stories?

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