Young Writers Society

This might have been asked before, but I did a search and couldn't find anything that answers my question. I'm writing a story, and while I haven't done very much yet, about 1,600 words, I have a strong urge to revisit what I've done so far and edit various little bits of it - some more description here, a word or two changed there...my question to you is, is it better to edit as you go along, or to write the entire story, and not change anything about it until it's complete, and then go over it all at once?

I'm honestly not sure. I've only ever completed one full novel and three quarters of one and I didn't edit either of those as I wrote but with my short stories, I always edit as I go along.

I write chapters and then as I get crits I go back and edit. I used to never force myself to write because it would come out rubbish, but I found that it's better to force oneself and go back and edit. Tis to better to have writ the rubbish than never writ at all.

Uh... a little bit of both. Generally for first drafts, I write it up on paper, just because I don't like editing paper so it forces me to write what's going on. Generally, I don't organize my writing on the first draft because I know it'll suck, but hey! At least I'll get a good idea of what I want to write. This is good because I don't like outlines... for me, I usually ignore full length outlines because I get a better idea in my head and want to run with it. So this is a good way to explore the characters, the plot, the scenery, and just to get an idea of what I am writing. The writing is generally really bad (my writing is trash the first draft--the stuff you see on YWS is typically edited around 12 times before it's worth putting up). I just have to tell myself that after the edit, it'll be much better.

Basically! The first draft is rambling and useless and largely unedited.

The second draft is more of a rewrite, actually, because the original stuff is crap. So I write from the paper, loosely... that is, I'll write what I want from the paper and then edit as I go along.

There is a certain point when writing the second draft where I realize it sucks or it has a huge plot inconsistency that makes it trash. So whenever I have to rewrite entire sections, I go back to paper and write it out... except I use a different method! Since I have an idea of what I am writing and my chapters are generally episodic, I do this:

http://snoink.com/kn/writing/process/3.php

And then, after writing it, I reread it and edit until I am somewhat happy with it.

However, I will warn you that this is perhaps the most inefficient way to write. I like it because I get to really understand my story and I don't mind if I spend close to ten years on a project, but if you're less obsessed, this is probably not the way you'll want to do it. ^_^

I've heard that it's better to edit after you're done with everything because it stops your flow of writing. Sometimes, that happens to me. Most of the time, I edit as I go along though, because it's always been my habit.

I find editing afterwards is helpful. If I get too caught up in editing the story as I go, I start to insist on my first draft reading as well as a final draft should. This of course slows down the writing, and it'll take me days and days just to write a thousand words.

I think it's more important to get your first draft written down first, and then to improve on it. It doesn't matter if your first draft reads like something a barely literate ten year old wrote, so long as it's written.

I always want to edit as I go alone, but I try not to.

Typically I force out a first draft - whether by a word war when I'm stuck or just writing - without editing at all. If something really changes, like a character's name or age or the setting, then I make a big note in the middle of the story so I know where I changed it.

Once I have that I turn on Track Changes and start editing. I make sure there aren't inconsistencies or mistakes and take out the rubbish and replace it with stuff that won't make eyes bleed. xD Then I print it and scribble all over it, typically adding a lot of description, then rewrite the whole thing from the paper. I then edit that a few more times - trying to catch tense changes and typos and poorly worded areas - then post it. Then I edit another hundred times due to critiques. xD

Just shove that first draft, then let the inner dragon come slay it.

~JFW1415

I usually write out my first draft on paper, then type up my second draft on the computer and catch a few mistakes there. Then I'll let a few people read it and type it up again, editing out those mistakes. I may repeat this a few times, but that's the general flow of how I work.