tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5520796672459947066.post6474679541039502023..comments2014-04-24T14:36:02.612+01:00Comments on Postcards From My Mind.: Raw Talent vs. EditingNarihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00624659563661326279noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5520796672459947066.post-77605397873239564152012-02-23T22:05:00.704+00:002012-02-23T22:05:00.704+00:00thanks for comments everyone. You're all right...thanks for comments everyone. You're all right - the editing is an important process, but I do agree with you, John, that soe of the freshness/rawness does need to be remembered. <br />Nari XNarihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00624659563661326279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5520796672459947066.post-18299419574725815812012-01-30T17:27:26.781+00:002012-01-30T17:27:26.781+00:00I think it's the final result that matters, no...I think it's the final result that matters, no matter how many times you've redrafted. <br /><br />Great post, Nari. Very thought provoking.<br /><br />XXSuzanne Ross Joneshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08561888635304578484noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5520796672459947066.post-64714224219998639652012-01-30T14:22:25.431+00:002012-01-30T14:22:25.431+00:00I agree with everything that Chloe has said. Howev...I agree with everything that Chloe has said. However,you have a good point about raw talent. Rawness needs to be considered in the editing. Last year I did a post on my blog comparing writing to impressionist painting. A less is more theory. The French Impressionists were perhaps too raw by Royal Academy standards to be accepted as serious art, compared to say Constable or Gainsborough, who went to great lengths to produce near photographic representations of the landscape or portrait they portray. The impressionists worked on a limited pallette of colour with minimum brush strokes... raw talent. Raw implies this is what's happening to me as a writer, I am having this experience in my head right now. On subsequent drafts, the experience that I as a writer had in the first draft is no longer new and because I've had that experience and I know what will happen there is a danger that my writing may take a more reflective tone. Also I think in the first draft, as I get it down on paper no matter what typos, or grammatical errors that can be edited out later, I have found there is a rhythm to that first draft. I can't explain it but I most definitely feel it. It just feels right. On my current project, I didn't feel the rhythm until chapter three. I read back chapter one and two and I could see it wasn't there. Editing could take away that rhythm. For me editing should be about removing all the defects. Typos, clichés, inconsistencies and excessive exposition. For me editing is removing not embellishing or adding something new. I am rewriting at the moment, and have had to add new characters on the advice of members of the writing circle I go to. There was no other way for me other than a complete rewrite to maintain the pace and freshness that should go with new writing. From what you said in your last post Nari, I can see you research really well, and know more about your subject than you need to write which will give your plot and your characters more depth, i.e. they would stand up to question. Knowing as much as you do before you write will give you the pace and the clarity which you describe as rawness. I am sending this without editing, so please excuse any errors. I just wanted to keep it raw for you :-)Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16816557029053697882noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5520796672459947066.post-65617277788631397692012-01-30T10:56:57.588+00:002012-01-30T10:56:57.588+00:00Editing is just as much part of being a good write...Editing is just as much part of being a good writer as the first draft. Even the best actors have to rehearse don't they? Even if they've been acting for decades, each new play or film requires rehearsal - they can't just do it perfectly first time because they've acted in other stuff before. I'm not sure if that's a workable analogy or not but you know what I mean!<br /><br />I am writing a proper first draft of the rough outline of a novel I did for NaNo and I was finding it really depressing for the same reason you've outlined. Then a blogging friend of mine, Andy, said that he was taught that the good sentences come in the 3rd or 4th draft. The first draft isn't about good writing, it's about plotting and getting to know your characters.<br /><br />Remember, even when (not if!) it's good enough to find a publisher, they'll probably still edit it even further. Keep at it!Chloehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00183206722136871230noreply@blogger.com