Learning to write, uh, edit

I am beginning to understand the notion of editing.

Yes, I can see you shaking your head at me... poor pitiable boob that I am.

The reason it has taken me so long to figure out that editing is more than searching for typos is my years of writing for PR -- my once-chosen field. In public relations, everything, and I mean everything, is written to a deadline. Those deadlines are most often ridiculously tight and are continuous. An adrenaline junkie's wet dream.

My habit then, has been to write as quickly as possible, do a fly-by edit for obvious structure or other flaws, then get the piece out the door and move on to the next project.

Now, I'm not talking about the demand to work with a deadline a week or even one a day. I'm talking about multiple, sometimes shifting, deadlines daily. I'm talking about working with clients who, bless their little hearts, can change diretion and desire on whim -- and normally minutes before a product is scheduled for production or print.

And I am no stoic.

Therefore, like Pavlov's dog, I have learned that writing implies rushing, striving, getting to the goal as quickly as humanly possible. It is why my son feels impelled on occasion to wheel me away from my keyboard and push my office chair to the dinner table. It is why my partner complains that I am unavailable for weeks on end. And, it is why I haven't figured out how to edit.

Cause that takes time. Lots and lots of time. Bogland, cold molasses, and weighted feet kind of time.

Bloody hell.

Wish me luck.

(And have a Happy St. Paddy's Day!)

Colleen
(This is a re-posting from: Ideas Change the World All the Time posted on March 17, 2007.)