revising like a pro

I’m in a cheery writing mood this week. It’s because I'm putting the finishing touches on a new manuscript. Huzzah!  

Revision is something I truly enjoy. It’s when we writers finally get the satisfaction of seeing the book work! Sentence by sentence, chapter by chapter, revision is when we sharpen the storytelling, tighten the screws, and make sure every syllable is earning its place on the page. 

Productive revision gives us the pleasure of finishing a puzzle. Things fall into place. The vessel becomes watertight, ship-shape.  

Drafting is our messy mudpie process. It’s for us. Revision is when we make it work for the reader. 

Which leads me to share this hard truth about revision: Revision is when your level of mastery is revealed.

Why? Because you cannot revise by ear.  

To revise, you need technique. You need a way of knowing with certainty whether the storytelling is crystal clear and correctly paced. You need to be able to evaluate with confidence whether a phrase is redundant, whether a sentence can be made shorter, whether a description can be made more vivid.  

If you can’t evaluate your draft, diagnose its weaknesses and know how to fix them, how are you going to revise? 

Revision is what separates the pros from the strivers. How can you learn revise like a pro? That’s the subject of this week’s livestream.

My weekly livestream happens on Wednesdays at 1 PM Pacific. Come live and participate! Or catch the replays here on the blog. You can leave your questions and comments below.

To watch live and ask questions, subscribe to the YouTube channel here.  

And you can join the Path of the Storyteller Facebook group right here.

SAVE THE DATE! Enrollment for Path of the Storyteller’s in-depth training in story structure and writing craft opens on August 25th. This transformational online course runs for fifteen weeks, from September 2nd through December 16th, with weekly lessons, targeted exercises, a private community space for sharing work and weekly live coaching with Maryrose. Join the mailing list below and watch your inbox for details.