Posted by Kathleen Pooler/@kathypooler

” I work very hard at writing, writing and rewriting and try to weed out the lumber.” David McCullough

 

I once heard a saying “Life is the art of drawing without an eraser” (Author Unknown).

Those of us who are writers know we need to keep erasers handy.

We’ve all heard the phrase “writing is rewriting” and nothing could have felt closer to that truth than that as I worked on the first revision of my memoir-in-progress. After defining the narrative arc of the story- the beginning , middle and the end- I now am going back to refine, deepen and polish up the narrative.

The first review of my draft from my manuscript consultant took four hours to go through over the phone. The suggestions beyond defining the narrative arc of the story included: cutting out, rearranging, going deeper into sections of the story.

The first thing I did was set it aside and let it marinate for a few weeks.

With fresh eyes, I approached my edits asking myself the following questions:

*Am I clear on the vision (main theme) of my story?

*Does it fit in with the overall theme?

*Does my story make sense?

*Do the scenes move the story along?

*Does the sequence of scenes make sense?

*Are the subthemes woven in tightly enough?

*Are the characters believable?

*Is my POV clear- past voice vs present day reflection

*Does my main character demonstrate change/growth?

*Is there enough tension and conflict to hold the interest of the reader?

*Is the ending satisfying?

*Is it grammatically correct?

 

Basically, I need to revise with the reader in mind.

I’m at the point where every time I look at my manuscript, I change it-cut out, rearrange or add to. Since my first revision is in the hands of my manuscript consultant, I am in a cooling off period. When my next round of edits come back, I will repeat the cycle asking myself the same questions as above.

Fellow Memoirist Madeline Sharples posted an excellent article about revision that helped me to see the importance of initially reading through my manuscript without editing.

That means sitting on my hands.

Then I’ll grab my red pen and circle and change what I need to.

In summary, seven lessons I’ve learned about revision are:

* Be open to constructive feedback.

* Expect to look at your manuscript with new eyes.

* Give yourself periods of cooling off to gain perspective.

* Edit with the reader in mind.

* Find a question that the book needs to answer and let that question guide you.

* Read your manuscript out loud.

* Rewrite and revise until it’s right.

How will I know when it’s right?

That will be another topic for another time and by then I’ll most likely need to replace all those erasers.

First, I will read through it like a reader while sitting on my hands.

 

How about you? What tips do you have to share about the revision process?

I’d love to hear from you. Please leave your comments below~

 

On Thursday, March 7, National Association of Memoir President and Memoir Author Linda Joy Myers will return to discuss another aspect of revision in “Re-visioning Memoir.” She will give away a free copy of her re-visioned memoir, Don’t Call Me Mother: A Daughter’s Journey From Abandonment to Forgiveness to a random commenter.

 

This week: I’m also for at Cheryl Stahle’s blog, Your Best Writing Group with a memoir vignette “Summer Day Along the Hudson River…Nothing Quite Like It” as part of her March Memoir Madness series.

 

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