hi all, when editing, do you print out the draft and edit with pen and paper, or edit electronically?
I do both. I edit electronically untll I've smoothed over most of the big issues. When I think I have something worth reading, I print it off and attack with a red pen.
I do what I can electronically, especially to save on ink and paper cost. But when I am close to the end, it normally takes at least one printing to edit.
I edit with a red pen on paper, then as I fix it electronically I cross out my red notes with a highlighter so I know I got everything.
I love doing it on paper (that's what she said) just because it gets me out of one mode and into another. It forces me to read what I've read and I don't get caught up re-writing or starting something else in the middle of my edit. Hope that makes sense.
I do the same as everyone else here. Though I rarely bother unless it's a piece I really love and want to work with, but when I DO want to edit something, I print.
Depends. It's just printing many pages, so many times can affect your wallet... Electronically, for the most part, does the job.
Definitely prefer pen and paper. I've printed two drafts now, and intend to print each that follows. It gets pricey, but I just try to remember the big picture.
I edit electronically. Sometimes I might print out for a final final proofreading, but at that point I'm down to typos. If I find any issues of substance on the paper, I toss it and return to electronic editing.
Electronically. Not once have I edited with a pen on paper, but I never usually get to the point of having something that I love enough to actually finish in the first place. I think my editing method is pretty good though. I go through and using the highlighter tool, I highlight every last bit of the story. My colour code system is green for great, blue for stuff that might need a little work, yellow for an iffy section of work, pink for needs a fair bit of editing, and red for parts that are simply there to indicate what information and details I need there; red is usually quite bad in quality. After I'm satisfied with highlighted section, I unhighlight it and move on, so I know what I've edited and what I haven't. Does anyone else use a method like this?
About a month from now I will have to decide whether to print out my first draft. I have a couple of scenes to go and some song lyrics to write. The complete draft is likely to be around 78K words. I would much prefer to read a printed document but I don't own a printer, and printing a 150 page word doc at work is not really an option. I am thinking about waiting until my second draft is complete before biting the bullet and committing it to paper. In an ideal world I would like to retreat to the Scottish highlands for a week of glorious solitiude with my printed manuscript, a set of pens and a couple of bottles of single malt. That would do wonders for my volcanic brain but, sadly, it ain't gonna happen.
I have not made it to the editing stage, sadly. But, I will probably print out my draft and edit with a pen. Writing or editing seems more natural to me when I have a piece of paper and pencil, rather than a computer. That's just me though.
I prefer to edit with pen and paper. I find it much easier to see errors when it's not on a computer screen, and it doesn't hurt my eyes when doing in depth editing on long stories. I have done a little bit of editing on my Kindle, but I'm far from sold on that as yet.
i do both... at some point, especially with major works, i'll print it out and proofread/edit on paper, as that will usually let me catch things i miss on the screen... plus, i can do it in comfort, on the sofa or in bed... i advise all my mentees to do the same...
By the way, using a text to speech tool is not equivalent to reading it out loud yourself. Reading it aloud yourself engages a part of the nrain that is bypassed by silent reading or passive listening. Don't skip reading the manuscript out loud. Try it with a manuscript you think is ready to submit. You'll be surprised how many things you will pick up that slipped through all your previous revision passes.
