Hey there,

I’m Joan Dempsey, and I work with a lot of writers.

Lately, I’ve discovered that when it comes to revision, writers seem to fall into two camps: 

1. Those who swear by the ‘shitty first draft’ (as Anne Lamott might say) – they get a draft 
   done before even thinking about revision; and 

2. Those who sheepishly admit they ‘revise at the point of composition’ (as Verlyn Klinkenborg 
   espouses) – they revise while writing so that first draft is as polished as a twelfth.

Boy, are writers passionate about their chosen camp! 

In a recent online course I offered, nearly 1,000 writers weighed in on which revision strategy 
they believe is ‘correct’, and why they revise the way they do – here’s a summary:

Camp #1 (The Shitty First Draft)

* When I get a new story idea I have to get it down fast – I’m in panic until I capture the idea!
* Every piece of writing advice I’ve heard says this is the way to do it – write first, revise later.
* If I stopped to revise as I wrote, I’d get about two pages done in a year!
* By writing without an editor looking over my shoulder, I can keep myself from freezing up.

Camp #2 (Revise as You Write)

* I can’t bear to overlook a comma splice or a poorly chosen word when I’m writing – 
   I have to fix it immediately.
* I think that every opportunity to write is an opportunity to write well, so why practice 
   crappy writing, just for the sake of speed? (In the end it still takes ages to write a book!)
* Writing is rewriting, so why wait?
* I love to perfect each sentence as I go, and then each chapter, and then …

Which camp do you fall into, and why? (Shoot me an e-mail – I read every one.)

The truth is, both methods work just fine.

Neither is ‘correct’ or ‘incorrect’.

In the end, one way or another, you’ll have a finished piece.

They key is to find out what works best for you.

To that end, I offer a free monthly e-newsletter - Revise with Confidence: Self-Editing Resources 
for the Serious Creative Writer – that will help you discover new revision tips so you can 
improve your writing. 

Each month you’ll get the newsletter, which features the following sections in every issue:

* Revision Tip 
* Book Recommendation
* Grammar Tip
* Inspiration from Twitter
* Notable Quote
* News about Recent Revision Resources and Upcoming Online Revision Courses

It’s important to me that I help you discover what works best … for you!

Join me, and sign up today for the free Revise with Confidence e-newsletter.
 
To your writing! 
Joan

Joan Dempsey
joan@literaryliving.com