Avi

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Then everything changes

glassesI have worked on a book for a year. I feel good about it. It seems set. Coher­ent. I send it to my edi­tor. If I am lucky, my edi­tor can make one comment—not nec­es­sar­i­ly a criticism—as much as an obser­va­tion, a ques­tion. When I begin to work with that one point, every­thing changes. The sto­ry shifts. The char­ac­ters move, act, and talk dif­fer­ent­ly. The plot goes toward a new unfold­ing. Even the title changes.

This has hap­pened to me any num­ber of times dur­ing my career and I am deeply grate­ful for it.

Try­ing to think of a metaphor to sug­gest what hap­pens, may I sug­gest its like being fit­ted with a new pair of glass­es with a new pre­scrip­tion. It is not that you could not see before. It is that now you see things with much greater clarity.

The gift of a good edi­tor is that they let you see what you are doing.

5 thoughts on “Then everything changes”

  1. I love this post! I have shown my stu­dents (5th grade) your inter­view where you talk about all the revi­sions you do and how writ­ing is ‘hard’, even to an accom­plished writer such as your­self. I am hop­ing this helps them be more patient with the ‘areas of growth’ that the revis­ing process unearths. Thanks for the great metaphor of the new pair of glasses!

    Reply
    • This post is a good exam­ple that your first draft is not your last draft. you will have to rewrite it a Lot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

      Reply

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