Sunday, May 7, 2017

Re-Writes

It's inevitable that the time will come when re-writes are requested. It is a fact of writing life. Your head gets into the story so much that you can't see the trees for the forest.

My friend's big-time publisher asked her to fully remove one character from her manuscript. Imagine the thought of that task. Like a true professional writer, she faced the task and did it without complaint.

We get a variety of reactions when we request changes to the story line in a manuscript. We've requested to delete the final chapter -- the story had ended, stop writing. We've requested that the last two chapters be swapped with each other. And of course, we often request that the vulgar words be eliminated or reduced to one character's dialogue and greatly diminished.

Sometimes it is as simple as changing the title that the author has embraced for years of writing the piece. Failure to be adaptable is the wrong move. Most of the time, the writer knew in their heart of hearts that there was something amiss and welcomes the guidance.

It is important to remember that you're writing for the reader, not for you. If that isn't true, then put the finished manuscript in a drawer and let them sell it at your estate sale.

You're not alone. Read the article below.