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| photo by chigmaroff |
I used to love to have hard copies of pieces, and each new draft would be stapled to the top of the stack. That way, I could look through the various drafts and see the progress--the scratched out part here, the rearranged part there, and so on. Now, when my piece is on my laptop/flashdrive (after it's handwritten--I rarely begin a fresh piece via a keyboard), I make changes that result in my "progress" becoming invisible. With a click of a mouse or a few keystrokes, whole paragraphs or pages can be moved around; the original arrangement falls back and disappears out of sight.
What tips about the "deconstruction" phase do you have? What helpful tidbits can you offer up when it comes time to revise? Inquiring minds want to know...
Interesting topic. These days, I compose almost exclusively at the keyboard/screen, but I always edit from a printed out copy. That way, the crossed-out word or phrase is still accessible, and in some cases, I return to it and reinstate it. I would hate to lose access to that earliest impulse that ultimately makes the final cut!
ReplyDeleteI print mine, too. It's the way I've always done it. (all 9 years!)It began with my newspaper columns and I've stuck with it. After I have a decent first draft, I print it, lay on the couch with a pencil, read it and immediately start editing! Kind of like what Katie said! I like to keep all those pages, too....for now, anyway!
ReplyDeleteHi Sioux! I save with a date, i.e. Sioux's Story 120210; Sioux's Story 120310. If I edit a lot in a day I'll add a -1 or -2 etc. I usually only print the final copy because ink for my printer is expensive!
ReplyDelete