WIP Check In: August 26th

[sperrywink]

Good morning (in my part of the world), I'm sperrywink and I will be your host this week. I'll generally be posting around 5pm USA-EST the rest of the week because of work and all that jazz. Just a head's up if your day wraps up earlier.

Poll #11537 Check In: August 26th

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 10

View Respondents

How has today been?

View Answers

Awesome!
0 (0.0%)

Pretty good
4 (40.0%)

okay
1 (10.0%)

meh
1 (10.0%)

Why are you taunting me?
4 (40.0%)

Today I have...

View Answers

wrote
2 (25.0%)

edited
2 (25.0%)

posted
0 (0.0%)

researched
2 (25.0%)

will explain in comments
3 (37.5%)

Discussion topic!!

I have to edit my Big Bang and I have been putting it off because I got an amazing beta back, but there was so much it was daunting and I hate editing. What is your relationship with editing and getting your stuff beta-read? Best part of the process, worst part of the process, something else?

Comments

[cirque]

I'm just jumping in here even though I'm new but ~hey :} l

Good morning! It's actually 3pm here but I've only really just woken up, so good morning all the same :P

I'm in bed because I'm ill, which sucks :( but I'm feeling a little better today so later on I'll see if I can't get a few hundred words written. I don't have a big WIP as such, but a series of fics for various challenges on here and LJ :)

As for beta-reading... I've never actually had a beta reader :O it's really hard to find them for my current fandom (Resident Evil) so I guess I'm just going it alone. I can sympathise with the whole massive-editing-task though :( it really does suck, having to go back and comb through every single sentence you've written :O good luck with it! ;D

x

[sperrywink]

Jump in, by all means! And hey back! *g*

Awww, I hope you feel better and can get some writing done later.

Trust me, it is always hard finding a beta reader! But yes, in small fandoms it is even more difficult (I had to look up Resident Evil). I usually give up finding one for smaller fandom things too.

I totally agree! Combing through your story yourself is a herculean task. Thank you for your sympathy... I guess I should stop napping and start editing...

[bay_alexison]

Didn't sign up for this month's challenge due to going to be fairly busy with betaing other people's work and other stuff, but I had been writing scattered things here and there. I do want to drop in real quick to say I totally know that feel over editing. For my Big Bang I'm very grateful for my betas for pointing out the mistakes (plot and characterization along with grammar) so that I can make the story better, but they pointed out SO MANY STUFF. XD; Most of the time I either have music on or the tv while I edit so that I relaxed a little.

[sperrywink]

Go you for being a beta and still getting some things of your own done! I've moved to betaing only sporadically since it is so hard to do both at the same time.

YES!! I got the full plot/characterization/grammar/structure beta too and I feel your pain and hope in making it so much better. It's an amazing gift, but leads to so much work. Good luck with your Big Bang! I hope it is a great hit.

I listen to music while writing and editing too. TV (Or talking in general) doesn't work for me though.

[bay_alexison]

Haha yeah a bit hard to balance between writing and betaing at he same time. Usually I would set a few days betaing fics and then another few days writing if that's the case.

Thank you! I posted the first half of the Big Bang a while back and got a couple good comments. Had send my last three chapters to Beta B (Beta A is busy with moving and starting school soon so she can't edit at this time :< ), so hopefully I'll get those posted around early September.

[sperrywink]

Sounds like you are very organized. GO you.*g*

Glad to hear that! Good luck with your September posting.

[lilly_c]

No writing for a few days for me but I have been in London all weekend and some things from the trip may make it into a fic at some point. Hopefully I'll be able to get some work done tomorrow.

I edited a fic before I went away and it was a little difficult because I know the fandom/show even less than the pairing I've written for but I do like stepping out of my comfort zones from time to time, it keeps me on my toes.
I don't use betas very often but when I do they point out a lot more than I can pick up on my own even with print outs. For me the best part is finishing the editing and the worst part is the actual process, I'm dyslexic so I sometimes miss my mistakes and then get frustrated at spotting them after I've posted.

[sperrywink]

London is a great place. Glad you had a good time and it is well-worth missing some writing for!

I like mixing things up too! That's why I am somewhat of a fannish butterfly.

Yes! The actual process is so arduous sometimes. Posting is definitely where it is at, even with the silly mistakes that get left behind. *g*

[sperrywink]

Research and outline are still awesome! Go you!

Oh, that is horrible!! Whittling down is what I hate the most. I hate, hate, hate cutting words.

I'm sorry your beta is busy. They do tend to make things better in that way. Maybe another will come your way.

[linaewen]

I haven't accomplished anything today -- wait, I take that back. I wrote an outline for a one shot I'm contemplating while in church this morning. ;-) Other than that, nothing. I've been at a family reunion most of the day (after church) and I'm feeling too sluggish to write. However, there are a few hours left in the day, so maybe I'll manage something later.

I love editing. I do it on a daily basis as part of my work in RL, so it's rather a natural thing for me. I edit my own stuff as I write, so it's a continuing process; it helps me work through sticky spots in the plot to go back and edit what I've already done. I will often send my work to a friend for light beta work, but I sometimes I don't if I'm short on time; I feel pretty confident with my work usually, so I'm okay with posting it when I'm ready without a beta looking at it. By the time I post, it's usually been editing so many times it's not funny! :-D

One problem with editing is that it's easy to spend too much time on it and not write anything new, so that's where I have to be careful.

[sperrywink]

Well, you've been bsy with real life! That happens. *g*

And hey, you still found time to be creative and plot your story, so go you!!

One of the few who love it! Glad to have you aboard! I tend to edit lightly as I go along too, but that is mostly centered on sentence structure and word-choice, not big things like characterization or plot. So if I can, I find a beta for the heavy lifting.

It is great to be confident in your stuff though. So many of us aren't and it is sad because we do amazing things.

[dirty_diana]

I'm like you, I hate editing. It's just not as fun as writing the draft and I have been known to put it off indefinitely. *sigh*

[sperrywink]

If I could I would put off this Big Bang editing for quite awhile too (it's already been sitting for 3 weeks since I finished early).

It is so sad to have stories languishing though. I always feel bad for them (anthropomorphizing A LOT).

[dirty_diana]

Had a stern talk with myself today and got it done. I think it looked like a lot of edits and that partially scared me off. Not that my feelings get hurt, but I just think "ugh so much work". :(

[sperrywink]

Go you!! That is awesome!

[lielac]

Wrote a bit. Mostly hashed out yet another Toa team. That makes... how many, now? LOTS. I could populate the maximum 23 unknown Toa with nothing but OCs and have a few left over who died, at the latest, during the battle just before the Reforming. Did absolutely fuck-all with my one posted WIP, though... >.<

What's a beta? ^^' I proofread pretty thoroughly, both as I go and once the thing's done, but I don't send it off to anyone else. It's just... summat I do. Or don't do, in the case of getting things beta'd.

[sperrywink]

You'll get back to your WIP, I'm sure of it! But go you for all the other work!

A beta can be a combination editor/proof-reader/beta reader. So someone who comes along when you are done (or in the middle if you and your beta roll that way) and offers advice about any number of things like grammar (editing part), characterization, plotting, continuity, flow, whatever catches their eye, really. The nice thing about not doing it solely on your own is that someone else can often notice things that you miss because you are so thick in the process.

[lielac]

I will! Eventually!

-cough- I should really label my rhetorical questions better. Thanks for the explanation anyway, but I do in fact know what a beta is. :P

[sperrywink]

Ah!! Yes, I amswered at 7am- rhetorical wasn't in my vocabulary then. *g*

[lullabymoon]

I added about 1800 words to my big bang. I finished off the last scene and did a bit more editing. Also, posted because the deadline is here. It's on AO3 though and doesn't go live until friday, so I've still got time to give it one more polish.


I don't mind editing when I've got plenty of time, quite enjoy it in fact. It's when I'm rushing to get it posted when I hate it. It's usually a sign I need to let it lie for a bit but I don't often have the time. I think the worst part of the beta process for me is the feeling that I am a crap writer and hopeless when I get the beta back. The betas I've had have been lovely and the works stronger for it but I can't help but feel a bit mortified that I didn't catch what they did. Which is daft, because the whole point of a beta is a fresh pair of eyes.

[sperrywink]

Go you!! Finishing is always a brilliant thing, particularly at the deadline!

Another person who enjoys it, yay! Yes, letting a story sit is often a plus, but with challenges and deadlines, not always possible.

So true. Maintaining your momentum when you get your beta back and see all that red is tough. I'm definitely prone to the "I'm crap" stage myself.

Good luck with your Big Bang!! I hope people love it.

[bay_alexison]

Seconding over the "I feel crap" after a beta gives back your story. Haha recently I got back one of my works from my beta and she points out some horrible characterization I did with the characters on the last scene and I was like, "OH GAWD WHY I DIDN'T CATCH THAT BEFORE! D:". But yeah, like you said in the end I'm glad someone brought the mistakes to my attention and that luckily I have the chance to make the changes.

[sperrywink]

Yes, there are many headdesk moments in my betas. But I'm glad your beta pointed it out so you could correct it. Maybe that should be another discussion topic- how to overcome the soul-destroying moments when you get a beta back covered in red.

[the_rck]

How I do with editing depends heavily on what I get from my beta reader. I love getting back a document full of notes because those notes make a road map for me when I edit. I dread getting only spelling and grammar comments because I can't tell from that what needs to be changed. Not that spelling and grammar comments aren't useful-- They are. I just hope for something else.

I generally know what I'm trying to do with the story. I just can't tell how well I'm succeeding (or how badly I'm failing). It's worse with longer, multi-chapter stuff, and I suspect that stuff is harder to beta, too.

I like editing when I know what I'm doing. When I don't know what I'm doing, I'm prone to simply correcting the typos and posting as is.

[sperrywink]

Yes! A full beta is much better than just a spag correction. I also like it when betas offer suggestion in how they would approach the problem. I might not use it, but it often sparks the thoughts I do use. It is a challenge getting back something useful. You never know which way it is going to turn out.

[the_rck]

I've found it relatively easy to find SPAG betas. The other kind is rare and to be treasured. I like to have more than one person look at my drafts. Different people spot different problems, and if two people red flag something, I know it needs work even if I thought I did it right.

I've got to find something really nice to do for my current beta readers.

[sperrywink]

They are to be treasured and showered with praise!! They can help you improve in leaps and bounds.

Definitely more than one is great if you can find them, I agree.