Why I Don't Edit My Blog During NaBloPoMo, Or: Why You Shouldn't Publish Your First Draft
If you've read any of my previous blog posts so far, you likely noticed some improper grammar, some odd word choices, or just general sloppiness. This may, understandably, turn you off from my services, but I really hope it doesn't.
Frankly, I'm just gonna let you know, copy editing isn't my strong suit. Grammar, punctuation, and a final copy edit is something I'd likely outsource to a trusted colleague, or say you're welcome to find another provider for in that case (I'm learning though!). I would say I'm a good proof reader for general typos and small corrections, and a great line and content editor, ifIdosaysomyself (one edit: my boyfriend tells me to use the word "fantastic" here), but I think my strengths are in putting together the layout, and dealing with all the other creative and technical endeavors to get that responsibility and burden off the shoulders of the author.
Anyway, the point is: this is NaBloPoMo. These are first drafts that I'm exposing. This here is the first post that I've written before 11pm so there's not a lot of planning happening. If I spent all my time editing and formatting or what have you, I'd never post anything this month. Just like NaNoWriMo is not the time to edit your novel. If a writer spends their time editing everything during NaNoWriMo they'll never reach their goal. The usual 1,667 daily words is hard enough to write on its own, let alone critiquing yourself along the way. Instead, it's the time to get those words on paper and flesh out that story to the best of your abilities. That's why an outline is pretty handy.
I know I'm taking a risk in posting like this and putting out my unedited ramblings, but it's a blog, not the next bestseller. I certainly don't claim to be a professional blogger who would, and should, hold myself to higher standards, so I allow there to be something a bit casual about this. No one's proofreading for me. No one's reading this at all before I hit publish actually. But I know this a representation of me, just as your writing is a representation of you. Would you publish your first draft right out the gate on December 1st once NaNo is over and your novel is done!? If you answered "yes" to that question, you better check yo'self before you wreck yo'self.
Shame.
Don't do it. It's sloppy. It's unprofessional and amateur. It brings down the overall average quality of self-published and indie books, and frankly, that just hurts everyone in the industry. Yes, I could be attributing that same comment to this blog. I suppose you could interpret this as "don't read this - it's crap", but I guess what I'm trying to say is, "don't judge me by this - it's my first draft".
edit - You'll see that I did add a note above, after my boyfriend read this post and had a word suggestion, so then I had to add this footnote to address that edit and you can see the spiral you can get into and the problems that arise from trying to edit things when it's not yet time to do so...
