Editing your content to death

“Kill your darlings, kill your darlings, even when it breaks your egocentric little scribbler’s heart, kill your darlings.”
― Stephen King

How many steps does it take from pen to paper to publication?  

One?  A few?  Too many?

I have a confession.  

I edit my content...to death.  I pre-write, then I write, then I edit, then I edit again, and again, then I pass it off to someone else, then I edit again and then, maybe, it's done.  This whole process happens in normally a day, two tops.  Or, at least I used to.  Then I got smart.

http://janefriedman.com/2013/05/31/find-freelance-book-editor/

I heard some great advice in a podcast (The Solopreneur Hour #117) that if you want to be a better public speaker, you should study comedians.  While I use this methodology for speaking, it also transfers well to writing.  One lesson has really stuck lately - your first draft sucks. Tweak it over time. Then, when you've dispersed it enough, throw it out and develop new content. It's helped me to stop my edit-to-death step that comes after creation - instead, I'm letting it develop and editing it a little at a time as it goes.  

While I'm not altogether giving up on editing, I'm taking it more as a long process instead of a hack job.  I pre-write a few bullet points.  Then, I write, whether it be an article, a blog post, content for a marketing piece, or a presentation, and then I let it sit.  I'll browse over it and tweak obvious errors.  I'll pass it along for feedback, then respond to the feedback.  I'll let it sit a bit longer.  I'll look for ways to enhance the piece, and if I can't, I stop trying.  I'll throw it out to the public and let them comment.  And then, if I feel that the message is good, I leave it along.  I write my blog posts a couple weeks ahead so that I have time enough to fix what needs to be fixed, but I no longer fixate on fixing everything...to death.

I realized that writing is not a sprint to the finish, it's a marathon.  

You have to pace yourself.  You have to prepare for the long haul.  If you're spitting out perfect content in the first go, well, you're amazing.  But realistically, your first piece needs work.  Sometimes a lot of it.  Most of the time, though, it doesn't need to be red-penned to death.  Most of the time, it just needs time.

Do you pick your pieces down to the bare bones, or do you fluff it up? 

 I try to land somewhere in the middle.  Content matters, but how it is delivered is obviously important.  No one is going to be interested in a story or presentation that is just bullet point information with no depth; but on the same token, readers and listeners don't want to be walked through every single thought, emotion, or action that you, the writer or presenter, has.  Get to the point in a meaningful way.

How do you determine when your piece is finished?

Nicole
The Restless Entrepreneur

Resources for the restless entrepreneur

“My soul is impatient with itself, as with a bothersome child; its restlessness keeps growing and is forever the same. Everything interests me, but nothing holds me.”
― Fernando Pessoa

As a restless entrepreneur, I like to have my hands in a lot of things.  I like to read a lot of material and talk with different people.  My introverted, hyperactive, attention deficit mind allows me to constantly, and efficiently, bounce between ideas in order to get work done.  This has worked out well for me with my involvement with start-ups.  They don't need someone around long term.  They need guidance and ideas, then for the purse strings to be cut so they can flourish on their own.  It plays well in my need to create businesses and then have others run them.  I plan and push and prepare, then I step back and let whatever team I put together handle the business so that I can move on to something new.

I love industry.  I love new ideas.  And more than anything, I love digging through my vast supply of resources that inspire me.  I'd like to share my five current favorite resources with you.


1)  The Solopreneur Hour Podcast

Michael is a freelancing pro - so much so that he has branded the word "solopreneur."  His podcast is attractive sounding, with informative nuggets of business knowledge, and his tagline "job security for the unemployable" hits a note with me (I am quite proud to be unemployable by traditional standards).  On top of that, his "resources" page is a good start for those of you thinking of venturing out on your own.

2) The Middle Finger Project

Ash and Jess are hilarious.  Not only that, but they know business - and they're not going to beat around the bush to get that info in your head.  Aside from their hilarious banter and waxing poetic about vacations (they started a company for that too!), they blog about all aspects of life and business, and they give it to you straight.  These ladies are fun, informative, and chock-a-bock full of good information.

3) Freelancers Union

Freelancers Union is the kind of company that would almost make me uproot my family to move to New York.  Sara has the kind of ideas that allow freelancers to work for themselves, including an amazing insurance program that, in my humble opinion, should happen everywhere.  I became a fan of Sara's after reading her book The Freelancer's Bible, almost 10 years into my career as a freelancer.  Let me tell you - I didn't know what I didn't know until I read that book.

4) Joan Garry

 A good portion of my consulting clients are nonprofits, so being a faithful reader to Joan's website and blog are necessary.  I thought I understood how boards operate after sitting on them for the past few years...until I read how they are suppose to operate.  And don't get me started (seriously, not yet) on what I learned about Founder's Syndrome (and why I will not sit as chair of my own nonprofit's board)!  Joan blends humor with sound, practiced advice, and should be required reading for anyone looking to start a nonprofit, join a board, or accept a position as executive director.

5) Entrepreneur Magazine

True story - when I was putting this list together, I was trying to find not-as-mainstream resources.  I dug through bookmarked pages and articles, open tabs and browser histories, and what I found was that Entrepreneur Magazine is, by far, one of my favorite go-to resources.  I follow them on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, plus get email newsletters and have a subscription.  They provide solid information about so many different aspects of business that I seriously cannot think of a better magazine to reference.  They seem to publish articles about topics that resonate with me, the people I mentor, or groups that I'm working with such timing that I sometimes think they have a live feed into/out of my brain.

What are your favorite go-to resources for all things business, entrepreneur, freelance, nonprofit, or life?

Let me know in the comments!

Nicole
The Restless Entrepreneur