Editing – Pull off that sock. It just complicated the plot. A side character that, while funny, didn’t do much for the overall story line. Wipe off the gooey brown root beer. The words were sweet but cloying. They weren’t original, finding their prose in the cliché and over used. Chip off those decals. Brilliant red, orange, yellow, blue, green. Put in place curry in a bed of rice, sweaty camel’s back, desert sand under moonlight, silk snapping in the wind. Paint careful pictures on each black square. Sand away hard edges. Be subtle and clever in your plotting. Sharpness is only left for chases and hard words spoken between lovers. Pull away a cube or two. Show the heart of the story. Sprinkle gems of plot – a path to follow. End with a gentle, short, swoop leaving the reader crying more, again.
The first draft – you cannot fix what is not there. Editing –words must be written to be rewritten. Be patient with yourself writer. Never expect more than a Rubik’s Cube found under the bed for your first draft.