Editing: Paper VS Screen

I’m in the process of editing my second book, for – I have no idea, the plentyeth time. I’ve printed the whole thing out this time, a huge slab of papers, piled up on my desk.

The plan is to go through everything by hand, then combined with my editor’s notes, and a whole bunch of feedback from beta readers, go through the whole thing one last time, implementing everything. One huge slow burn. Then, (hopefully), there’s just proof reading left.

Many people will swear by editing on paper. Print the stuff out, they’ll say. It helps. I’m not so sure. I prefer the screen, as long as you read out loud, I don’t really buy into the whole “you pick up more stuff on paper”. It’s easier on the screen, you won’t lose a page, it’s easier to read your notes, it’s simpler really.

But one thing that I’ve realized is much easier with paper, is how easy it is to do. How easy it is to just sit down, edit a few pages, whenever you want. That’s a big pro right there, at least for me, because it makes it easier to go through it all. You can take five pages here, ten pages there, or just one every now and then. Not having to boot my laptop and find all my files makes me more eager to work, often.

But still, I can’t wait until I’m through this pile, so I can go back to making my pretty, pretty draft, prettier.

What do you think? How do you work best? What works for you? Any secret tips and tricks to share?