Andrew Norriss
Andrew Norriss: Introduction
In twenty five years of earning my living as a writer, I have never submitted a book, a tv script or even a piece like this, without re-writing it at least seven or eight times.
I used to think this meant I wasn’t very good - after all, Trollope or Dickens didn’t need to do that many drafts - but then I read that one of my heroes, Terry Pratchett, reckoned he usually stopped revising his books after the sixteenth draft, and I’ve since discovered that most writers are like me. There are a few who only write their novel once or twice, but most of us have to go over it again and again before it looks anything like the way we wanted.
So when I finish the first draft of whatever I’m working on, I usually reckon that means the job is about half done. I’ll need to spend at least the same amount of time again doing… well, doing all the things I’ve listed below.
But a word of warning before I start. Writing is a very personal game. On the odd occasions when I meet up with other writers and we discuss the process, I find we have an extraordinary range of habits and idiosyncrasies. I offer these suggestions for altering and improving your work simply as that - suggestions. They work for me and, if any of them work for you, good luck!
Andrew Norriss
