After completing the second edit of Simon Goes to Spain I realised how much a story can change in the editing and revising stage.

The first edit was done immediately after I completed the draft and after reading it through, recently, I was shocked at how badly it read and a little embarrassed that I sent it to agents so early.

In this revision I have added a narrator and corrected some obvious grammar and spelling mistakes (oops!). I also developed and ‘layered’ the bad guy’s character and it already seems 100% better.

It’s a funny thing to think that when I had completed the first edit I thought it was brilliant, after all it was the first book I had written and completed. After leaving it for four months and completing a thorough revision and edit it is even better.

So will that mean that when I edit it in another four months it will be even better still? How many edits do I need to undergo before it is really finished and as polished as I can make it?

After seeing the improvement one proper edit has done, I wonder what Living in London will look like? At present I write the chapter and then edit on the day it is posted, so not having the luxury of leaving it a few months before posting means that the raw stuff is out there, how much better will it be after a couple of edits?

Despite this mind-blowing improvement on my first draft it is still hard work setting to the task of revising and editing. It’s a bit like going out for a run, you know it will feel better once you’ve done it, but trying to summon up motivation to do it is difficult.So I guess it proves just how important editing is to a writer but also that it is a step that can’t be omitted in the move toward becoming a published author.

So I guess it proves just how important editing is to a writer but also that it is a step that can’t be omitted in the move toward becoming a published author.