Revising means more than running spell check

This week we are working on revising our memoirs. What do we have to do when we revise to actually make our writing better?

We have to step back and see the writing differently. Revising, as Adrienne Rich famously said, is re-seeing. (Revision as re-vision.) What's the best way to get this new vision? Have someone else read your draft. They may not have any advice for you on how to make improvements, but they can tell you how they respond as readers: how it made them feel, what it made them think, what parts had the biggest impact, what parts were the most confusing. They can ask you questions.

Another way to get another look at your writing is to simply put it away for awhile and come back to it later (hard to do when you're under a deadline--that's why it's important to give yourself time to write). Time can give you the distance you need to see your writing more impartially.

With practice, you can learn to read your own writing as a reader. But all writers, at some point in the process, benefit from feedback and time.

Here is a good handout on revision.