Editing Starts Strong

Editing is like pruning a hedge.

At first, it’s obvious what needs cutting:

• Wild branches sticking out
• Dead twigs
• Awkward gaps

You trim, you shape, you stand back and admire.
But keep going too long, and you’re no longer improving the hedge; you’re just snipping leaves for the sake of it.
Eventually, it’s over-manicured. A little sad. Suspiciously bald in places.

Writing works the same way.

Early editing is essential:

• Fixing structure
• Sharpening arguments
• Smoothing rhythm
• Pulling weeds
• Planting clarity

It’s the kind of pruning that helps the garden grow.

But then the changes stop being meaningful.

You’re no longer strengthening the piece, you’re fussing over:

• “Dirty” vs “muddy”
• “A” vs “the”
• Comma placement that no one will notice

That’s not editing.
That’s procrastination in disguise.

It’s the same with soup.

• A few pinches of salt: transformative
• A dash of pepper, a squeeze of lemon: suddenly it sings

But keep adding, and you ruin it.
Too much salt, too much spice, and the soup collapses under the weight of your tinkering.

The trick is knowing when it’s seasoned enough.
Not perfect enough.
Because perfection is a mirage.
Chase it too long, and you’ll never serve the meal.

Here’s the serious undercurrent:

Endless editing is often fear-wearing a clever mask.

• Fear of rejection
• Fear of being judged
• Fear that the work isn’t “ready”

So, we keep fiddling, convincing ourselves we’re improving it, when really, we’re just delaying the moment of exposure.

Every writer has one:

• A drawer
• A hard drive
• A folder called “Final_Final_ReallyFinal.docx”

Full of half-finished, over-edited, never-submitted drafts.
They’re the ghosts of projects that never made it into the world because their authors couldn’t stop pruning the hedge or seasoning the soup.

The backlog grows.
And with it, the quiet regret of what might have been.

No piece of writing is ever “done.”
It’s just done enough.

The art is knowing when to stop polishing and start sharing.

• When your changes stop being meaningful
• When you can’t see the work clearly anymore
• When you’ve met your editing goals
• When fear is the only thing keeping you at the keyboard

Editing is vital.
But endless editing is a trap.

At some point, you have to:

• Put down the shears
• Stop stirring the soup
• Serve the meal

Submitting isn’t the end of the process.
It’s the next step in the conversation.

The world doesn’t need your perfect draft.
It needs your finished one.

So, stop pruning.
Stop seasoning.
Stop stalling.

Hit submit.

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