Editing
Oh my god, this book thing is really happening...
Last night I finished a round of editing on my manuscript, which - like so many things in my life - I’d been intending to do much sooner than I actually did. If you’re anything like me, you sometimes put off editing because you’re daunted by it. You know you can do it - you’ve made it through the hard part of actually having a manuscript - but it just feels like one. More. Step.
What if you can’t do it?
This particular round of editing came out of necessity for me. One of the essays in my forthcoming memoir Grace Notes quotes extensively from lyrics from songs that played a formative role in my childhood and adolescence. When I wrote the essay I had no idea about copyright laws with respect to the use of song lyrics. Fun fact #1: there are stringent copyright laws with respect to the use of song lyrics! My editor told me we could try to get permission to use them, but it would likely be a long, drawn-out process that could delay publication of my book. It could also be futile.
I’ve had a publication date of May 15, 2026 for a couple of months now. I want to keep that date; at this point, it almost feels like a second birthday (my real birthday, if you’re interested, is January 28). So I decided I’d figure out a way to continue to reference the songs that mean so much to me without quoting the actual lyrics. Basically, to say “there’s an elephant in the room” without specifically saying as much. Fun fact #2: you can reference song titles without violating any major copyright laws. By maintaining the use of song titles and by being creative - let’s hear it for my MFA in Creative Nonfiction! - I was able to edit the piece in a way that maintains the ethos of the essay without putting the copyright police hot on my trail.
The essay ended up being better after editing, largely because I’m using my own words instead of relying on the words of those who inspire my own. And that’s the goal of editing: to make an already good work better.
My point? When it comes to writing, you can do the thing you think you might not be able to do. You just need to sit your ass down and do it.