Would you finish then edit, or backtrack then finish?

[Kali]

I'm very close to the end. I have one conversation and then it's the epic final battle, the bad guy loses, the good guys (mostly) win, and then there's the nice little denoument to wrap up everything into a tidy ending.

The thing is, I just today realized what it's going to take to turn the C-plot into a fully-realized, story-strengthening B-plot. I need to add in hints, foreshadowings, a couple of mysterious events that shouldn't be more than a couple of paragraphs, and finally write in one big scene containing a kidnapping, a battle, an unexpected alliance, a rescue, and an armed truce.

Since I'm a dyed-in-the-wool pantser, there's a very good chance that what happens in that big scene will change the ending. Not drastically, but it might change the specifics of what goes down, how it goes down, and how the 1st person viewpoint character reacts to it.

So should I finish, then edit and chance that the ending will have to be completely rewritten to accomodate the new scene? Or should I go back and write in the new scene, then pick up where I've left off and write through to the end? Any advice?

[Starbeam]

I'd say to finish it and then go back to add in all the hints and other scenes.  Or at least that's what I've seen most authors say to do.    What I would probably do is go back to add in the big scene, write the ending, and then go back through to edit the hints and foreshadowing in.

[belial.1980]

I'd say to finish it and then go back to add in all the hints and other scenes.  Or at least that's what I've seen most authors say to do.    What I would probably do is go back to add in the big scene, write the ending, and then go back through to edit the hints and foreshadowing in.

I agree.

[KevinEvans]

Yes, finish it. Then you can focus on making it great.

Regards,
Kevin

[Snowleopard]

Finish it first then back track.  You can always put little notes to yourself in the margins.
Er, sorry, I tend to hand write my stuff - so am always leaving notes to self.

[Kali]

Unanimity.  I'm flattened by it!

Finish, it is!  Well, I'll write the big scene and then finish, since the big scene would fit in only a little bit back (at the worst possible moment for the main character, naturally), then finish, then do the top-to-bottom edit with an eye toward fitting in the hints and tidbits.

Y'know, I knew that's what I should do.  It's what I would have advised someone else to do.  I'm being distracted by a plot bunny.

[Starbeam]

I've found that it often helps to see what other people would say cause then it makes you step back and look at it in the same sorta way.  I have the same problem with getting too focused on this or that and not being able to pull myself away from it.  Plus there's always the fact that people are good at giving advice and horrible at listening to it for themselves.

[the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh]

If it were me I would sketch the ending in outline and then go back and fix everything.

This is sufficiently much because of the way I work, though, that I am not offering it with any confidence as advice to anyone else.

[Snowleopard]

Every writer works differently.  You just have to find your rhythm, so to speak.

[Breandan]

I do a strange mix between the two, often going back over what I have written after I break a bout of writer's block, reading it aloud to my wife (helps me find errors and quirky sentences), and editing accordingly. Then I pick back up and continue on. The edits I do are generally minor, though. I know I will have to go back and completely overhaul the prologue, and at least the first two chapters before I show it to an agent or publisher

[Snowleopard]

I do a strange mix between the two, often going back over what I have written after I break a bout of writer's block, reading it aloud to my wife (helps me find errors and quirky sentences), and editing accordingly. Then I pick back up and continue on. The edits I do are generally minor, though. I know I will have to go back and completely overhaul the prologue, and at least the first two chapters before I show it to an agent or publisher

Don't forget to leave the ugly old doorknob. 
(Explaination: friend of mine used to say that when selling a house - the buyer always wants to be able to change something - so you'd leave a big ugly old doorknob - something they'd immediately spot and could change.  Then they'd be less likely to rampage through the rest of the house.
Friend said, editors are sorta like that - give them something moderately obvious to change (not stupid mind you) and they might be less likely to rampage through your writing.  Well, that's what he said.  I don't know if it works but there seems to be some sense to it.

[Josh]

I definitely get a first draft done before going back for any major edits. Along the way, though, I will certainly take notes about issues I recognize, inconsistencies I need to go back and fix, etc. That way, once I get to the end and let it sit for a bit, I can mull over how to fix things when the time comes. But yes, if I get too bogged down in editing along the way, it hurts my writing momentum.

[Kali]

For what it's worth, I did indeed finish after adding the big scene.  I'm ... having trouble fitting in the hints and lead-ups I wanted, but I think part of that is that I keep getting distracted.  I seem to be doing my 'finesse edit' as I go.  On the other hand, the thing is tighter and more polished now, so at least it's not wasted effort!

I'm going to have to make a concerted effort to focus just on the build-up and stop reading it as I go.

[Starbeam]

For what it's worth, I did indeed finish after adding the big scene.  I'm ... having trouble fitting in the hints and lead-ups I wanted, but I think part of that is that I keep getting distracted.  I seem to be doing my 'finesse edit' as I go.  On the other hand, the thing is tighter and more polished now, so at least it's not wasted effort!

I'm going to have to make a concerted effort to focus just on the build-up and stop reading it as I go.

Hehe...does it keep drawing you into the story and distracting you from the editing?  I've had that with some scenes.  I've decided that means I did that part of the story well, if it can distract me that much from the editing.

Also with the hints and stuff--what I found worked best when rewriting/editing something to make it fit with a later part of the story was to either write down what I needed to do, or to stop overthinking it and just read through to see where something small could be inserted/changed.  Doing that kept me from rewriting some scenes completely, when all I really needed to do was to delete a chunk and add in a couple lines to connect the two parts that weren't deleted.

[Kali]

Well, y'know. I'm reading along, looking for a place to tuck an abruptly ended phone call, and then I go, "Oops. Adverb."  Then I fix that and I get to a part where I'm like, "I took out that bit earlier, I need to remove this" or "This is just plain ugly, I should change it" or "She wouldn't say that, what's a good Southernism I can tuck in here?" and the next thing I know it's 6 hours later and I haven't added one bit to the backstory.