George Orwell’s Editing Process

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George Orwell is one of the greatest authors of all time. And his editing process will teach you more about writing than an English bachelor’s degree Let’s dive in…

Many view 1984 as a conspiracy novel that coincidentally aligns with today’s society. But it’s so much more … and George Orwell’s writing process does not disappoint

Here’s the orignal manuscript of ‘1984’ some of his most best-known work. This is an adaptation from ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four: The Facsimile of the Extant Manuscript’ A unique chance to see how he tapered one of his most coveted works Source: The Fiction Desk

Imagery + Intentionality Every great story needs to spark curiosity. Here George does this with • Character features • Setting structures • Social constructs The details keep the reader guessing.

Sentence Breaks + Code Switches Unique storytelling disrupts conventional thinking patterns to grab the reader’s attention. George does this with: - Choppy first lines. - Descriptive settings. - UPPER CASE WORDS

Finally Here’s a look at the published version

Notice the changes - “…a million radios” becomes simply “the clocks” - ‘Oh yes I remember’ is gone - He highlights way more physical features in characters than location Removes whole paragraphs Etc.

Editing can be painful but embracing the process is key George does this by ‘showing the readers not telling the reader He threads just enough dialogue and imagery in his intro to keep the reader curious This is a painful lesson that even George had to learn.

If you hate the editing process • Let your writing live for a few days • Simplify your wording • Make large chops It’s called a process for a reason!

That’s all folks! If you enjoyed this thread follow me @respectmywrites for more on writing, storytelling, and branding. twitter.com/respectmywrites/status/1536392981506408448?s=20&t=XwP51LBz3PytnYVTqlc3lg