Reading time: About 3 minutes
Do you ever indulge in panic editing? Here’s why you shouldn’t and how to beat down the impulse…
We’ve all been there. Our deadline is mere hours away, and we haven’t finished editing our writing project.
- Maybe we became lost in the research cycle.
- Perhaps we spent too much time writing.
- Probably, we procrastinated.
Whatever went wrong, we’re now facing a deadline we can’t possibly miss. So, we make ourselves a strong cup of coffee and sit down to kick the rear end of the writing project across the finish line. Even though we don’t have nearly enough time.
Did you know that the word “panic” comes from the name of the Greek god Pan, who was associated with sudden and irrational fear? My friend Peter has the nickname Peter Panic, which I’ve always found very funny.
Panic, however, can be serious business. It’s characterized by suddenness, intensity, irrationality and an ability to inflict psychological pain.
I first heard the term “panic editing” from my client Sylvia, who confesses to having engaged in it from time to time.
Even though the term was new to me, I instantly understood what she meant. But when I Googled it, I didn’t find any definitions or description — just some smart editors who were selling themselves as people who could turn around editing jobs in a hurry. (Presumably by charging enormous fees for the work. Either that or by using AI.)
Why panic editing fails
If you actively dislike editing, you may prefer leaving the job until the last minute. But I encourage you to rethink your strategy. Almost nothing becomes easier or more pleasant when you’re doing it with an approaching deadline breathing down your neck.
I know panic editing feels productive. Your heart races and your adrenaline flows as you make changes left and right. But this last-minute approach undermines your writing in many critical ways:
You don’t have the perspective you need. Editing too soon after writing is always a bad idea. Think about it: You did the research for your piece. You did the planning and preparing. You did the thinking. And, obviously, you did the writing. All of that activity puts you in a bad position to be a reasonable self-editor. Why? You’re too close to the material to be able to understand the problems your readers are likely to have. And the only way to get the perspective you need is with time.
Your body is flooded with stress hormones. This is a result of the fight-or-flight response, triggered by your deadline. But under stress, our brains prioritize quick reactions over careful analysis — the opposite of what effective editing requires.
You make mistakes related to speed. Rushed edits often create new problems. You might change a term in one section but forget to update it elsewhere. And in your rush to fix content issues, you’re likely to miss technical errors — bad punctuation, formatting inconsistencies, citation errors or referencing problems.
Your creativity shuts down. Panic narrows your thinking. Those innovative solutions and elegant alternatives that make good editing transformative? They rarely emerge when you’re watching the clock tick.
Breaking the panic editing cycle
Fortunately, there are practical ways to avoid the frenzy of panic editing.
- Allow enough time for incubation. Work to finish your writing at least 24 to 48 hours before you start editing. This gap — where you don’t even glance at what you’ve written — will allow you to approach your work with fresher eyes. (And if you’re writing a book or a dissertation, I recommend you give yourself an incubation time of six weeks.)
- Use the multiple pass system of editing. Rather than a single edit — or worse, reading and re-reading your work with the vague intent of making it better — break your work into smaller pieces (chapters for books or dissertations, sections for anything shorter) and go through each one, looking for one problem at a time. Your first pass should focus on content. Subsequent ones can look at issues such as clarity, sentence length, passive voice, spelling and grammar.
- Give yourself a fake deadline. Just make it earlier than the real one. And if you struggle with procrastination, create consequences for missing your self-imposed early deadline. (Maybe a donation to a political party you find abhorrent?)
- Use rituals. Develop specific routines signalling to your brain it’s time to edit. These might include changing locations, using different tools (editing on paper vs. screen) or even simple actions like making tea or coffee before beginning your editing session.
- Get help. It’s always a good idea to have someone else review your work. And it needn’t be a professional editor. Some people are born editors while others are born proofreaders. Odds are high you know someone in each category. Ask for their help, and do something kind for them in return.
- Practice self-compassion. Perfectionism often drives panic editing. Remind yourself that all writing is imperfect and that your worth isn’t determined by a single document.
By respecting the distinct phases of the writing process and giving editing the time it deserves, you’ll produce stronger work and spare yourself the perils of panic editing.
If you liked this post, you’ll also like 4 strategies to change how you think about stress.
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Need some help developing a better, more sustainable writing or editing routine? Learn about my three-month accountability program called Get It Done. There is turn-over each month, and priority will go to those who have applied first. You can go directly to the application form and you’ll hear back from me within 24 hours.
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My video podcast last week addressed how to find your thesis statement. You can watch the video or read the transcript, and you can also subscribe to my YouTube channel.
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Do you sometimes fall victim to panic editing? We can all learn from each other, so please, share your thoughts with my readers and me in the comments section, below. If you comment on today’s post (or any others) by March 31/25, I’ll put you in a draw for a digital copy of my first book, 8 1/2 Steps to Writing Faster, Better. To enter, please scroll down to the comments, directly underneath the “related posts” links, below. You don’t have to join Disqus to post! Read my tutorial to learn how to post as a guest. (It’s easy!)
