Editing: can you just say no?

Have you ever been stuck on the treadmill of revision? Do your projects get bogged down as you find yourself creating version #20, or making "just a few more quick changes"?

It happens to all of us at some point. I've experienced it in corporate settings where too many levels of managers are involved in approvals, in small businesses when owners like to be involved in all decisions, in nonprofits and academic settings that thrive on interdepartmental collaboration, on volunteer committees where everyone wants to contribute their ideas. It can even happen in the writing stage before it ever leaves the writer's hands!

That's why I recommend checking out Dave Fleet's post on how to recognize when it's happening to you. He's right. Sometimes, the remedy is to just say no.

Dave offers some great tips on how to know when it's time to stop. And his advice goes far beyond writing press releases. I'll throw out a few more:

• You stop talking to your audience with your copy and start talking to each other.
• You're adding things to get approval instead of results.
• Your copy gets too flabby or too lean.
• You are still thinking about how to rewrite the brochure or web site on your drive home.
• Your message feels watered down.
• Creativity has left the building.