It was no accident that the ancient Greeks and Romans used wax tablets for writing:
the tablet was made of wood and covered with a layer of wax, writing on the surface was performed with a pointed instrument, a stylus – words we are familiar with today! The entire tablet could be erased by heating it up and smoothing it over – ‘erase all’ – so even in ancient times it was clear that, as Roald Dahl said, ” Good writing is essentially rewriting”. The key action, is of course to get something written in the first place – your first draft and there may be many more which follow.
Principles to editing poetry :
Let's Write...... 