The importance of editing – lessons from Roald Dahl

Everyone writes, but not everyone understands the importance of editing. Writing less gives your reader more, because you’re working harder to make things easier and simpler for them.  

Roald Dahl knew this. He’s quoted as saying: “Good writing is essentially rewriting.”  I saw this in action a couple of years ago when I visited an exhibition at York Art Gallery to see some of his original writing in a dedicated special exhibition. I was treated to a mixture of type- and hand-written pages, which also included his editing.  

The pictures accompanying this blog show Dahl reflecting on the pace of his writing (he literally writes “No pace,” having crossed out three lines), as well as adjusting impact by removing reference to “Miss Trunchbull”, instead naming her “The Trunchbull” at this point in the story. He adds alliteration – swapping “trickles of saliva” for “flecks of froth” – and shortens sentences as he goes.  

All these changes improve his writing, so it’s time well spent.  

Why editing matters 

Would you describe yourself as having loads of spare time? No? Me neither, which is why it’s even more important that I can quickly and easily get to the information I need when I’m reading something.  

And apart from being time-poor, we’re also increasingly lacking in attention. There’s a seemingly endless stream of distractions available to our 2025 brains, so it’s no wonder experts say our attention spans are shrinking.  

American psychologist and professor of informatics Dr Gloria Mark’s research has documented attention spans since 2004. That year, the average attention span when looking at a screen was 2.5 minutes. In her most recent research, that was down to 40 seconds. Some commentators cite eight seconds as the current average attention span – officially shorter than a goldfish.  

On social media, people spend an average of just 1.7 seconds viewing content. It’s no surprise that short-form content – such as on TikTok and YouTube Shorts – is growing exponentially. Also, no surprise then, that the phrase brain rot officially entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2024 and was named word of the year.  

You’re competing for the attention of your reader, so editing to produce better-quality writing helps capture and keep their attention. That’s why it matters.  

Editing’s role in producing great writing 

No one owes you their time to read your writing. Editing helps sharpen your prose, distil your points, and clean up your structure. Done right, it will vastly improve anything you write, contributing to it being more effective. (If you want to read more about the power of clear communication and the KISS theory, try this blog.)  

As a tutor on The Economist’s Business Writing and Storytelling executive education course, I provide feedback on assignments from people all over the world who want to be better writers.  

Participants spend six weeks working on exercises to hone their skills, creating a final piece of writing. It can be about any topic – some choose a personal interest, others have a work task they want to use. They spend a whole week on the craft of editing – roughly 15% of the course. 

Editing is built into the final assignment, with a requirement to remove 10% from the first draft, as well as responding to the other feedback I’ve given them. If participants don’t reduce the word count by 10%, they can’t get top marks, no matter how good their final piece of writing is. With companies investing thousands in sending their people on this prestigious course, endorsed by one of the best writing brands in the world, do you need any more evidence that editing is essential? 

So did I edit this blog before I published it? Absolutely. Am I willing to share some tips on exactly how to edit your writing? Of course! I’m in the middle of editing that blog right now, so keep your eyes peeled for it.  

If you want a hand with editing in the meantime, the Wordsmiths team has 152 years of professional writing experience. We can sharpen your sentences, pare back your prose, and maximise your messages. Get in touch to discuss how.