To Write, First Learn What Not to Write

When editing writing, whether it be others or your own, the hardest part of the process is thinking, "Does this content achieve the narrative the author is intending to create?" and subsequently changing the content to fit that intention. This step is often skipped over because occasionally it involves completely starting over, which may feel like going backwards. On the contrary, the author accumulates the lens of someone who knows what not to write, which is more valuable than the draft could ever be.