Is it a bad idea to write and edit chapter by chapter?

Question

I am beginning to write original novels after writing fanfictions and posting them online for about six years. My usual process is: write chapter, edit chapter, post chapter, repeat. This means that once I reach the end, there is very little editing left to do (I think!) because each chapter is edited as I write it. At the end I do an overall edit of the story as a whole, but it's often a very short phase. I usually have a good outline before I begin and the stories aren't very complicated, so I've never had any consistency issues using this method and have never had to rewrite the entire thing. My works vary in length, some novel-length (90,000 - 150,000 words) and some more like novellas (~30,000 words). So far this technique has worked fine for both.However, I'm avoiding this technique for the new stories I'm writing because I think that it would improve my writing to have a more obvious editing phase and draft/rewrite process. I also think it's potentially disastrous if huge edits *are* needed at the end because I'll end up being too attached to the bits that need to be scrapped.I'd like to find some middle ground, but not sure if I should just scrap this method entirely. In an attempt to break the habit, I completed NanoWrimo last year, but now the rewrite process seems so colossal that I just can't bear to go back to it. I was wondering if this edit-as-you-go method is a common way to write (from reading other questions and answers on here, it doesn't seem to be)? Is it *definitely* to be avoided, and why?

Answer 1

Hi! If you are writing and posting on a chapter by chapter basis, (like on websites like Wattpad, where they allow you to post chapters as soon at they're written) I dont believe its a bad idea to edit chapter by chapter. As long as you have all the continuous details down, basic editing (sentence structure, spelling, grammar, the whole nine) doesn't have to be done when the entire work is done.