Draft, draft, draft, draft

In the April 29 New Yorker, John McPhee writes about writing and revision in “Draft No. 4”:

After reading the second draft aloud, and going through the piece for the third time (removing the tin horns and radio static that I heard while reading), I enclose things in boxes for Draft No. 4. If I enjoy anything in this process it is Draft No. 4. I go searching for replacements for the words in the boxes. The final adjustments may be small-scale, but they are large to me, and I love addressing them.

No link: the piece is online for subscribers only.