Be Your Own Worst Critic

Let's get real: No writer like edit. No matter how short or how long your story is, editing your story is like going after the Amazon rainforest with a six inch machete. You need to get rid of all that undergrowth that will cause some major problems later on. And there's going to be a lot of hazards in there. 

The problem, of course, is that nine times out of ten you don't know where to really begin, even if you dive right in. There's going to be a lot of weirdness and you know where a lot of that weirdness is on some level; it's that weirdness that you're dreading having to deal with. 

That's fine. 

Everybody goes through that. Be aware of that. But you need to go and dive in there anyway. While you're in there, be harsh. Treat it like this is somebody who you absolutely hate and you want to destroy their lives and you now have an opportunity to do. I know that's sort of a weird way of looking at it, but you need to go in and find all the bad stuff and either correct it, delete it, or make it into something that's not so bad. If you don't do it, somebody else has to, and when they go after it what you're going to see coming back is a lot of red. 

And the only way to avoid seeing all of that red is to go in there and deal with it yourself. I don't care what version of editing you do but you need to go after it. Some people will go straight off digital copy, some people like printing it out and going after it themselves. Some people will even go after it with a pair of scissors. Whatever method works for you. Go for it. Just realize that the person you need to be is your own worst critic. You're not going to get any better as a writer if you're nice to yourself. And this is definitely a time where that part of being a writer where self loathing comes in handy; this is where you get take it out on yourself. Get in there have some fun. 

Look at it this way: Either you do it, or someone else does, and if someone else does it you will still need to make the actual changes. May as well as do it yourself and get a start on it.