>EX: Anyone could've came up w/ the idea for Harry Potter, but
>few could've executed on it.

fascinating. i think it's the opposite. few could've come up with the idea for harry potter, but in someone else's hands, i think it could've been written better. ok. that's beside the point.

anyway.

revision seems to be the general consensus, and it's a good consensus, but i also want to share, that in my experience (my own stuff and talking with other writers), it isn't a magic bullet. i'm almost sure you've been revising.

hm. or maybe it'd be interesting to start a conversation about the revision process?

anyhow.

i make a distinction between practice and revision. it's up to the writer to figure out which one they're in need of, i guess. the line i draw is probably a fine line, but yea...i do think there's a difference. for starters, revision, most likely, won't give you skills that you want to acquire or need to develop so that you can write your story.

it's possible for a writer to re-write themselves into the blue yonder and still get shot in the foot. if you're essentially asking: "how do i become a better writer, a writer who has better control over their subject matter, with solid technique?"-- i don't know if the answer is an out and out "revise".

i think technique comes through practice, not unless you're born knowing how to "do it". practice, in my opinion, basically develops whatever tools your have in your writer's toolbox and maybe gives you the wherewithal to purchase some new stuff to show off. practice helps to familiarize yourself with what's in a writer's toolbox.

then it just becomes a matter of

1. practicing how to use the tools, based on the instructions jotted out in the owner's manual. that's why i mentioned reading and imitation. writing and language go together like two peas in a pod. good writers have some kind of mastery over the language. their work is like an owners manual.
2. practicing how to use that funky electrical thing to put up the metal picture frame and knowing why you're using it instead of a hammer.

along the way, sure, issues of taste and style and likes and dislikes come up. it's possible to notice stuff about what works for you and what doesn't, while you practice.

and i'll shut up, now. i feel your pain, though.