Redaction criticism

Mark and compiling- Redaction criticism – can you elevate this to an unhelpful prominence? The Gospel writers were upfront in what they were trying to do- tell the good news of Jesus Christ; John's 'these are written so that you might believe'. There are different emphases among them- and it is right to consider how and why they are editing the way they are. Sometimes it feels like too much weight is given to this editing process- that this was the main thing dictating what went in and how it was told- what pericope surrounded other pericopes. And I suppose chronology wasn't always the writers chief guide for where they inserted things. Still, I think in the gospels that actual happening is a very strong influence over how the story is told- and it is important not to lose sight of this when thinking about how the work has been redacted.
It is also by its nature a slightly speculative enterprise. And perhaps this isn't always reflected in the language the scholars used to describe it.