Every writer needs to be able to edit his or her own work. Without self-editing you’d never create a story that would catch readers’ attention. And to be honest, self-editing is not all that difficult. Here’s some advice on how to make it work.
Realize that what you wrote is NOT the final version.
Very little writers can write a novel in one go. I could even go as far as saying that no good story gets published without any corrections.
What you have before you is merely a first draft. One of many. And there’s still a lot of work to be done before the story is readable.
How and what to do to edit your story well?
First of all, take a deep breath.
Yes, you just finished a novel. It’s the most precious thing in the world. And even a slight thought that the novel is not perfect causes you pain.
Go slowly and don’t read it for some time
When it comes to editing, your best friend is time.
You need to take it easy. Allow your brain some rest.
After a day or two (preferably three or four), you will be less likely to miss the mistakes that are for sure there.
It’s better to take a break after every stage of editing. That will assure that you’ll have a fresh mind. And that’s what really matters when you’re correcting your own mistakes.
Fix big things first
I do realize that often you are advised to start with small things and work your way up to the major problems.
But look at it this way. You have this huge amount of words, maybe even hundreds of pages.
You fight your way through grammar and typos only to discover that some parts need total re-writing, whole paragraphs need to be added and that one of the chapters doesn’t even need to be there.
Exactly.
So start by fixing your plot holes. Then ensure everything makes sense. That there is a clear chain of cause and effect.
Unless your story is shorter, you’re probably a bit tired by now. So just go for a walk. Take a breather. Because you’re not done yet.
Now turn to your characters. Do they sound differently? Do they have enough of quirks, mannerisms and such to make them look three-dimensional? Are they involved in too much exposition (never a good thing. Ask Dumbledore)? Do they know more than they should?
Also, I noticed that in some of the stories I edit, make sure to check characterization. Especially in longer stories. Authors tend to forget themselves and they pay less and less attention to how they write their characters. And characters are what in fact readers come back for. They want to see what happened next to the characters. So you really want to make sure that you’re consistent, when writing characters.
Concentrate on small things
After you’re done with the big stuff, I strongly suggest you once again leave the story for a few days (I know, I know I am repeating myself. But I can never stress it enough. Taking a break between editing stages is crucial). Fixing plot holes and characterization in an exhausting task, but one that has to be done. Before you start the next stage, make sure you have a clear head.
Now it’s time to take care of the technicalities. Typos, grammar and other small irritating things.
When it comes to that, you can use one of the tools some word editors offer (like Microsoft Word). But don’t trust software completely. Yes, let it run. It will help you catch the majority of mistakes. Simply don’t take its suggestions for granted. It’s a machine, and they aren’t perfect.
Even if you run an automated grammar and spell check, you should then read through the whole story and make sure everything sounds right.
To be honest, that’s the last step. You just edited your story. Read it. I bet it’s a lot better than your first draft. Good job :).
This intel first appeared on: http://allwrittendown.wordpress.com/2007/11/22/secrets-of-self-edit...
