The
final sentence is finished, and you sit back in your chair, stunned.
You’ve
written a book – congratulations! You really should be proud of yourself,
because writing a book is quite an achievement. You’ve undoubtedly put a lot of
time and effort into this project, honing your craft with blood, tears, and
many cups of coffee, tea, or whatever substance gets you through each chapter
(I’m not judging). You’ve grown up alongside your characters. You’ve built
worlds and you’ve broken them.
I’m
here to tell you, the joy of writing doesn’t end when the book does.
And
if you did not catch the sinister tone in that sentence, then you had better
put on your seatbelt.
Writing
a book can be downright painful. And unfortunately, it’s only two-thirds of the
battle. Your next big step can be one of the most crucial: self-editing.
Now hang on! I just wrote the thing! It’s my baby! I
can’t start changing it this soon! I need time!
Perhaps – you will find that every writer has their own
technique, and while it is generally a good idea to give yourself a bit of a
breather between finishing the book and starting to edit it, you don’t want to
wait too long. There is no epidural for writing, and you may need time to
recover, but at some point you have to bring that baby home from the hospital.
Self-editing is very difficult because the perspective from which you read your book will always be different from an outsider. You, after
all, know exactly what you were trying to say when you wrote that sentence
which is, in reality, incomprehensible. Self-editing takes a lot of discipline
and a lot of patience. But it is a necessary evil, and it will always put your book in a better place
than it was before.
Here are some tips and other resources to get you through
even the most rigorous self-editing.
Know the difference between editing and proofing.
Proofing is for catching grammar and spelling mistakes.
Editing is for catching inconsistencies in plot and characterization and fixing
interruptions in flow. You won’t be able to catch everything on your first read-through,
so try separating these two techniques and read your book twice. You will
always cross-over a little bit in each read-through, but narrowing your focus
may help you to find more than you would have with just one look.
Use your tools effectively, by hand or by computer.
There are some people who turn their noses up entirely at
editing by hand. Personally, I prefer to conduct a first read-through with pen
and paper. But my second read-through is always electronic, and I always find
something that I missed the first time. If you’re the kind of person who has
never edited your work electronically, I highly recommend that you try it. Word
processing programs have many tools that can be used to keep track of your
changes, leave comments in the margin, and insert bookmarks in sections that
need to be returned to. They mimic the process of editing by hand, while providing
you with a cleaner, faster, and more functional editing experience. However:
Beware spell check, grammar check, and find/replace
tools.
Computers are still not the be-all, end-all of editing,
and they can make embarrassing mistakes on your behalf with the click of a
button. If spelling is something you struggle with, Spell Check tools can be
invaluable. But word processing programs are not always the best at
interpreting context, and homonyms are their nemesis. Breathe vs. breath, their,
there, and they’re, too vs. two – it is not unusual for a program to guess
incorrectly. And if you find yourself depending on Microsoft Word for grammar
advice, then it would behoove you to invest in books on the subject.
In addition, the find/replace tool is a favorite of many
writers, especially when you need to re-name characters or places throughout a
100,000+ word body of work. You should never
use this tool to replace common words, however. Let’s say you want to insert a
bit of colloquialism into the story. So you replace the word “You” with “Y’all”.
Not only will this wreak havoc with capitalization all across the book, you
will start discovering words like “Y’all’re”, “Y’all’ve”, and “Y’allr”. Be
meticulous and save yourself the headache: change words like these
individually, or better yet, incorporate them while you are writing the book.
Be strict with yourself: is that stylistic, or just
bad writing?
It’s easy to look at a sentence, especially in dialogue,
and blame what is actually poorly written on your unique writing style. While you
shouldn’t be afraid of your grandmother’s grammar no-no’s (starting sentences
with ‘and’ or ‘but’, ending sentences with prepositions, etc.), you should always
be alert as to why you make the choice to ignore them. What sounds good is not
always correct. Don’t be lazy in your writing, because the readers will notice.
Less is more: be choosy with adverbs, adjectives, and
descriptions.
While essential to good story-telling, these three can be down-right
exhausting after a while. A reader will generally be held on the edge of their
seat by action and dialogue more than several pages on how the trees look in
summer. That is not to say that description is not important: a crimson rose
with petticoat petals is more interesting than a red flower, and readers love
to be immersed in the story through rich imagery. Be choosy though – let your
readers breathe a while between descriptive text. Lace the pages with small supporting
details rather than huge chunks all the time. And, when in doubt, take a red
marker and mercilessly scratch through every other adverb you see.
Remember: even though you’re writing fiction, you’re still
telling a literal story. If you want the reader to believe that what you are
writing about is actually happening, you will need to avoid exaggeration like
the plague. Choose details that are believable.
Are you assuming that the reader is stupid? Don’t.
You should never
assume that the reader needs everything to be spelled out for them. Your
writing will come across as blocky and simplistic if you try. If the reader has
to work a little, it will make them more engrossed in getting through the book,
and they may discover something new when they read the book a second or third time
(always a joy). Let me emphasize ‘a little’ though – give the reader a story,
not an outline. In short, be clear instead of obvious and concise instead of
wordy. If one action naturally leads to another (he picked up the fork and
began to eat) then you don’t necessarily need to list both.
Don’t be afraid to be hard on yourself.
You will be a great self-editor if you are diligent in
how hard you critique yourself. After all, “you are your own worst critic” – instead
of falling prey to crippling self-doubt, use your natural inclination to your
advantage. Every writer has their own “personal clichés,” whether they be a
particular set of words, descriptions, or even a factor of their writing style,
that they overuse in their work. They can be difficult to recognize on your own,
but do your best to identify what they are and how often you use them.
Employing Beta Readers is a good way to discover these, as they will often
point out to you if you have been repeating something too often. Once you have
figured out what you are doing, be vigilant about keeping these clichés to a
minimum. You shouldn’t feel the need to banish them from your writing entirely,
but space them out over the entirety of your book to make sure they are never
recognized by the reader.
Additionally, the first fifty pages (roughly) of any
given body of work can be very difficult to get through when you are editing.
Writer Carol Saller (article linked below) describes this section as “Throat
Clearing,” the part of the book where you establish your rhythm and begin to
get to know the characters and the setting. It takes time to hit your stride
(this is natural!), and as a result, the start of your book will need extra
attention.
Read things out loud or to other people.
Most beginning writers find it extremely uncomfortable to
read their work aloud, even to themselves, and this is actually an excellent
thing. When you put your brain off-guard by reading aloud, you catch things
that you might easily skip over otherwise. When you read to yourself, however,
you are still courting your closest confidant. There will be things that are
clear to you that others might have trouble understanding. If you have a close
writing friend, try reading your work to them and be willing to listen to their
work in return (critiquing others will give you a good perspective on your own
projects). Even if the vocal aspect of this tip is not possible, you should
never undervalue outside opinions.
Basic Techniques - 10 SimpleTips for Self-Editing
Stylistic Techniques – SixEasy Tips for Editing Your Fiction
Final Checks – Before YouSubmit: Some Tips for Self-Editing
