Guest Blog for Teignmouth Writers.
I had a much older cousin who was a literary novelist, and when I started to take my writing seriously he asked how I felt about editing. I told him I loved it and he nodded sagely, telling me with that attitude I would be all right.
When invited to attend a Teignmouth Writers’ meeting, editing was one of the things fellow author Kirsty Dougal and I were asked about.
As a published author, being edited by others is a fact of life and if you’re not prepared to engage in this process, then this route is not for you. But if you are it can be transformational for your writing, as it was for mine.
But that’s a story for another day, and here I’m going to focus on the self-edits which come before you set out on your chosen the path to publication. The essential, and often time-consuming, work which will take your first draft manuscript to a readable novel. Everyone has their own way of doing this, but these are the most important lessons I’ve learnt.
1) Have a process. I find it more than helpful to have something to focus on when I’m going through my manuscript, rather than reading it again and again in the hope that something in need of improvement jumps out.
Over time I’ve built up a checklist, which includes questions as varied as:
Are the characters’ conflicts and goals crystal clear?
Is there too much telling and not enough showing?
How does this push the story forwards?
Is the timeline working?
Do the descriptions really take the reader there?
Is there enough variation in pace?
Editing checklists are available online, but mine comes from lessons learnt about my own writing when working with professional editors. Which brings me onto…
2) If you can afford it, use a professional editor at least once. However I do appreciate they’re expensive and I know they’re not within everyone’s budget. I also know there are a lot of so-called professional editors out there with little, or at best irrelevant, experience. If you’re going to part with your cash it’s best to find someone through personal recommendation, and/or who has worked with a major publishing house, or holds a reputable editorial qualification and references you can check out.
The other thing you need to be certain of is that you will listen. An editorial letter is always a shock. Let yourself rant and rave, then be humble and take their advice. Not everything they say will ring true to you, but if most of it doesn’t, then they might not be the problem, and you’ve probably just wasted a lot of money.
If you can’t afford an editor, at least get a fellow writer or very well read friend to critique your book. It helps if it’s somebody brutally honest. Before I was published I used a friend who’d been an English teacher, but she was far too nice to be effective.
3) A final read aloud is time well invested.
You will be amazed how many errors this picks up. I use the read aloud function in the review section of Word and it’s more than adequate. It helps if you follow the manuscript with your eyes as well. Yes, it’s time consuming, but never forget you only have one shot at getting this right, whether you’re submitting to an agent or publisher, or putting the book out there yourself. It’s your reputation on the line, so make it the best you can.
Eva Glyn
Eva Glyn writes destination fiction set mainly in Croatia for One More Chapter, a division of Harper Collins.
We were honoured to have Eva as a guest at Teignmouth Writers while taking part in a writing retreat hosted by Lucy Martin.
It was so lovely to meet you in person at Lucy Martins.
And this kind of advice is gold dust!
Thank you much x
Great advice from a trusted fellow writer and special friend. Jane is so organised and committed to her writing and deserves her success.