Welcome back to Self-Pub Saturday! I mentioned today’s topic in the last SPS post, but today we will dive in head-first.
The first round of edits comes after you have finished the first draft. And what is the first draft? It’s us telling ourselves the story.
This step is what will really set you on the path to success. It won’t be the last time you edit (it better not be), but the first run-through is where you will figure out the things you didn’t quite flesh out the first time around and fix any plot holes you may have (at least it should be).
First thing to do is put down the manuscript. Yes. Don’t even look at it for at least a week. Some people will put a manuscript aside for upward of three months so that they can get a fresh perspective when they dive into edits. If there is something that you know you need to fix, write yourself a note. If you try to fix it now, you won’t stop. I learned that the hard way.
When you spend so much time on a manuscript, you become blind to things that could be issues. It is best to give yourself a little time, whether it be a week or two up to a few months before trying to do hardcore revisions on your own book, but this also isn’t the time to be giving it off for people to read. You need a little time to forget the gist of how you wrote it so you can see the issues for yourself without getting bogged down in everyone else’s opinions.
You can over edit your manuscript into a worse version of itself if you can’t take a step back from it and look at it through a different lense.
For some, this is one of the hardest things to do, because after writing an entire book, most of us want to keep writing. If that is you, start on your next project while you wait to edit. If you are really good at following a writing schedule and able to churn out a story, or at least an outline, during the time you take away from the one you are going to edit, you will have a head start when the time comes to really focus on it. This is the way a lot of full-time authors work so they always have something in process.
Once the waiting time is over, get out the read pen. This can be literal or figurative. Some authors like to hold actual paper, so they print out their manuscript, which is something I personally like doing, but only after a few rounds of edits. It can get pricey if you print out every draft. The trees and your pocketbook will thank you if you can do the first edits on the computer. I spent way more money than I should have on ink in my early days, but if you are going to go the print route, learn to print on the front and back of the page to save paper and binder space.
The first round focuses on fixing structural problems and ensuring the story makes sense. Don’t get bogged down in punctuation or grammar; although, if you are like me, you probably won’t be able to keep yourself from fixing things as you see it. That’s fine, but don’t waste time on it. One little thing can lead to another little thing which turns into an entire day of editing something that you might not even keep later. Been there, done that. Many of the scenes I deleted from my own novel are very well edited, but I wasted a lot of time to toss them in the end.
Start with the story structure. Ask yourself: Do the major plot points line up? Do they make sense? Are there any obvious plot holes or illogical things that make the story confusing? Does the story build up tension to a satisfying climax and resolution, or does it come out of nowhere without any rhyme or reason?
- Plot Arcs: The story needs a clear beginning, middle, and end with rising tension as the story progresses through the established plot. You can have sub-plots to deepen the story, but make sure they don’t run off and do their own thing. If they do, you either need to reign them in, delete them, or save them for another story.
- Pacing: Are there parts of the story that move too slow and become boring, or are there parts that give you whiplash as they fly by? You might think about trimming down slow scenes or writing more details for the speedy ones. If Act 2 feels slow, you might need to condense or rearrange some scenes to keep the pace going to avoid the dreaded “sagging middle syndrome.”
- Useless Scenes: Every scene needs to add something to the story. If you have any scenes that are there “just because,” either edit to give them a purpose, or cut them out entirely. The reader will thank you.
Evaluate your characters. Characters need to be fully fleshed out to be compelling. One-dimensional characters are no fun. Your main characters need clear goals and motivation, and they should react in line with their beliefs and established personality. Like the plot, your characters should have an arc with a beginning, middle, and end. It doesn’t matter whether you are writing a positive (where they become a better person) or a negative character arc (where they become a villain), but you should be able to clearly see their progression.
- Character Development: Characters should not end the story how they began. Flat character arcs are not intriguing. They should learn a life lesson, complete an arc…or die. Harsh but true.
- Consistent Dialogue: Each character should have their own voice that is in line with their personality and character. If they all sound like your head voice, readers will notice. They will also notice if there is a personality switch halfway through the book that isn’t warranted by the plot. Keep it consistent.
- Side-Characters: Are they relevant to the story or distracting? Side-characters should help move the plot along while giving depth to the story. Whether it is progressing the plot, creating conflict, or revealing things to or about your main characters, give them a job or get them out.
Strengthen the beginning. If you give an unholy amount of time to any part of the story, it should be the beginning. EVERYONE judges a book by the first few pages. You must hook them here, or you risk them putting the book down. A good first chapter should introduce compelling conflict(s) or questions that need to be answered.
- Hook Them: Does it grab your attention or create the need to learn more? This could be anything from action, a strange event, or intense character moment (physical, mental, or emotional), but it should be done without lengthy dialogue or exposition. Not many readers find an info dump on the first few pages to be interesting, but they need something that makes them want to keep going.
- Clarity: Can the reader easily distinguish who the main character is, where the story is taking place, and what is at stake? There shouldn’t be any guessing, unless your genre calls for it, but even in a murder mystery these things are typically apparent.
- Avoid Cliches: Things like waking from a dream, waking up in general, info dumps on the weather, or looking into a mirror to describe what the character looks like should be avoided, unless it can be worked out in a unique way. ‘Divergent’ by Veronica Roth managed the mirror cliche in a unique way that gave the main character more depth and expanded on how her world worked rather than being an info dump on appearance. If you can’t come up with a unique spin on a cliche, you should change it.
Plot holes and inconsistencies. These are also known as “Wait, what?” moments. If you find yourself asking what just happened, you might need to rework some things. There are times when confusion is needed, but if it isn’t something you intentionally set in place, you need to do some editing.
- Logistical Discrepancies: Key plot points need to be written with a clear cause and effect throughout the story. Things shouldn’t happen “just because.” Everything needs a reason to be there. If they don’t, they either need more development, or to be taken out.
- Consistent Details: Things like character names, physical traits (eye and hair color, etc.), timelines, and important facts need to be consistent. The reader will notice if a character has blue eyes on one page and brown eyes halfway through the book. Unless there is a specific reason for an eye color change, like in my book ‘Blood for Honor,’ fix it. And if there is a reason, make sure the reader learns why. You also don’t want the old name of a character to be overlooked. If you rename a character, ‘Find and Replace’ as soon as possible to avoid thoroughly confusing the reader.
- Unresolved Sub Plots: Plot points should either be wrapped up by the end or purposefully left open for a sequel. If you can leave the right things open, anticipation and curiosity will rouse excitement for the next book. (Looking at you, Rebecca Yarros.) Done wrong, with plot points unintentionally left open without hope for reconciliation will usually leave readers disappointed. Unless you can write something like ‘The Catcher in the Rye’ by J.D. Salinger that leaves people wondering in a good way, tie up those loose ends. Everything should be wrapped up for a stand-alone, and books in a series need to have a handful of things resolved, even if other things are left open. No resolution of any kind isn’t satisfying. Typically, each book in a series has a major plot point that is resolved, while THE plot point is left open until the end of the last book.
Check your pacing. You don’t want scenes that drag on or fly by too quickly as mentioned earlier, but there should be slower and faster moments throughout the book. A good balance of both helps move the story along at a steady pace.
- Tension and Release: There should be a thread of tension that breathes through the story. Like peaks and valleys, it rises and falls, gradually getting higher and higher until the climax of the story when the thread snaps. If it doesn’t breathe, the reader can become desensitized to it, and it won’t have the effect in the climax that you want. Throughout the story, it shouldn’t fall completely, compounding on itself until it breaks. If you have too much tension, work in a pressure valve. If there isn’t any tension…well. Make some, as long as it fits with the story and makes sense. Some people do this by chapter, where it starts off on a low and ends on a high, with the next chapter deflating to end on a low. But there are plenty of ways to do this. Find what works for you.
- Scene Length: If you have scenes that are very long, check the pacing. They may need to be broken up with dialogue or action to keep from slowing down the pace too much. Very short scenes, when written correctly, can great anticipation, but they need to do something significant. If you have a very short scene that doesn’t lend anything to the story, take it out.
- Excessive Exposition or Descriptions: Cut out lengthy exposition or descriptions and rework them into the story for the reader to learn naturally. More than one paragraph of information will push the reader’s patience without good reason for it being there. ‘The Poppy War’ by R.F. Kuang has about a page of exposition on the history of the world, but it fits the context as she talks about what she needs to learn to succeed and carry the plot forward.
All rules can be broken, if you do it right.
Evaluate the ending. Your story doesn’t have to end with a happily-ever-after to be good. Tragedies and bittersweet endings can be just as great, as long as they fit with the genre. If you are writing a romance, it better have a happy ending, or your reader will be peeved at being tricked into reading a tragedy like ‘Romeo and Juliet’ when they expected a cozy love story. The resolution of the story should come from the natural flow of events from the story. A rushed or thrown together ending will leave the reader feeling unfulfilled, and if you are writing a sequel, they might not continue reading.
- Main Conflict Resolution: Is the conclusion clear? You can leave some loose ends if you are writing a sequel, but the main arc of the story should come together in the resolution. This shouldn’t take multiple chapters to do. Readers get nervous when the story feels like it’s ending but then realize there are still 100 pages left. Unless you have something good for the last chunk, cut it down or risk an angry reader who DNFs your book at the 90% mark. That’s embarrassing.
- Emotional Payoff: Your main characters need to change somehow, evident in the resolution. Some kind of life lesson that leaves them a better person is usually what you will find, but don’t let the norm deter you from writing a person who is worse off than they were before. It all depends on what kind of story you are writing. If there isn’t some kind of change, the ending can feel flat and unsatisfying. They might not admit it, but readers are looking for that emotional hit, and if they don’t get it…well, stay away from Goodreads.
- Avoid deus ex machina: ‘God from the machine’ happens when an unexpected and implausible character, object, or event suddenly resolves an unresolvable conflict. Your resolution shouldn’t come from nowhere. Magic fixes aren’t typically satisfying and can leave the reader feeling perplexed. If your resolution includes dues ex machina, rework it with something more natural…unless you can really pull off something unique. One of the most hated deus ex machina situations is the “it was all a dream” scenario. No one wants to learn that they just spent 300 pages reading something that didn’t even matter. But of course, even this can be made unique, as you see in ‘The Wizard of Oz’ by L. Frank Baum where it did matter, even if it wasn’t real.
Your first round of edits is where the biggest changes will happen. It’s easier, less time-consuming, and cheaper to fix things here rather than later. Don’t be afraid to rip your manuscript apart if you have to but get it right. Then you can go back and be super picky about grammar and punctuation. Editing isn’t about perfection, but rather, making your book baby the best version of itself possible.
Nothing is ever perfect.
If you liked today’s Self-Pub Saturday, like and follow this blog, and I will see you again May 3 with some more fun tips, tricks, and nuggets of wisdom on self-publishing. If you are interested in my debut novel mentioned in this post, click here to buy a copy or read on KDP Unlimited. I can also help you with developmental editing (aka Manuscript Critique) once you finish this step. Click here to read more on my services.
Many blessings,
Emma Lee Joy
Red Hawk Ridge 
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