Lost in messy revisions

Print out a paper copy (make sure you're using manuscript format as that helps when you need to get in between the lines). Start by going through and making notes on the manuscript itself. You can also use a notebook for brainstorming further fixes, writing more detailed notes etc, or write on the back of the page, or insert a blank page to put notes on.

Don't rush. If you get overwhelmed take a break and come back later. If you need to you can even move chapters around (make sure to note that on the pages though). If it's still seeming like it's too much to tackle, try looking for one issue at a time. Go through the manuscript multiple times until you feel like you've answered most, if not all, of your questions about the manuscript. (You know, "do I need more foreshadowing here or it that thing there enough?" And so on.)

Now, take your manuscript with all your notes, open a brand new document on your computer and start rewriting using the printed pages as a guide. It takes a while. I know a lot of folks balk at rewriting/retyping their book again. But I find it helps me make the changes in the flow of the book.

I did a really major revision on a novel for my agent and it was frustrating to have to rework it again, but really focusing on doing it by hand helped me handle the fatigue. And I found stuff that I'd taken out several versions before was suddenly relevant again, I just needed some space to see how other things fit in around it.

Remind yourself that revision is a part of the process. Each book is different so don't get too upset about this one needing more work. Some ideas just take longer and need more work to get right.

And best of luck. A lot of folks never write one book, let alone rewrite it until it's good. You are doing a challenging thing and you should be proud of that.

Is the first draft done? Maybe you need a beta. Maybe some things don't need to be fixed. There's a chance you could be blowing things out of proportion. Or perhaps they need to be fixed. That's where I think a beta might be good. Just a suggestion. Hope things clear up for you soon.

lotta people find this helpful:

https://hollylisle.com/one-pass-manuscript-revision-from-first-draft-to-last-in-one-cycle/

SKara said:

so I decided to make one, starting from chapter one, but the issues I'm jotting down feel so huge and numerous

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I relate so much!! That overwhelmed feeling is just, gaaah!!! But you did have the dedication to sit down and finish that draft, the next draft is the same thing--all you have to do is keep showing up at the keyboard, right?? Even if you just tweak prose for awhile, (while thinking) it's still better than it was. "The first draft is as bad as your book will ever be." (can't remember who said that, but it's encouraging. Every bit of time you spend with that draft makes it a little better than it was!).

I've got a few MS I'm going to be tackling soon. My plan is to do the list, but not edit chronologically (at first). I'm going to try tackling bigger intimidating issues first, like clarifying my magic system, fleshing out my villain, and working on consistency one character at a time, etc. Just focusing on one issue throughout and ignoring the rest. I figure having a list I can check off will motivate me to keep going, issue to issue. From there, I'll read again and write up a chapter by chapter list and type through another draft chronologically. Fingers crossed, of course.

Just keep applying the same discipline you've cultivated. Make lists, monthly goals, set word counts or writing times for yourself, whatever has worked this far. You can do it! WE can do it!!

Layla Nahar said:

...https://hollylisle.com/one-pass-manuscript-revision-from-first-draft-to-last-in-one-cycle/...

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Pretty good information over there.

When it comes to changing things I always cringe a little. I have accidentally saved over the original and lost a lot of work. So here is how I handle making changes when the work is substantial.

#1 start by making two digital copies of your manuscript. First copy is SAFETY, second copy is MASTER. You will copy both the safety and master to a disc or USB flash drive. You never touch the safety. Safety is the insurance in case the master gets fouled. You will create a working copy of the master and this will be saved with a new filename. The revision copy is what gets edited- not the manuscript, not the safety, not the master. Your original manuscript had twins and one of them had a baby.

Eventually you will find that you are satisfied (enough) and you can rename the safety and master as backups then twin copy the current revised edition into a safety and master. It sounds complicated and messy. It can be. Just organize your workspace and naming convention so that you don't get confused. I am finding that writing (for me) is a lot like mushroom. I use a lot of stuff to get the fruits to harvest. Then there's a lot left over.

Hope that helps. I tried to be to the point and short on word count. Let me know if you want me to expand it out more.

Also, when you are trying to figure out "what happened" in this story, try pondering an ending. If you already have a 100% certain beginning state for them (characters, events etc.) then you can just flip them for their opposite state. This way you absolutely have something concrete to stand on as you survey the middle ground. Somewhere between their beginning and (opposite) ending states is what you will find that solves your problem.

Don't try to figure out the end from where you are. Figure out the opposite of where they started and then search the middle for something that works well enough as an ending. There will be stuff left over that you didn't use.

(A)

Sorry - hope I don't get dinged for this, but I think a lot of the larger revisions can be avoided by having a good outline before you start writing. Not all of course, I've made revisions to a major character and then had to go through and make changes. Still though, my outline helped me to know where to look to make those changes.

L.E.N. Andov said:

Eventually you will find that you are satisfied (enough) and you can rename the safety and master as backups then twin copy the current revised edition into a safety and master.

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The advice to always work on a COPY of your manuscript is extremely pertinent. But you don't even need to get rid of earlier versions. Data storage these days is essentially unlimited and ridiculously cheap. I just number previous versions of manuscripts and save them, permanently. More than once I've needed to go back to an earlier one to retrieve something, and it's nice to be able to do that.

caw

the issues I'm jotting down feel so huge and numerous (so many relationships to clarify, so many characters of fix, history and world building, simplifying the plot, identifying and removing extraneous scenes, making the scenes more effective)

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Start by making a plot outline of the work as it is now, scene by scene.

Then simplify the plot the way you think it should be, which covers the extraneous scene removal and may get rid of some of the characters.

blacbird said:

The advice to always work on a COPY of your manuscript is extremely pertinent. But you don't even need to get rid of earlier versions. Data storage these days is essentially unlimited and ridiculously cheap. I just number previous versions of manuscripts and save them, permanently. More than once I've needed to go back to an earlier one to retrieve something, and it's nice to be able to do that.

caw

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I back up my work on a thumb drive - you never know with computer viruses these days...

indianroads said:

Sorry - hope I don't get dinged for this, but I think a lot of the larger revisions can be avoided by having a good outline before you start writing. Not all of course, I've made revisions to a major character and then had to go through and make changes. Still though, my outline helped me to know where to look to make those changes.

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Not to ding you - what works, works - but pantsers like me can't outline (I've tried, believe me: if I know what the story is, I lose interest in writing it). For me, major revision is a necessary part of the process, and I'll go through several rounds of large scale revisions as the book evolves towards its final shape. But that revision is made a lot easier by working with a copy of the latest version of the ms and keeping all the earlier versions, each labelled with its date. It's also helped by making other files of offcuts, ideas and scenes that were useful once, are out of place now but will be reworked later. Never overwrite a file and never delete one!

Thecla said:

Not to ding you - what works, works - but pantsers like me can't outline (I've tried, believe me: if I know what the story is, I lose interest in writing it). For me, major revision is a necessary part of the process, and I'll go through several rounds of large scale revisions as the book evolves towards its final shape. But that revision is made a lot easier by working with a copy of the latest version of the ms and keeping all the earlier versions, each labelled with its date. It's also helped by making other files of offcuts, ideas and scenes that were useful once, are out of place now but will be reworked later. Never overwrite a file and never delete one!

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Good point. Thank you!

Easier said than done, but try not to stress out and give yourself a bit of a break. You have a completed draft, which is more than I have accomplished.

Is it possible for you put your project down for a little while? Maybe there'll be less of a can't see the wood for the trees thing going on.

I have endured this same quagmire since September. The only way I managed to get through it was by ignoring the enormity of it and attacking it piece by piece. One day you ll look at the two stacks and sure enough, the big stack becomes the little stack

Print it out in draft mode (different font, different font size.... All to make it look different when you read it), then put it aside for a week or two.

Reread the print version. Out loud, if possible. Make notes.

Don't overthink or over work it. You might end up with rubbish.

indianroads said:

Sorry - hope I don't get dinged for this, but I think a lot of the larger revisions can be avoided by having a good outline before you start writing. Not all of course, I've made revisions to a major character and then had to go through and make changes. Still though, my outline helped me to know where to look to make those changes.

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Not a ding, but a reminder that everyone works differently. You're not avoiding those revisions, you're just doing them on the front end instead of the back end.

I pretty much follow Aggy's method, except I don't retype the MS. I do my revisions in the main document.

Carrie in PA said:

Not a ding, but a reminder that everyone works differently. You're not avoiding those revisions, you're just doing them on the front end instead of the back end.

I pretty much follow Aggy's method, except I don't retype the MS. I do my revisions in the main document.

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Very true. My background in Engineering makes me biased toward planning in advance. As you said though, it's all about your comfort level, your process, and your work. Use what works for you.

Writing's difficult. Ensuring the story has a coherent plot without continuity errors or other issues is difficult. Some people prefer to plan it all out in advance, sorting all the issues out up front. Others prefer to plan it as they write it, with constant revisions and edits as they go along. Others prefer to write the whole thing and then go back and edit/rewrite/restructure it afterwards. It's a matter of choosing a method that works for you.

If someone's getting bogged down and struggling then, 1. understand that this struggle's part of writing and 2. consider whether a different method may make that struggle easier to get through. For example, if someone finds it overwhelming to edit/revise/restructure a whole, completed first draft, then consider whether starting with a detailed plan and/or revising/editing/restructuring as you write might work better and result in a story that requires less editing/revision when you get to the end. Ditto for other issues and methods. Each way of working has potential pitfalls so if you fall into them, consider whether another method might work better. And if it's working... stick with what's working.

Personally, I don't plan at all, I just write, but I edit/revise as I go, including making major edits and changes as necessary. I don't wait until the end of the first draft before doing this. If I have to change something, I change it there and then. If it's that major a change, I'll save a copy of the original first in case it all goes horribly wrong. So I don't have a first draft, second draft etc as such, but I do usually end up with earlier, abandoned versions. And sometimes I keep cut scenes in case they come in useful later. I'm not averse to radically changing the whole thing even if I'm almost at the end, or even if it's finished. What I won't do is wait until it's finished to make those changes.

indianroads said:

I back up my work on a thumb drive - you never know with computer viruses these days...

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You can also attach the document and email it to yourself.

SKara said:

Hi everyone,

I've just realized during my latest round of revision that there is an overwhelming number of issues that need to be fixed and thought out in depth. I was hoping this would be my last major revision (with just an easy next round where I would fix the small issues) but turns out it's not. And as soon as I realized this, I was overwhelmed.

The thing is, I wasn't working with a revision list (which hasn't proved to be a wise decision) so I decided to make one, starting from chapter one, but the issues I'm jotting down feel so huge and numerous (so many relationships to clarify, so many characters of fix, history and world building, simplifying the plot, identifying and removing extraneous scenes, making the scenes more effective) that I don't know how to cope with all the stress. And the thing is, when I think of solutions for them, I just hit a block, like, when I start thinking about a character's back story, I just don't know what happened, I can't even bring myself to imagine it (I guess it's just the feeling of overwhelm that doesn't let me really dive into my story/characters).

How do you handle such major, messy revisions? Any tips (for the actual revising as well as handling the stress part)?

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Hi SKara. I can relate to being overwhelmed with revisions. I've only glanced at some responses, so sorry if I repeat. When I get stuck, I switch things up. If you hit a block with backstory, then work on world building or something else and return to backstory. Try switching other things up too, like the time of day you write. The middle of the night sometimes works better for me - less distractions, less inhibitions and a more creative time. If it doesn't work when I first sit to write, sometimes a quick jog or something physically active gets my brain working better.

A big thing is not to think too much about everything you have to do all at once. Just break it up and tackle smaller pieces. Good luck!

indianroads said:

I back up my work on a thumb drive - you never know with computer viruses these days...

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I wasn't speaking specifically about backing up work (I do that, too, on multiple external devices), but more about retaining old versions of manuscripts. Too many people seem to think they have only that one single priceless document to work on, and get all blocked up about altering it, for fear of losing something they may want later. There's no point in doing that.

caw

blacbird said:

I wasn't speaking specifically about backing up work (I do that, too, on multiple external devices), but more about retaining old versions of manuscripts. Too many people seem to think they have only that one single priceless document to work on, and get all blocked up about altering it, for fear of losing something they may want later. There's no point in doing that.

caw

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In early revisions, I usually write each chapter as a separate doc. I keep them all in a common folder, and when that revision is done I copy everything to a new location, and archive the old version. Along about version 3 or so, I combine the work into a single file, get the formatting right, then do an edit run through the work again. Each new version is archived. Lather, rinse, repeat.

External devices / drives are always a smart idea. it's too easy these days for files to get corrupted. Everyday, I copy all I've done to an external device.

Messy revisions? No revision points list? Yup, that's me. I'm not a planner and I've tried to become an outliner but it didn't work out at all. First of all, always keep a back-up of your files and earlier versions, along with scenes you've cut out earlier in the process (they might come in handy later!)

In terms of being lost in revisions, one thing I can recommend is starting from scratch. Put your MS down, give yourself a couple of days break, and start a new file. If you've already completed the story, it should be easier for you to jot down the plot - write a synopsis to outline the story but don't get the 'original' version drag you down. Use what you think worked in the previous version, and when you can't think of how to link several scenes or chapters, leave it blank, and go on. I have found that, sometimes, revising the same piece over and over again might make it impossible for you to break out of your block and get a grip on your plotline and characters, and starting from scratch has worked out well for me.

As a "pants-er" I empathize with the messy revisions. I've written myself into a fair few corners because of my mind's stubborn refusal to come up with anything vaguely interesting should I try and outline first.

I had a creative writing professor in college give some great advice, though it's not unlike what others have been saying here. He said that the basic elements of a story- plot, characterization, tone, grammar, etc- were like unruly children you were in charge of gathering. If you tried to grab them all at the same time you'd get none of them, but if you went and got one at a time... you get the picture.

Breaking things down into smaller bits always helps with any overwhelming task, and it sounds like you're off to a good start with that, sectioning your work into three pieces. Good luck!!!