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What editing methods do you find effective?

ApolloRising

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I am curious how others tackle the editing process and what people have found to be effective. Do some of you read your book from start to finish first or go chapter to chapter? Perhaps it is completely different.
 

InkFinger

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Chapter by chapter for my own work.

Read through and then chapter by chapter for someone else's.
 

indianroads

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I do multiple editing passes, chapter by chapter, taking notes as I go. My goal is to get the MS in the best condition I can make it before it sees either a beta reader or a 'real' editor.

During edits, I look for plot holes, timeline inconsistencies, missing descriptions, character verbiage, and countless other things.

Also - MS Word (the word processor I use) had a feature called 'Speak', where a voice that sounds like Stephen Hawking will read back selected text. So I listen to my writing, and often find places where I skipped words that I didn't see while reading.
 

lizmonster

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Yes.

I revise multiple times, and each time works a little differently. Chapter-by-chapter is probably most common, although once I've made a few passes, I can sometimes break it into larger chunks.

If it's giving me fits, I'll revise chapter-by-chapter backward, which can reveals structural shortfalls.

I'll also try, at least once, to read it aloud, beginning to end. When I get tired, I use a screen reader. I find that's good to highlight rhythmic issues and repeated words (as well as typos :)). It's also helpful when I've read it so many times it's nearly impossible for me not to skim when I'm reading to myself.
 

ApolloRising

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Yes.

I revise multiple times, and each time works a little differently. Chapter-by-chapter is probably most common, although once I've made a few passes, I can sometimes break it into larger chunks.

If it's giving me fits, I'll revise chapter-by-chapter backward, which can reveals structural shortfalls.

I'll also try, at least once, to read it aloud, beginning to end. When I get tired, I use a screen reader. I find that's good to highlight rhythmic issues and repeated words (as well as typos :)). It's also helpful when I've read it so many times it's nearly impossible for me not to skim when I'm reading to myself.

I have been going chapter by chapter, for the most part. I should try adding in the text to speech during my own editing. When I hand my work to someone else, I am constantly surprised by how many small words I missed.
 

ApolloRising

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I do multiple editing passes, chapter by chapter, taking notes as I go. My goal is to get the MS in the best condition I can make it before it sees either a beta reader or a 'real' editor.

During edits, I look for plot holes, timeline inconsistencies, missing descriptions, character verbiage, and countless other things.

Also - MS Word (the word processor I use) had a feature called 'Speak', where a voice that sounds like Stephen Hawking will read back selected text. So I listen to my writing, and often find places where I skipped words that I didn't see while reading.

I think that speak feature is a great idea. I am going to try adding it to my editing routine. Thanks.
 

LJD

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When I self-edit, after letting my first draft sit for at least two weeks, I read the whole thing over in a day, making notes (using comments in Word) as I go. The advantage of reading the whole thing over first is that I can spot any large-scale changes needed, and also jot down my impressions as I'm reading it quickly.

Then I start revising from page 1. At the beginning of each day, I review the changes I made the previous day.

After I finish a round of revisions, I read the whole thing over again in one day and fix any minor errors.

I usually do two rounds of revisions on the whole manuscript before I send it to anyone.
 

indianroads

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Lizmonster: If it's giving me fits, I'll revise chapter-by-chapter backward, which can reveals structural shortfalls.
Yes - one of my professors mentioned that, and it works pretty well... for me it's tough to do though.

LJD: When I self-edit, after letting my first draft sit for at least two weeks, I read the whole thing over in a day, making notes (using comments in Word) as I go. The advantage of reading the whole thing over first is that I can spot any large-scale changes needed, and also jot down my impressions as I'm reading it quickly.
You must be a faster reader than I am - I just started the editing phase of my WIP, and reading a 104K novel in a day is beyond my abilities. I am a strong advocate of taking notes though; for me, it helps avoid repetition, and helps with consistency.
 

LJD

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You must be a faster reader than I am - I just started the editing phase of my WIP, and reading a 104K novel in a day is beyond my abilities. I am a strong advocate of taking notes though; for me, it helps avoid repetition, and helps with consistency.

Well, the final drafts of my novels are about 60k (first drafts are up to 75k), so they're not that long :)

I can read that in about 5 hours (over 3 sittings).

If I wrote longer novels, I'd probably need 2 days.
 

ApolloRising

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Yes - one of my professors mentioned that, and it works pretty well... for me it's tough to do though.

Editing backwards seems like a rather difficult task. I think I would only catch spelling and grammar mistakes doing it that way. I feel like it would be difficult to feel the flow of the novel and chapter.

When I self-edit, after letting my first draft sit for at least two weeks, I read the whole thing over in a day, making notes (using comments in Word) as I go. The advantage of reading the whole thing over first is that I can spot any large-scale changes needed, and also jot down my impressions as I'm reading it quickly.

How fast do you read? I couldn't finish a novel in a day, reading speed has never been my strong suit.
 

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I pause at the end of each major story arc and review it (3-5 times in a novel). I look for macro/structural/systemic problems and make corrections as I find them.

Before starting the climax, I review the entire novel to that point to make sure I'm catching all the necessary threads up in what's planned. Make whatever adjustments, then finish writing.

Then I put it away for at least a month, maybe three months (helps clear my mind of what I intended to write so I can focus on what I actually wrote). I read it as many times so I can assess all the major story elements (plot, character, etc). Make tons of notes, figure out what I need to do and then do it.

I do the line edit (read the entire book aloud) after the beta readers have at it. Line editing's the last thing before I declare it finished.
 

LJD

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How fast do you read? I couldn't finish a novel in a day, reading speed has never been my strong suit.

I can read my own work faster than I read other people's books, and the final drafts of my novels are only 60k. I can do it in about 5 hours (but not all in one sitting).

Part of the reason I do this is because there are some things I don't notice when I read it more slowly. And I write in a genre (romance) with many voracious readers, and I know some of them will read my book in a day. So I'm mimicking their reading conditions.
 

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Editing backwards seems like a rather difficult task. I think I would only catch spelling and grammar mistakes doing it that way. I feel like it would be difficult to feel the flow of the novel and chapter.

My plots get complicated, and it's helpful to me to read a reveal "cold" (more or less), so I can double-check I've spread the clues and setup appropriately in the earlier parts of the book.

I can't remember who first suggested reading backwards to me. I'm not sure I did it until Book 3 (but I don't remember that much about writing Book 2 :)). I was skeptical, but it really helped.
 
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DeleyanLee

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My plots get complicated, and it's helpful to me to read a reveal "cold" (more or less), so I can double-check I've spread the clues and setup appropriately in the earlier parts of the book.

I can't remember who first suggested reading backwards to me. I'm not sure I did it until Book 3 (but I don't remember that much about writing Book 2 :)). I was skeptical, but it really helped.

I've heard people talk about this "reading/editing backwards", but I've never figured out how it works. Would you mind explaining this a little?

Thanks!
 

lizmonster

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I've heard people talk about this "reading/editing backwards", but I've never figured out how it works. Would you mind explaining this a little?

I can tell you how it works for me, at least. :)

Once the book is gelled (which can take anywhere from one to seventeen thousand revisions), I start with the last chapter (actually the epilogue; all my books so far have epilogues), and I make a note of the things the characters would need to have learned/done/understood throughout the rest of the book.

As I back up, I both consult my notes and add to them, making sure both that the necessary events happen, and that they're not inappropriately clumped (for example, the MC learning all the important stuff one chapter before The Big Reveal).

I revise as I go. By the time I'm doing this, I've been over the book countless times, so sometimes I revise chapters I haven't officially reached yet.

Repeat as necessary.

I think of this sort of revision as combing my kid's hair: I start with the ends and make sure they're detangled, then back up, pulling through bits of knot as I go.

This works well for me, but I'll also admit I'm not fast. First draft to finished product takes me anywhere from 12 to 36 months, and as I said, my plots tend to be on the tangled side. The working backwards method helps me more quickly see how best to lay everything out for the reader. I have no doubt it's not for everyone. :)
 

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I read the entire book cover to cover and take notes as I go. I want to see any issues in the larger context. Then, I will go back through my notes and tackle the problems in descending order of complexity.
 

mhdragon

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Here is how I do it:

Write a few pages
Edit them
Continue writing a few more pages
Edit them and finish chapter/story
Wait a day or two, then go back and make a couple more passes.
If it is a novel, there will be many more revisions and editing.
 

FletcherHavarti

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I edit in different ways, depending on where I am in the writing process.

- While I'm writing, I frequently start a session by going back to read the last chapter or several pages that I wrote. At this point I'm asking myself, "Does this scene need to be here? Should this be happening off-screen? Did I need to introduce a new character here, or can I have an existing character serve in this role?" At this stage of the process, I can easily yank out something that I wrote yesterday and change direction without having to rewrite half the book.

- As the story is closer to being done, I start going back to earlier chapters to see if they mesh well with what I've written more recently. Then I mark things that need rewriting to bring the whole thing into alignment.

- When I'm very close to being done, I start reading chapter by chapter to look for red flags. Repetitive word choice, repetitive sentence construction, extra words that I can cut.

- During each of the above phases, I am also copyediting and looking for any errors in grammar. By the time I finish, I've gone through every scene multiple times to catch any mistakes.

- Next I read the entire story, as quickly as I can without sacrificing focus, to see if it all holds together for a casual reader who zips through it rapidly. It's very easy, as a writer, to miss big-picture issues that you only notice when reading the whole thing in just a few sittings.

- After sending it out for beta, I do another round to address feedback. The degree of editing required at this point depends on the feedback.
 

Will Collins

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Chapter by chapter, usually chronologically.
 

katfeete

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I’m in the middle of the second editing pass on my novel right now, so.... I’ll tell you when I find out? :e2shrug:

I don’t edit while I’m drafting — I know some do, and it helps, but for me it’s important to get the words on the page as fast and as un-critically as I can, or this *waves stack of stories that never made it past three copiously edited chapters* happens.

Like others I’ve been finding it helpful to do an initial cover to cover read, in one sitting if possible. Last time I tried taking notes as I went, but that slowed me down too much (my first drafts are bad), so now I’m just giving each scene a quick letter grade based on how much editing I think it’s going to need. When I’ve done that first read I get a stack of colored index cards (because if you don’t use editing as an excuse to buy shiny office supplies what even is the POINT) and do one-line scene descriptions, using a different color card for each grade of scene, and string them up on a cork board. I’ve found I need the physical artifacts to help me keep the whole book in my head.

Then I go through more slowly taking notes on the big changes for each scene. I am, as noted, a messy first drafter, and I write out of order, so there is typically a lot of structural stuff to fix, from paring down the inevitably out-of-control supporting cast to scene order shuffling to “wait, I did X and this doesn’t even make sense as a plot point” to finding all the places I wrote something like [chase scene goes here]. Only after I’ve done that do I go back and start doing line edits, because there’s nothing more irritating than getting halfway through line editing a scene and realizing that all those painstaking comma fixes and word swaps were a waste of time because this scene should be cut.

And then I go back and do it again, and again, and... *sigh*