Clean up on Aisle 9 - Revision Tips for Writers

As I’m writing a new project, I keep a daily track of my word count to show progress. I’m a list maker, so that gives me a visual that I’m getting closer to the end game. And there is nothing more exciting than typing, “The End.” When the euphoria wears off, that’s when the realization that revisions are coming. I think editing is the hardest part of the writing process. Here are some things that I include in (many) revision cycles.

1. Run spell check after each editing session. No matter how careful you are, mistakes are made during revisions.

2. After each round of major edits, I print a copy and read it on paper. I find more errors this way than I do on the computer screen.

3. Make a list of your overused words. Mine are “just,” “that,” and “in a few minutes.” Use your find and replace feature to located and eradicate them.

4. My editor and agent have style guides. I always go through these checklists before sending a manuscript over for review.

5. Look for excessive use of dialogue tags (he said/she said) and mop ‘em up.

6. If you write a series, make sure the characters don’t pop up in the wrong book. I’ve done this before. My PI showed up by accident in another WIP.

7. Look for the “be” words (are, is, was, were). They’re indications that you’re “telling” the reader and not showing. Rewrite these sentences. They’re also weak verbs. You can make your story stronger by using active verbs.

8. Look at all the opening paragraphs of your chapters. Make sure they are unique and interesting. You want to draw the reader in.

9. Look at the closing paragraphs of each chapter. You don’t want to wrap things up too nicely and give the reader a chance to stop for the night. Make sure there is tension. Make your reader read past her bedtime.

10. Don’t short change your opportunities to build tension. Sometimes, we’re so excited to move on to the next thing in our story that we don’t take time to build tension around important scenes. Go back and look for these opportunities.

11. Look for long sections of dialogue and long paragraphs of description. Can you tighten these up to move the story along?

What would you add to my list?

How Did I Miss That? Tips for Proofreading

I can spot a typo or misaligned text a mile away in someone else's document. After working on a project for a while, I'm no longer able to spot them quickly in my work. Here are some things I do to help improve my proofreading.

1. I proofread a paper version each time there are edits or major revisions. I miss things when I proofread on the computer screen.

2. If I'm tired, I put it down and come back later. I miss things when I'm not 100% focused.

3. Turn off the TV. I can't proofread if the TV or a movie is on at the same time. I do listen to music. I proofread best to jazz or light classical.

4. I often read aloud to check for errors or cadence problems in the dialog.

5. When I proofread, I read word for word. When you read fast, you tend to skip words. A pro told me once that to be very effective, you need to start at the bottom of the page and read each word (right to left). It takes the words out of context. 

6. After my manuscript is edited and corrected, I ask several beta readers/proofreaders to go through my manuscript. The more eyes, the better.

7. When I'm checking the final copy, I look at everything (title page, chapter numbering, headers, footers, acknowledgments, etc.). I have had typesetters make mistakes or omit a header on a page.

8. These are my favorite editing/proofreading/grammar resources on Twitter. Check them out. They have the best advice on all things grammar and editing.

• Kris Spisak
• Annie Acorn

How to Do a Quality Review for Your Writing

I am an IT Quality Assurance and Governance Manager by day, and that means I read, review, and write a lot of policies and procedures. My team is also responsible for reporting on progress and enforcing policy. I spent most of last week conducting quality reviews on a variety of IT documents. There are certain standards that need to be followed before the work is accepted. Self-editing is a lot like a quality review. Here are some items that you need to check as you review your work and prepare it for publication.

1. Start off with your basic spell check to catch obvious typos. Just be careful, some of the grammar suggestions are not correct.
2. Check the spelling of any brand names you use. Make sure they are spelled and capitalized correctly. (e.g. Post-it Notes, BAND-AID, etc.) Also make sure that you're not using a brand name to refer to a generic item.
3. Make sure that your word use is consistent with capitalization and hyphenation (e.g. database or data base; tshirt, Tshirt, or T-shirt).
4. Check your headers and footers. Is all of your contact information correct?
5. If you manually typed the chapter numbers, go through each and make sure you didn't skip or duplicate any.
6. Check all of your names and place names - especially if you made changes during editing. My friend renamed a character, but when it went through critique group, she found that she hadn't changed all of the instances. We were all wondering who this new character was who just appeared out of nowhere.
7. Be consistent with your use of numbers. Do you write them out or use digits? If you're using digits, you shouldn't start a sentence with it; write out the word.
8. Look for overused words. I have a bunch that I tend to repeat (and repeat). I have a list, and I add to it when I find more culprits. Use your search/replace to locate and eradicate them. My big offenders are "just" and "that."
9. Change the view on your word processer to a small percentage (e.g. 25%) so that you can see a lot of pages at once. Look at the lengths of your chapters. Are they balanced? Sometimes, I find I have a bunch of short chapters and then a series of really long ones. If possible, try to even these out.
10. If you don't have a writing partner, critique group, or beta readers, you should invest the time and find one that works for you. Real peer reviews are invaluable. I am part of a mystery critique group, and the advice and support are wonderful.