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This week: An Editing Blueprint Edited by: KimChi  
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| Hello, I'm Kimchi. Here I hope to share tips on the art and craft of writing, from idea to implementation, from editing to submission. Have an idea for a topic, tricks for phrasing? All suggestions are welcome. |
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An Editing Blueprint
Editing your own work is much more difficult than finding the error's in another's manuscript. One reason is that we are wedded to our concepts as well as our phrasing, and the more we read our story the more likely we are to memorize each line. This is counterproductive to the need to change elements around to allow the story to unfold as intended.
Conventional wisdom says to let sleeping stories lie, for at least a week. This gives us time to forget the specific words while still remembering the blueprint of what we want our work to become.
After a suitable period of time we can grab the red pen and tear through the excess padding to find the meat and bones of a story.
But first we must find the errors. While it's easy enough to rip right into the text and start deleting words, in the long run having a plan saves time. First, an editing plan keeps one focused on a single area at a time. Second, pinpointing areas that need repair is halfway to fixing those errors.
I find that reviewing my story is the easiest way to learn where and how to fix it. And reviewing demands a rating. And a rating is more useful when based on specific criteria. While my criteria may differ from yours, here are some basics which might be included in your editing plan.
(My scale is 1-10 just because I find it easier.)
1. Opening. Does the first paragraph draw the reader into the story? Is there a question, problem, or some action or conflict to lead the reader to the next section? Is the theme or conflict apparent or at least hinted at in the opening?
2. Conflict and themes. Is the main conflict strong? Do the underlying themes support the main conflict (Pitching a hissy fit over a dropped ice cream cone may appear as a weak conflict unless/until it ties into a larger theme of emotional loss or instability.)
3. Pace and arc. Does the plot arc follow logically and smoothly from opening to ending without losing impact in the middle or chopping off the ending?
4. Characterization. Are the characters unique people with flaws , idiosyncrasies, and pet peeves? Can you distinguish characters from each other by their dialogue or signature gestures? The reader should feel they "know" the character even through simple acts such as eating breakfast. If the reader can pinpoint a character's personality with a few adjectives (arrogant, lazy, cold), then the character lives on the page.
5. Wordsmithing and flow. This includes grammar and syntax, but copy-editing is the last step so I try not to get bogged down in the minutiae. Mainly the words should match the tone. For example when writing a love story words suggesting violence and gore are probably not appropriate, while soft caresses and gentle actions carry the heroine away.
6. Conclusion. An ending should be original and enticing. Even if you've led the reader to a logical conclusion, it never hurts to drop a tantalizing detail or unexpected twist on their head. A drop of creative license can whip a stale ending into a satisfying conclusion.
Once you've delineated your criteria, judge your story. In my scale, 60 would be an A+++. Most of the time I'm lucky to hit 40 on the first go. But pinpointing the areas needing work makes the editing task if not enjoyable, at least a little less stressful. Breaking the work into manageable chunks keeps the job from becoming overwhelming.
Hope you find a useful tidbit in my ramblings. If you have tips and suggestions on the editing process we'd all love to hear them!
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| |  | Invalid Item
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#894790 by Not Available. |
Pam and I used to sit on this front porch and hand out sourballs. They were all we could afford. We'd listen to echoing giggles of trick-or-treaters and talk about having kids of our own some day.
It was all Nancy LaChance's fault. It wasn't good enough that she was already the most popular girl in school, with perfect grades, perfect teeth and the blondest hair you'd ever see.
"Son, I think it's time we had a little talk about the birds and bees."
"Please Dad, I don't want to talk about them."
| | | Invalid Item
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#1542733 by Not Available. |
Katie. Her name lingers in my mind. Sometimes it's a sweet song that dances on my tongue. More often than not, it's a haunting, pain-riddled whisper that brings me little comfort.
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Autocephalous :
This is the first time I've seen this newsletter, or read any sort of exchange of thoughts such as this. I just signed on to WdC, thinking that I might like to try my hand at writing as a third career, and have learned in just the last thirty minutes how much I don't know about writing. Rhetorical tools? Literary tools? I thought the only tools needed were a pencil or a keyboard!
Gotta go sign up for Writing 101!
franscholan:
I enjoy editing my own work, and, as a grammatical perfectionist, I usually take a few days to write one story. I stop every now and again to read over what I've already written, finding words and sentences that just don't fit, then restructuring, rephrasing or replacing them. I read my stories out loud to myself too, as I find this allows me to create a better flow to the pieces I write. I'm not perfect as an author, but I try to improve with every story I write. That's why reviews are also so important. We can't always find our own mistakes, so having the view of someone who is impartial is more valuable than gold!
Last one standing  :
Excellent,"To thine own self be true", and you will only beat yourself up a few times. If you put the work down for one month, then go back, much of your minds memories of the piece will be vacant and it will appear to be from another perspective. And from there, you can surely edit without favoritism.
Oldwarrior  :
Well said. I still find things on the 4th and 5th rewrite. I sometimes delete entire paragraphs and that makes things sound so much better. Thanks for the good insight and point of view.
BIG BAD WOLF is Howling  :
Sometimes its for fun.
"True Grit Scene Spoof"
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For Authors: July 25, 2012 Issue [#5171]
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