Post: Use these 5 tips to help with revisions

revisions

Before submitting a manuscript in the hopes of getting it published, it’s important to make sure that you, as the writer, have helped it achieve its full potential. It’s always best to carefully proofread and edit the material, preferably several times. In fact, it’s helpful to take advantage of a professional pre-submission review or developmental editing services because copyeditors may spot something that you might miss in a self-reviewed manuscript. 

It’s not uncommon to make revisions before sending your manuscript to a publisher. It would be far rarer to get the entire thing right on a first attempt. Revisions are a normal part of the writing process. At the same time, there comes a time when you risk “over-thinking” a story, and you just need to let it be what it is and consider it done. Revisions are all about finding balance and refining your writing so that by the time you submit your manuscript to a publisher, it’s the best it can be. 

Separate proofreading from developmental editing

If you try to multitask, you run the risk of overlooking priority issues in a manuscript. In order to lay the groundwork for quality revisions, keep developmental editing and proofreading for grammar or punctuation errors separate. Yes, this means that you’ll have to carefully read through your entire manuscript more than once. However, doing it this way enables you to focus on strengthening content quality in the developmental editing phase, then catching typos and other mechanical errors the next time around.

If you had to cut out words, which would they be?

Another helpful pre-revision activity to conduct with your manuscript is to go through and delete content. (You don’t have to do this on your actual working copy. Make a separate copy for the purpose of the activity.) If you were required to cut out at least 10% of the story, where would you make the cuts? By doing this, you might wind up deciding to actually delete some of the parts of the manuscript you chose to cut out during the activity. 

In other words, this exercise helps you justify your writing. You can determine if there is any “fluff” that would be better off being left out of the story. 

Always listen to your story being read aloud

Whether you read your own manuscript out loud or ask someone else to read it to you, never undertake revisions without first hearing an audible version of your story. Hearing a story aloud brings it to life and gives you a fresh perspective, rather than merely seeing it in print. 

Make sure the story flows comfortably from beginning to end

Fluidity is a key factor to good writing. If your readers constantly have to pause and re-read in order to grasp what’s happening in the story, then it’s not fluid. The goal is to make your readers comfortable. When they open the book and start reading, you want them to feel as though they’ve climbed into a big, overstuffed recliner with their favorite blanket and a cup of tea. You want them to effortlessly turn pages as the story unfolds, so that what you’ve written doesn’t cause them to strain or furrow their brow. 

Revise, walk away, and then revise again, if needed

When the time comes to make specific revisions in your manuscript, always conduct a first draft. While you might be eager to revise, then send it off to a publisher right away, it’s best to let it sit for at least 24 hours, if not longer. Make the revisions, then walk away. When a day or more has passed, return to your story and read it again, both silently and aloud. If you’re satisfied, then no additional revisions are necessary and it’s ready for submission. 

Keeping these helpful tips in mind can help all writers, especially those who are new to the journey, to fine-tune a story and bring it full-circle, making it the best it can be before sending it to a publisher.