Ah, revisions. Achilles heel of the impatient, the great equalizer of the hardworking, and nearly as important as writing itself.
So how do you do it?
Do you start at the beginning? Trust your critique group? Do one sweep? Throw it out and write again? Kill scenes?
And if your answer is “I don’t”….. well, you’d better start by revising that response.
leesmiley says
I usually let it sit for a few weeks while I start another project. Then, I make a couple of passes through and make all the changes I think need to be made.
I also download it onto my PDA and read a few pages while I’m supposed to be working.
From there, I turn it over to a couple of readers including my wife and an attorney. I can’t think of any two brands of people designed to be better critics.
Holly says
Thanks for the great question, Nathan – I just received a wild, thrilling offer of representation and am revising again. Great tips here.
My novel is 45 chapters. I bought a small notebook and saved one page per chapter, then made notes as I gave it a fresh read (after several months of a different project).
Important things started popping out: characters not properly introduced, information in my head but not on the page, places where I tried too hard to show and not tell (so hard that the reader would be left scratching his/her head), missing scenes.
Next step: triage. I transfered the notes into Excel with one row per chapter, headings Status, Chapter, Emotional Arc, Action Items, and Revision Notes.
Under status, I divided the chapters up by color: red for emergency, orange for major work ahead, yellow for a little work, green for virtually perfect. The Excel format made it easy to transfer notes (e.g. move this flashback in Chapter 3), look at the structure as a whole, and figure out what’s missing. It’s also heartening to see the green chapters shining among the red and orange ones.
So far this method is working wonderfully. Hopefully that will transfer into a fabulous finished product (crossing fingers).
nlnaigle says
I do a straight read through — and note inconsistencies, and doublecheck the timeline and plot/character changes. Go through afterwards and correct. Print a clean copy. Have someone else read for inconsistencies. Revise and print clean copy. Review for grammar/sp/structure. Make changes.
When I think it’s clean at this point … I try to get another reader who has never seen the story … do one more read and let me know if there were any more huh? moments.
That’s me 🙂
Wanda B. Ontheshelves says
I despise the process of revision. Jorie Graham advised in a poem: “You must hate one thing/and hate it deep and well.” I think I’ve found my one thing!
I had thought, foolishly enough, that writing a novel would be easier than writing poetry: Didn’t Sylvia Plath praise the novel as “roomier” than poetry, you could just put so much more life into it than into a poem?
Well, that sounds like fun, doesn’t it? I’ll give it a try…
I should be happy, I’m at the tail end of my revision process (halfway through second-to-last chapter), but it’s so S-L-O-W a process, I hate it!
You know the map airlines use, to show the routes they fly – all those hyperbolas (?) not sure what they’re called, country-to-country – I feel like I’ve got those in my brain now, in red ink, chapter-to-chapter, word #27 in Chapter 2 to phrase #45 in Chapter 8…which flies back to the scene in Chapter 5 where such-and-such, which then takes off for the 3rd bit of dialogue in Chapter 10…so it’s a painstaking process of legal pad-to computer-to legal pad etc…maybe I’m comparing a novelist to air traffic controller? No wonder they all went on strike under Reagan!
I hate also that because I do medical transcription REALLY FAST, I have to force myself to write slowly with my revisions, AND SOMETIMES PRINT OUT IN BLOCK LETTERS, otherwise I can’t even read my own writing. So in the heat of inspiration, when I would otherwise write really fast! I have to force myself to write really slow! I also have to give myself extra-big margins to write my revisions in, so my LEGIBLE BLOCK LETTERS will fit. Annoying as hell.
And then just keep going til you print up a draft, and you’ve got the red pen in your hand, hovering above the page as you read…and it doesn’t touch down, the red pen stays suspended in the air…yes, that is my definition of writerly success! “Red pen in holding pattern”
Maria Zannini says
Revising is my favorite part of writing. I make several passes, fleshing out and strengthening as I go, then I do one final edit from back to front to make sure it holds up.
Eben says
First, thanks for your wonderful blog. I’ve recently discovered it, and I just want to really express my appreciation that you take the significant amount of time you clearly do to share your wisdom and knowledge of the industry. So, thank you Nathan.
As for revisions, I tend to re-read often and revise when it fits. I find that when I have read something over and over again certain aspects (a word, a phrase, a bit of dialogue) will start to feel like a small thorn or sticker in my shoe. When it irritates me continuously like this, I change it. After having read it over many times the change I need to make becomes clear to me.
All in all, I keep what works and rework what doesn’t. Occasionally I throw something completely away, but it’s rare. If it struck me when I was writing it…if it flowed from the source of original inspiration there is probably some value in it. But, as a rule of thumb, if it works when I read it then I think it will work for others. Especially because I tend to be my own worst critic.
So, in short I trust my gut. Most of the time I feel extremely satisfied with the end result. And if I don’t, I revise again! That’s my $.02! Thanks for reading it!
fas says
With utter lack of sympathy, disgust, the excitement of someone who’s discovered what they think is a genuine Picasso in their grandmother’s basement, or the agony of chopping off your own body parts. This last occurs whenever I force myself to cut something altogether or revise it merely for the sake of brevity and the all-blessed word count and not because of quality. My uncovered Picasso moments occur when I go back, finally discover something that was eluding me or works better, change it accordingly, and it is good. As for who critiques, I do, which is where lack of sympathy and disgust come into play. If it makes me wince, it has to go. Call it euthanasia.
Stephanie Zvan says
First revision is before my critique group sees it. The intent is to polish enough that they can focus on the big things (plot, character) and the tiny things (word choice).
I sit on critique for a while to get perspective, but if there’s something big I know I’ll change, I’ll make the change prospectively. I may not use critique directly, but I always look at areas that solicit comments to see whether they can be improved. Big changes come first, then smaller changes as I work through word by word again. That helps keep me from introducing continuity problems. I’ll usually have also made some notes of my own that get incorporated in this round.
Then it’s off to the beta readers, preferably target market but also just some really sharp people. While they have it, I spend time thinking about what the story is about. Are there any threads or characters that I’ve dropped for chapters on end? Are there small things I can do to support my themes? Etc? (Yes, yes, and yes.) These go into a separate document, along with feedback as I get it. I may quiz some beta readers after I get their feedback to make sure I’ve fixed things I’m worried about. Then I make my last changes and write something else.
Obviously, professional critique would require another round.
Heidi the Hick says
Nine times.
So far…
I have to print it out to really read it and I feel guilty about the trees.
Just_Me says
I try to get a first draft set in type before I edit, although the story tends to evolve while I’m writing so their are plot kinks between chapter 1 and chapter 12 that I want to go back and straighten, it always happens.
I do as much editing as I can myself, which is usually very little. In my mind the story is perfect because I know what I mean… so I hand it over to my critique group and let them rip, shred, tear, and abuse the manuscript. I red flag major problems and then I go back for major edits.
Editing usually involves not only killing scenes but characters. I usually wind up fleshing out a minor character and giving them more focus than I originally intended. And so date I have never kept a single opening. In some cases I’ve discovered that what I thought was the opening chapter was really a middle chapter.
And to date I have not moved past the rewrite stage on a full novel. I’m very close on one of them but not quite happy enough to put it in line edits. My goal is to be in line edits by fall and have something worthy of a query letter by January.
I just have to survive editing first!
Anonymous says
I revise by doing whatever revisions my publisher wants. You pay me, and I’ll revise, no problemo. Now, if I was working on spec, any revisions would be purely up to my sole discreiton–if I like ’em enough, then I’d do ’em.
Taylor K. says
I write frantically, and then do one or two edits shortly after finishing. Then I leave it alone for about two months, print it out, and read it out loud. This is hard work, but extremely effective. I catch a lot of mistakes this way, and find out what’s too boring. I than edit it once more before letting my wife edit it. I then edit it again, and then I…well, my plan is to let others do it, but I honestly haven’t gotten that far yet. But that’s the plan. Another edit or two would follow (depending on if I believe it’s polished enough) then it’s of to the wonderful world of agent land. A wonderful place where rhetorical questions have been banned, and it takes only 3 minutes a day to read all queries.
Mary Paddock says
I go as far as I can by myself on hard copy and on the computer screen. I cut excess verbage, ferret out gratuitous “that”s, repetitive phrases and gestures, and edit scenes that “feel” weak, as many typos as I can see with my own eyes. I then look to beta readers to tell me what I missed.
midnight oil says
I too started out long hand and let the story flow. Then I put it into the computer, and added words or sentences that made sense to me. I’m still not too worried about my grammar usage at this point.
Then I go back and read it to see if it flows. Does it make sense? I make minor adjustments here or delete a chapter, whatever it takes to maintain the continuity of the original hand written MS storyline.
Then I start weeding through the grammar, passive voice ect…
I don’t have a critique group since I don’t know anyone out here in the bay area but at this point I would let them read and see what they think. I’ll make adjustments if they make sense.
Odo fitz Gilbert says
I am currently practicing “revision avoidance” by starting a new story, but I did revise a short story to the point where I think I’ve done the best I can on it with the form I chose. Unfortunately, I look at it and say to myself “This is the best I can do with this story in this form; it isn’t salable.” Luckily it really isn’t needed for the novel that follows it, so now I have to rewrite that, and I am resisting.
If I had trusted readers I would so use the heck out of them, but so far I don’t have any. (I have some people that I use with my poetry, but asking them to read 150K words is different.)
Some interesting hints and tips in the responses. Well done, Nathan.
V L Smith says
I’ve heard you aren’t supposed to edit as you write, but I can’t help it, I do. Things come to me in my sleep, while I work, shop, whatever, and I have to make changes.
Once the project is finished, I review it completely for more changes.
Spellcheck.
Then I have a spreadsheet of words I run a find for – words that creep in that shouldn’t be there or should be limited (am, are, be, been, etc.) plus words I have a tendency to overuse. I try eliminate all these as I write but they can sneak up on you.
Spellcheck again because running the always results in rewrites and tightening.
Send off to the critique group. Make the accepted changes.
Spellcheck.
Run the find again.
Then I think I am finished. Whew!
Christine says
How do I not revise? I have been editing my novel for at least a year.
First to find errors and fix awkward spots, then to correct POV, now to get rid of words because I have too many…
Yes, everytime I read it I find more to change.
At first I couldn’t imagine getting rid of any of it – it was so close to my heart, but after letting it rest, now I see parts and say, ooh yuck, what was I thinking?
Thanks for the great blog!
Wilfred the Author says
I’ve done it all in one novel.
Normally, I start my writing day by re-reading the last chpater or section of what I wrote; then move forward. During the re-read, I make notes on clunky passages, typos, etc.
Since I travel a lot for my day job, I use my airplane time to read the unfinished work from the beginning and revise. A lot of the planes I travel on lately are the small regional jets and getting out my laptop to write is not an option.
Near the end of the novel, I skip the re-reads. That way its fresher for me when I do my first big re-write. It sounds like a mess, but I have it down and it seems to work for me.
Parker Haynes says
Hmmm…lots of interesting approaches to this necessity some love and others love to hate, so I’ll weigh in.
My goal on the first draft is 1000 words a day, usually rereading (aloud!) the previous day’s work and making minor changes and corrections. If nothing else, this review helps set the stage (or my mood) for where I pick up. As the chapters build I do find inconsistencies that demand fixing, so I backtrack and fix. When I reach “The End” I make the time to read the complete manuscript, also aloud. By this time, I know the characters far better than at the beginning so this is my time to go back and add or subtract, build any missing depth of character for the reader.
Now it’s time to revert to my fifteen years fabricating Southern style silver jewelry. I grind off the rough edges, sand off the tool marks, burnish away blemishes, then polish to a high sheen and congratulate myself, hoping a buyer will find it as attractive as I do.
Next I color it up with markers as per Margie Lawson’s excellent EDITS system. (margielawson [dot] com). I find her methods valuable for locating problems by color coding emotion, dialog, internalization, tension, and setting. This leads to another round of revisions.
When I can identify no further reasonable improvements, it goes to a professional editor for manuscript evaluation, giving me a few weeks to get it out of my head. When it comes back all marked up with red pen, accompanied by pages of feedback, it’s time to jump in again, preferably with an ample shot of Irish in my black coffee to ease the pain.
Clench my teeth, revise fro the umpteenth time, polish again.
Anonymous says
I work in successive drafts.
First draft: just write. By the end of the draft, I usually have a good idea of what the story is. It may or may not be anything like what I’ve actually written.
Second draft: do the rough work of getting the necessary story elements in place. Add scenes, delete scenes, cut and paste chunks of text that need to be moved.
Third draft: start at the beginning and smooth out the text. Remove duplications, inconsistencies, and stuff that’s no longer relevant. Add anything else that needs to go in.
Fourth draft: Fine tune the story. Fix tone, style, colour and shading.
Fifth draft: Line edit.
Sixth draft: Copy edit.
Then I do a final proof-reading, and the job is done.
mpe
Anonymous says
Does anyone get the feeling that Nathan, bless him, tosses out these You Tell Me topics so that we will spend the day forming our answers and reading the other 70-150 comments, so we will be out of his hair and he can get some work done?
It’s sort of like the equivilent of a mother with a toddler turning on a Disney movie so she can balance her checkbook or make dinner in peace?
Not that I mind, I’m just saying… I’m onto you, Bransford, I’m on to you…
jerzegurl says
My laptop is now part of my body. It is the only way I write. My words leave my brain and travel to my fingertips where they compose a story while they dance. I write my entire story out first.
After I write the story, I go back and revise. My current WIP has 2 huge files on my hard drive full of revisions. I add and subject all the time.
My one problem is reading the work on the computer screen.
My writer’s group meets twice a month and my work gets reviewed then. I trust most of their input, except in cases where they don’t don’t what the character is going to do in the future.
For example they may suggest that something be revealed about a character in the chapter they are reading and it is revealed at the start of the next chapter.
I hate it when people tell me they don’t revise. I revise more than I write.. or so it seems.
Erik says
Thanks everyone, that was interesting. I can see that a lot of people do what I do, which is “by any means necessary”. Cut paragraphs, tweak, polish, slice and dice – it’s all good for me.
I usually revise constantly, which means that the first parts of a story / book are heavily edited and the last parts less so. I think that usually shows, so I have to get better at it.
Also, no one sees a thing until I think it’s at least readable.
Laura in Aurora says
This is always my greatest struggle.
I tend to be better at rewriting when I see the whole thing printed out.
Then, I will literally start retyping, because EVERYTHING gets better…even whole paragraphs that I thought were brilliant before can be tightened up for sharper dialogue, expanded for a better sense of scene or frankly, I just forgot about an unnecessary character or plot tick.
But it’s such a behemoth of a project, that I tend to NOT be rewriting unless I’m holed up in a hotel room for work for a week. 🙂
abc says
I’m only guessing here, since I’m still on first draft, but I’d think you have to get away from it for a little bit. Watch some bad movies. Drink some wine. Do something inspiring (watch a good movie? Watch The Wire?) and then get back to the little shit. Soft eyes?
Eric says
I use a keyboard.
Aimless Writer says
We shall revise until we have a sellable product.
First draft. Rewrite.
Read it all out loud so we can hear the flow. Rewrite.
Take to critique group. Rewrite.
Probably read aloud again before sending out for the final rewrite.
However advice only taken from those in the business. Other published authors (my critique group), agents, editors, etc.
Agents are gatekeeper gods
Editors super gods
Anonymous says
I don’t think I ever “vise” — only “re”-vise!
I use the (screwy?) screwdriver-method whereby I go back a bit before writing more, tweaking and editing along the way as I get back into the mode and then continue. Sometimes this involves going back a chapter or two, or all the way to the beginning — touching-up and adding/deleting, killing darlings and hacking with impunity. That’s BEFORE my critique partners ever get their hands on it.
And then, of course, the whole thing starts again!
I have a firmly-held rule of thumb that no manuscript goes forth into the world that hasn’t been thoroughly ripped apart by 5 people who are in no way related to me, either by blood or friendship, first.
— duskydawn
Kate says
All of the above. First of all, at the start of each day’s writing session I reread what I wrote the day before, and invariably do a little revision. Beyond that, I generally wait till I’ve finished the whole first draft–unless I get so stuck that I have to revise in order to keep going. Then I let the draft sit for a while, go back and revise the whole thing. Then I let some people read it, and revise with their comments in mind. That last step might be repeated any number of times before I decide the piece is ready to see the world. I also do separate passes through looking for different things–language, pacing, tension, etc. Inevitably whole scenes, sometimes whole chapters, will get the ax at some point in the process. I kill a lot of darlings.
Demon Hunter says
I trust my betas, who are mostly writers themselves. I believe in several rewrites until the book is polished. I’ve thrown out thousands of words and went back in and added more. It has to be done.
It’s probably best to use two sets of betas. The first after you’ve written and rewritten. And just when you think it’s good, give it to the next set of betas who will eviscerate it and then you whip it into shape.
Stew says
I write the first draft, print it, red-line it, make notes for scenes to rewrite completely, notes for scenes to add.
Take that document with me back to the computer and start with a blank document. I make a lot of spur of the moment changes to language and sentence structure in re-typing the whole thing, adding scenes as I go if needed.
Red-line it again for grammatical mistakes. Take that document back to the computer and make those changes in the existing draft two.
Send to betas – consider their comments and make appropriate changes.
April says
I love to revise! I put my manuscript aside for a few weeks to a month. Then I start at the beginning and track my changes. Then I go back through and evaluate my changes and either accept them or change them again. Then I go back through just to read it. Then I go through to make sure the chapters are where I want them. Somewhere in the middle, I may hand it over to a few betas to get their oppinions.
The hardest thing for me is knowing when to stop and trust that it’s the best I can make it.
All this coming from an unagented/unpublished author. 🙂 so it’s very possibly my methods are useless! haha
Anonymous says
Draft 1 – Print out – red flair – read aloud – red flair – edit – print out -etc, repeat several times. Save each version in separate files. Lots of red flairs, printer ink & tons of paper. A tree hugger’s nightmare – but then, we also drive big ass SUVs that have V8 engines and get 14 miles to the gallon – 7mpg when we pull the big ass boat. Oh well.
Anonymous says
The invention of the desktop computer and the word processor completely deserves honorable mention, if not complete credit for 99.99% of ALL the editing I have been able to accomplish.
Man, I just wasn’t that good of a typer!
Now a days, I reread what I wrote the day before and then begin writing. As I write, I edit, improvise, invent, change things as I write.
A missing element, chapters back, can occur to me and presto, I can go to it!
I am completely in love with spellcheck as a saving grace.
However, I just cannot SEE my own typos on a computer screen.
At some point, I have to print it out and look at it on paper. Usually at least three times.
authorista says
Nathan, for those of us debut authors who are just partnering or about to partner with agents, what would you say are the top agent-author newbie mistakes to avoid?
bookfraud says
the easiest question posed to me in months. how do i revise? compulsively, endlessly, repeatedly.
Anonymous says
Thanks, Nathan for asking. Revising my almost 74K novel, at least for me, is akin to plucking unwanted, excessive, body hair. (Do you feel the pain?) After completing the first draft, I went straight into the second, believing the work needed only “minor” revision. (Sigh)! Alas, the poor manuscript necessitated a TOTAL and major overhaul. Arrrgghh- Kill your darlings! Arrgghh!
Reading it aloud to myself (and my dog that now sleeps much better), begged the question,- What drugs was I taking when I wrote the first draft? (The answer, of course, is none.)
Still, I take comfort in knowing, that in the end, my novel (or novella) should turn out all the better-and didn’t you mention that shorter novels are now in?
Anonymous says
During the first draft, I always start the day’s wtiting by re-reading what I wrote the previous day and making any edits that come to mind. This tightens up the story as I write it, so in effect its already been editied once by the time the first draft is finished, and it gets me back into the story for the day’s new writing.
I usually keep a separate Notes file for major revision possibilities for the 2nd draft I’m not yet sure about during the first draft.
Speak Coffee says
On good days: with a workshop.
On bad days: with two hands and a flashlight.
Christi says
This is exactly what I wanted to read about today! Thanks.
I’m revising my first finished novel right now. I started out clumsily; revising as I went. That was a mistake for me because it took over 2 years to get past 24,000 words. I finally sat down and finished the novel adding 40,000 words to it in one month. I got a lot down on paper and it really helped my brain start to function in the fiction realm of writing.
So how am I going about it?
1. I let the novel sit for a week.
2. Researched how others revise a novel
3. I read it from start to finish making notes (in a separate notebook about scenes, character inconsistencies etc) and small edits.
4. Now I am hands-on editing and revising. I’ve taken out a lot and added or enhanced parts of my novel that needed work. I never delete, just cut and paste the parts I don’t want to use and put it in another document.
5. After I finish my first revision I’m going to hand it over to 2-3 people for their editing expertise and then I’ll revise one last time before I send it out.
My goal is to send it to at least 30 agents, 10 publishing houses directly, and if no one bites within a year, I’ll probably self-publish.
I’ve already started another manuscript, a novella, and hope to have that published soon after my novel. Or maybe it will happen the other way around.
https://hubpages.com/profile/zannr
cyn says
1st : just going through myself once and adding / deleting needed scenes/ prose. checking for grammar, dialogue, etc.
2nd : using one crit group’s notes and comments. i don’t incorporate all advice, only what makes sense to me and my story.
3rd : using second crit group’s advice.
4th : another revision for flow and consistency.
5th : final revision by reading aloud.
Anonymous says
One thing I’ve started doing that hasn’t been mentioned already is running my text, usually a chapter at a time, through a word counter that gives me a list of most frequently used words, with numbers. (A recent chapter yielded 28 uses of the word ‘back.’) Then I go back (See? Impossible to avoid!)and make changes to the ones I have used too often. As David Long (writing teacher and writer) says, never repeat words except on purpose.
From having my writing looked at by many people, other writers, my husband (world’s harshest critic) and teachers, I know what my bad habits are. With that in mind, in addition to reading for sense and grammaar, texture and flow, I look for examples of my own foibles. For example, I’m a ‘just’ queen, so I go through and get rid of the word ‘just’ in my dialogue.
gidget-ca says
I write young adult fiction so there are no ‘unnecessary’ scenes; everything is critical to the plot. That said, my current novel is over a hundred thousand words.
The first draft was horrible, written in a plain-text editor (on purpose) so that I did not fall victim to the thesaurus effect.
For the second, I edited each chapter in Word, one paragraph at a time; I don’t believe in rewriting more than a single paragraph, it is that ‘flow’ of initial creativity that I think always needs to remain.
Once each chapter is revised, I print it, and my significant other reads it aloud; then, I edit the paper copy, and enter those changes into the computer.
The second draft completed, the entire manuscript is printed two times, and one copy each is read by myself and my partner; we make our notes (both small and large,) and then all of that is revised in Word.
This final draft is then printed and sent to several people, who then make their own notes and suggestions; they are then, hopefully, returned to me. I employ their ideas to my own personal taste, and then the novel is declared finished; as I am obsessive-compulsive revision could go on forever if not terminated with prejudice.
Nikki Duncan says
All of the above. I write the story to get it out, work with my critique partners/plotting partners, listen to their opinions, advice, and feedback, and then start at the beginning either changing, or slicing scenes and adding new stuff that needs to be there.
I’ve gotten to where I can get the story written andtightened in 2 sweeps. The third sweep is where I check for missed typos and continuity things like hair color, the spelling of names, do they have three hands all of a sudden. That fun stuff.
Simon Haynes says
Print the whole draft, apply red pen, enter changes in the computer. Repeat at least 20-25 times, until I can read it without picking the pen up.
Then I submit it to my editor for comments, and after that I start the real revisions.
As for wasting paper, one government department kills more trees changing their letterhead on a whim than all of us writers put together will use in our lifetimes.
southernbelfry says
What did we do before computers? It’s not that difficult for me as I am not in love with every word I write. I can toss a paragraph, a page, a word, a chapter. But rearranging chapters like I’m doing now is causing me to re-think my career choice.
My mother called herself a “pre-writer”, not a re-writer. She didn’t use a computer and would think and think and think, and write the story in her head until she could sit down and dash it off like Mozart with few revisions.
Anonymous says
I read it out loud. It is humbling, mortifying and enlightening all at once. You realize the faults in your dialogue, the gaps in your descriptions, the absence of tone. Or you get really excited that you nailed the moment.