2:47 PM

Editing. HELP!

So I've decided it's about time I stopped working on the new and started editing the old so I can push forward and hopefully shop it around. The problem? I DON'T KNOW WHERE TO START!

Do I take it page by page? Chapter by chapter? Do I make an outline? A timeline? A crime scene do not cross line? Do I plaster my walls with post its of varying color accompanied by a complicated key? I just don't know. 200+ pages is overwhelming. Help!!

What works for you? Got any tricks of the trade? Any suggestions? Can you point me towards a website that could help? Want to tell me just to shut up and figure it out on my own?* Any and all words are encouraged and welcomed!




*Do this if you must, but please remember my fragile psyche

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I think you need to sit down and do an entire re-read of your draft. Make notes where you think it needs work, then dive in and make the changes.

Looking at it on paper helps me because I can write in the margins, etc.

Stephen King has an awesome example of how he edits in the back of his book On Writing. It helped me a lot.

MBee said...

Thanks :) I had actually re-read this WIP many times but decided to just start at the beginning and go page by page. I'm using word to track my changes and copy & pasting the new stuff into another document. It's actually working very well. I'm about 50 pages in now. I had forgotten how much I enjoyed this story :)