Today’s #ThrowbackThursday post originates on 3/12/17, over five years ago. At that time, I shared editing and proofreading tips to use on your rough draft. FYI, the book referenced, Snow White and the Eight Dwarf, was published and can be purchased here.
If editing is your least favorite part of writing, this post is for you!
I will show you 7+ tips for editing and proofreading your rough draft and take your book to the next level.
I’ve just finished the final, final, final edits for Snow White and the Eighth Dwarf. Proofreading it was a long, laborious process, as I wrote 56K of the story last July in a rough NaNo like session. The first draft was not pretty.
Let’s face the ugly truth.
Look for inconsistencies.
Did your main character change names, eye color, or gender? Did you mention magic in the first chapter, but no one casts any spells? Does your forest setting change to a desert for no reason? Check your timeline to verify your protag and antag are on the same day. Because of the time involved in writing a book, many details can get lost. Look for inconsistencies and fix them.
Fill in the holes.
My first draft looks like a tic-tac-toe game.
I write very fast because I don’t want the bright, shiny light of inspiration to dim. Get the words down, get them down fast is my motto. Fill in the holes later. My first draft is full of XXX’s, my all-purpose placeholder for research I need to do, nameless characters (example from my current WIP: “Name1, Name2, Name3, Name4 and Name5, thank you for coming here today.”), or descriptions that need filling in (example: more here of her physical trauma xxxx.) My first draft is a tic-tac-toe game. Revising is the time to do the research, decide on the names, and fill in the holes. Continue reading →
Today’s #ThrowbackThursday post originates on 3/12/17, over five years ago. At that time, I shared editing and proofreading tips to use on your rough draft. FYI, the book referenced, Snow White and the Eight Dwarf, was published and can be purchased here.
If editing is your least favorite part of writing, this post is for you!
I will show you 7+ tips for editing and proofreading your rough draft and take your book to the next level.
I’ve just finished the final, final, final edits for Snow White and the Eighth Dwarf. Proofreading it was a long, laborious process, as I wrote 56K of the story last July in a rough NaNo like session. The first draft was not pretty.
Let’s face the ugly truth.
Look for inconsistencies.
Did your main character change names, eye color, or gender? Did you mention magic in the first chapter, but no one casts any spells? Does your forest setting change to a desert for no reason? Check your timeline to verify your protag and antag are on the same day. Because of the time involved in writing a book, many details can get lost. Look for inconsistencies and fix them.
Fill in the holes.
My first draft looks like a tic-tac-toe game.
I write very fast because I don’t want the bright, shiny light of inspiration to dim. Get the words down, get them down fast is my motto. Fill in the holes later. My first draft is full of XXX’s, my all-purpose placeholder for research I need to do, nameless characters (example from my current WIP: “Name1, Name2, Name3, Name4 and Name5, thank you for coming here today.”), or descriptions that need filling in (example: more here of her physical trauma xxxx.) My first draft is a tic-tac-toe game. Revising is the time to do the research, decide on the names, and fill in the holes. Continue reading →
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