Beginner’s Guide to Self-Editing Your Book
And why you literally can’t afford to skip it
--
I'll earn a commission if you purchase through the affiliate links in this post.
Oh, self-editing. Some writers look forward to it, and some dread the very thought of having to sit down and edit their novel. Yet self-editing is an important skill for any type of writer to have, and it can also cut down on publication costs.
So the question is, what’s the best way to self-edit a novel? Are there applications and tools that help make it easier? What about techniques to make sure you don’t miss anything? Plenty of people have edited novels before — what advice do they have?
When I started editing my first novel, I had no clue what to do. Honestly, I’m pretty sure I just read through it, fixed whatever typos I found, and called it good.
. . . Let me tell you, that first draft was not good. It was a hot mess. But I had no idea how to look for plot holes, add backstory correctly, or (shudder) kill my darlings. Now, years later, I’m happy to say I’ve gotten better at those things. I’ve also uncovered some great self-editing methods and some life-saving tools.
So let’s get to it — it’s time to learn how to self-edit your novel.
Why self-editing is important
Writing is work. Self-editing is work. Some writers will say one is harder than the other, but ultimately, it just comes down to doing the work. Is it hard? Yes. Is it worth it? Oh, yes. Here’s why.
Self-editing will save you money in the long run
For a lot of editors, their pricing usually involves a base rate. Obviously, that’s the rate you want — because their rates only go up from there. What causes their rates to go up, you ask? The answer is simple: unedited work.
You see, a lot of editors offer a free sample edit before talking about concrete pricing. The uglier the sample pages are, the more work they’re going to have to put in.
If they see that your grammar is atrocious and you didn’t even bother to fix typos, they’re going to charge you more than their base rate so they aren’t working for pennies. (They have families to feed, too.) BUT if they see that your manuscript is clean, they’ll see that your work will be much simpler to edit. That means you’re more likely to get an editor’s base rate, which will save you a decent amount of money.
That’s what we all want.
Self-editing helps you find your flaws as a writer
I’m not gonna lie, going through your work to find things to cut (or discovering you didn’t fully cover some topics) isn’t easy. First, there’s the matter of seeing your work as anything but beloved and perfect. Once you can get past that, you can see your weaknesses as a writer. And once you’ve edited those weaknesses out of your manuscript, you’ll have a better idea of how to not repeat those same mistakes.
How long does it take to self-edit a novel?
Self-editing a novel could take a month. It could take a year. Really, that’s all up to you. I’d say that if you work at it consistently (and it’s not a ginormous book), you could self-edit your novel in 1–3 months. But again, it depends on how much of a developmental edit your story needs.
You know what makes editing go faster, though? Tried and true methods and tools.
And, just for you, I’ve listed my favorite self-editing techniques and tools below.
My favorite self-editing methods for fiction writers
First of all, I have to say I think it’s a good idea to let your manuscript sit for a while after you’ve finished it. Not forever — just a month or two. You need to give yourself a break, and it’ll also help your perspective when you do start editing.
Once you’ve had some time away from your book, then you get to delve into the editing process. You’ll want to look for big-picture issues like plot holes, inconsistencies, and character development, but you’ll also need to watch out for spelling and grammar mistakes.
Evaluate your manuscript
After you’ve let your first draft sit for a bit, it’s time to give it a good look. I know you love your story, and that’s why I recommend waiting at least a month before you start editing. That way you can look at it with fresh eyes.
Why do you need fresh eyes, you ask? Because you can enter your story like a new reader. You’ll be confused by awkward sentences. You’ll realize you introduced a character in a way that’s totally not them. You’ll find loose ends that you forgot to tie up.
And on and on.
See, when you look at your manuscript with fresh eyes, you’ll be able to make note of your mistakes so you can fix them. Doing this now will save you time and money so your beta readers (or your editor) won’t have to point out obvious stuff to you.
Read your draft out loud
Oof — I know. If you have a long manuscript, this one could be rough. But reading your manuscript out loud can help you find awkward sentences and phrasing (the tools listed below will also help you with this). And if you’re really trying to make your characters sound different from each other, reading their dialogue out loud can be a huge help.
Change your font
This is for catching typos, misused words, and weird phrasings. Changing the font can help you find more errors in your manuscript because you’ll be reading it in a format that your brain isn’t used to. It also helps to make sure you’re actually reading every word instead of skimming. That’s something I find myself doing all the time.
Print out your manuscript
There are a couple good reasons to do this, mainly because you’ll always have a hard copy of your draft. But, just as is the case with changing your font, reading your draft in a different word processor or on paper can help you see things you wouldn’t have caught otherwise.
The best tools for self-editing for fiction writers
Just as with anything, the proper tools can help you to work more efficiently. I have a few great tools stored away that I pull out when it’s time to start editing.
ProWritingAid
ProWritingAid is basically the ultimate self-editing tool. It can help you with things like pacing, sentence structure, consistency, and finding overused words. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
There are tons of helpful tools within this program to get your self-editing process moving as quickly as possible. You can use the paid version of ProWritingAid in MS Word, Scrivener, Google Docs, Chrome, and more. Or if you want to check it out a little bit before buying, consider using their free online tool.
Hemingway App
Hemingway App is my next-favorite editing tool. It’s free, and it highlights things like adverbs, passive voice, complex words, and too-long sentences. It also gives you suggestions for what to do when it points something out!
Grammarly
Grammarly is the most basic grammar tool out there. And honestly, if you have basic grammar/spelling rules down, this will give you bad advice regularly. The only thing it does for me is find the occasional typo in emails. But hey, it’s something.
There’s a free version and a paid version, and I’d recommend sticking with the free one and putting your money toward something better like ProWritingAid.
Ultimately, self-editing comes down to your mindset
Tearing apart your work isn’t easy. And if you prefer the parts of writing that involve worldbuilding and adventurous scenes, editing definitely doesn’t sound like fun.
But look at it this way: as you edit, you get to dive even deeper into your story. When you find holes in your story world’s culture, you get to fill them in. When you realize your protagonist acts out of character in the second chapter, you’re forced to get to know them even better — which, honestly, is half the fun.
Sure, you have to deal with grammar. But there are free versions of all the tools listed above that will help you out. And you’ll learn so much about your writing style, and hopefully you’ll be a better writer because of it.
See? It’s a win-win. You write, you edit (and learn more about your story), and you save money on editing fees. All in all, editing is a necessary part of the writing process that you’ll regret skipping. So get to it!
Want to learn how to grow your author platform before you publish? Click here to steal my methods.
This article was originally published on Rebekah Joan’s website on January 15th, 2020.
You just read another exciting post from the Book Mechanic: the writer’s source for creating books that work and selling those books once they’re written.
If you’d like to read more stories just like this one tap here to visit
