Editing Path Part 7

This week was a bit of a return to form, finally. I got some writing done, did some work, and worked a wedding. Times are good. Now, it’s time for the finale of this blog series: Editing Path Part 7.

Drawing from the Well

I had a pretty good writing week. I’m ramping up on how much I’m getting done. I broke through the 50k barrier and am over a third of the way through this edit. Life is good.

Page 101/276
50,410/144,264 Words

Filling the Well

I listened to four leadership books this week, all of which were decent. Who Rocked the Boat and Leaders Assemble were the most interesting as they were told from a storytelling perspective. I’m currently listening to the next installment (next to most recent release) in the Wayward Children series by Seanan McGuire. As always, it is already exquisite. These sequel books that follow after previous events (as opposed to the separate character- and world-building books) are terribly interesting.

#47/105 for #ProjectBookworm2023

Nothing new in TV and Movies this week. I’ll skip this going forward until there’s something to speak on.

Well Chat

It’s the final countdown!

We’re at the last two steps in this editing process! The fifth draft is is already pretty tight so we’re down to the hardest bits to find. For that, we need one more tool: Edit Out Loud.

Edit Out Loud is a website and app that will read your manuscript (or essay or poem) back to you. This allows you to listen to your manuscript to hear if anything sounds strange. If you’re like me and don’t want to listen to your own voice, this is an excellent option. The one caveat is that you can only upload 7,500 words at a time. For a book like my third that’s currently in process, that means I need to chop it into 20 pieces to make it work. The tedium is worth the result, though. Otherwise, read your manuscript out loud. Clunky phrases or overlong sentences will jump out at you.

After that, we return to where we started with one final read-through. This should be relatively quick, unlike the first read-through. By now, I’ve been over the manuscript SO. MANY. TIMES. At this point, I’m just looking out for anything that sticks out as weird, clunky, or lacking. I also make sure that the flow of chapters feels right. For me, I make sure no two consecutive chapters have the same point of view, but that’s just me.

I know this section appears to be the least precise, but it is important. If this were a soup, up to now, I’ve been measuring each ingredient to make sure it is in the proper proportion. As you reach the end of cooking, though, it might need a little salt to brighten the flavors or a little sugar to soften the acid or a little water to thin the broth that thickened to much. There are tiny adjustments to make right at the end. That’s what these last two edits are all about.

After that, it’s done and ready to go to the professional editor.

You didn’t think I did all this and called it a day did you?

See you next week!