So here’s my to-do list for the next three weeks. All going according to plan, I’ll have a draft ready for beta readers by mid-November. Of course, it’s a bit heavy to lug on the train with me. 🙂
Prepare
Update the outline as it is
Update the plot spreadsheet as it is
Hand edit
Need: single subject spiral bound notebook, 3 to 4 colours of pen, printed draft, Outline Notebook, maps.
Read.
Write down:
- Chapter numbers
- POVs
- Name of each character as that character is introduced
- Plot lines as they begin
- Events in each chapter
Mark:
- Writing that needs work
- Writing that works
Questions:
- Does this character have a place in this book?
- Has a character changed appearance?
- Has a character changed in other ways? If so, do I explain why?
- Are all plotlines carried through?
- Are all plotlines resolved?
- Have all conflicts been resolved
- Does this scene matter?
- Have I followed the rule of 3? (If it appears twice, it should appear three times)
Talk things out
Discuss my proposed solutions with my PRH and my lovely sister
Plan and plot
- Rewrite the outline
- Rewrite the plot spreadsheet
Rewrite, reorganise
Now fix all the things I thought were wrong, rewriting and reorganising as needed.
ADDED: Check that every chapter ends in a way that keeps people reading, and that every chapter begins with a hook.
Edit for spelling, grammar, punctuation, word choice
- Check capitalisation
- Eliminate qualifiers
- Evaluate adverbs
- Remove superfluous movement
- Tune dialogue attribution
- Check whether ‘that’ is needed
- Remove filter words
To See (See, Sees, Saw, Seeing, Seen)
To Hear (Hear, Hears, Heard, Hearing)
To Feel (Feel, Feels, Felt, Feeling)
To Look (Look, Looks, Looked, Looking)
To Know (Know, Knows, Knew, Knowing)
To Think (Think, Thinks, Thought, Thinking)
To Wonder (Wonder, Wonders, Wondered, Wondering)
To Realize (Realize, Realizes, Realized, Realizing)
To Watch (Watch, Watches, Watched, Watching)
To Notice (Notice, Notices, Noticed, Noticing)
To Seem (Seem, Seems, Seemed, Seeming)
To Decide (Decide, Decides, Decided, Deciding)
To Sound (Sound, Sounds, Sounded, Sounding)
Read out loud, marking anything that doesn’t work
Fix, and let it go to beta readers
I’m on page 92 of 506 of my first hard-copy edit, and I’m loving the experience. This bit is all about continuity, pace, and plot. I’ve marked where the hero’s housekeeper changes her name, and his land agent goes from weedy to buff in a matter of days. I’ve noted the change in the heroine’s eye-colour (green flecks turned into gold flecks). I’ve found two scenes I can cut dramatically and another that I think I can get rid of altogether, thus removing several peripheral characters entirely.
