Writing a Novel Hurdle #2: Four Ways to Self - Edit Your Writing

This part of the writing a novel process will be my ultimate downfall. I'm sure of it.

Over the past 3 months I've read over my entire novel 10 times at least. I've never been a big fan of editing, but I'm stuck on this one. I have to do it before I send it out to a professional content editor and it's hard to know when to stop.

 I'll admit I did a lot editing as I went along. I would write a scene and then read it over. This works for some people, others it doesn't. Maybe it's making these read-throughs harder because I feel like I did it already? I'm not sure, but this is definitely hard part of the process for me. 

 I need to do it regardless of what I think I've done already. 

Of course there are many ways to self-edit your work. These four ways are helping me the best right now. What works for me might not work for you. =)

Overusing the Same Words 

Having a game plan with each read through is helping. The biggest issue I'm concentrating on is using the same words & phrases over and over...

"Still" "Just" "Caught off guard" "But" "Very" "And Then"

"Your" "You're" "I feel" "Definitely" "Literally"

I can't eliminate everyone of them, but I can definitely take a closer look at each use to see if a better word would work. This can also apply to blogposts, but the english teacher lurking in all of us is more forgiving with blogposts.

Conversational Dialogue is Not a Text Message

 Some people blog like a text message, others blog like a short story. It's no biggie to write "lol" in the middle of a blog post. Personally I feel you shouldn't use it in a novel unless you're  referring to a text message. The urge to use short text message like dialogue has been hard for me. I remember before texting but it has changed how we all causually speak to one another. 

Taking a Break from Your Novel

For most of May I barely looked at my novel. I read it through only once and let the printed out copy collect a little dust. This advice I've been giving time and time again and it seriously worked. I've been glued to my laptop almost every night for a year. I needed the break.

I'm currently re-reading my novel and I'm definitely noticing little things I didn't before. I've been able to cut down excess without eliminating full scenes. 

Stopping the Self-Editing Process

I fear that I will never get this baby off my laptop and into the hands of a publisher or Amazon. I have to force myself to call it quits after this last read-through because I will be caught in an endless loop of self-doubt to make it perfect. It will never be perfect. I'm sure after it's published in some medium I will still find a mistake. 

How Do You Self-Edit Your Writing? 

Your Blog posts? 

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At Book Con, I was so inspired by all the authors and all the publishing houses signs "Open for Submissions". I don't have an agent and that's okay. Some publishers except manuscripts without an agent. 

It makes me feel like this is all real. It's really coming true. 

Each step is getting me closer and closer to my dream.

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