Now that the book's been trimmed, it's time to add, bringing
the word count back up. Each chapter is outlined per section by character use,
plot, and other pertinent information. This gives a clear 'flow' of the story,
if it's moving too fast or slow, if we don't see characters for a chapter or
two, which sections are linked back-to-back and which have gaps between that
can be filled. This process allows for a lot of 'eureka' moments as you put the
final pieces of the puzzle together. It's these little 'off screen' moments
with the characters that add heart to the book. Then, repeat Phase I. When is a
story done? When you've crammed everything you can in there without making it
cumbersome.
Here's the AutoCrit report on what I've written so far:
Well, since I'm not 'in the mood' to write tonight, might as well talk about something relevant, like my
editing process. I've got it down to a science, unfortunately
it does take a long time, but I find it's worth it.
Phase I is using the AutoCrit Editing Software.
The software analyses your text for overused
words, repeated words, dialogue tag use, and initial pronoun use. This eliminates a lot, typically 10% of my
words, getting rid of sentences
with little meaning, and making the text
read a lot
cleaner. I can't speak more highly of
this software, if used properly. Initially,
in my quest to remove all overused words,
I was reconfiguring my sentences
into Yoda-speak, so, it must be used with care.Now that the book's been trimmed, it's time to add, bringing the word count back up. Each chapter is outlined per section by character use, plot, and other pertinent information. This gives a clear 'flow' of the story, if it's moving too fast or slow, if we don't see characters for a chapter or two, which sections are linked back-to-back and which have gaps between that can be filled. This process allows for a lot of 'eureka' moments as you put the final pieces of the puzzle together. It's these little 'off screen' moments with the characters that add heart to the book. Then, repeat Phase I. When is a story done? When you've crammed everything you can in there without making it cumbersome.
Here's what I've written edited with AutoCrit:
Since I'm not 'in the mood' to write tonight, I might as
well talk about something relevant, like my editing process.
Phase I is using the AutoCrit Editing Software, which analyses
your text for overused words, repeated words, dialogue tag use, and initial
pronoun use. This typically eliminates 10% of my words, getting rid of
sentences with little or no meaning, and making the text a lot 'cleaner'. Initially,
in my quest to remove all overused words, I was reconfiguring sentences into
Yoda-speak so it must be used with care.
Phase II is bringing the word count back up. Each chapter is
outlined per section by plot, character use, and other pertinent information.
This gives a clear 'flow' of the story, if the plot is moving too fast or slow,
if we don't see characters for a chapter or two, which sections are linked back-to-back
and which aren't, with gaps between them that can be filled. This process
allows for a lot of 'eureka' moments as you put the final pieces of the puzzle
together. Then, repeat Phase I. A story's done when you've crammed in everything
you can without making it cumbersome.
Phase III is combing the proof copy for typos.
Phase III is combing the proof copy for typos.
So, that's how I edit my books; unfortunately it takes a long
time, but hopefully the benefits of the process can be seen in my writing.
Link: AutoCrit Editing Software
Link: AutoCrit Editing Software