In this blog post, we will be looking at some of the ways you can improve your writing by editing it yourself, correcting mistakes and fixing any continuity issues or similar. Of course, this is not a substitute for having it professionally edited, but it is still a useful thing to do, as well as being a great skill for any writer to have. We will start by looking at the reasons why you should self-edit, before thinking about some different ways to do this.
Why Self-Edit?
Self-editing means that you look through your work and correct any errors you can find, whether these are spelling, grammatical, or to do with the storyline. If your book is being traditionally published, it will be edited as part of your publishing deal. If you will be self-publishing, you will need to hire a professional editor. However, in either situation, it is still best to self-edit first.
If you will be submitting your manuscript to traditional publishers, you will need self-editing to make it look its best. You do not need to pay for professional editing in this scenario – this would be a waste of your money, as the publisher will organise this before your book is printed. Nevertheless, you do not want to submit sloppy writing. Self-editing allows you to reach a compromise, raising your work to the standard expected for submissions without costing you anything.
On the other hand, if you will be self-publishing, you will need to pay for professional editing. Bear in mind that this is more than just hiring a proofreader, as your book will need multiple rounds of editing (and different editors) to be at the standard of a traditionally published book – you can read more about the different types of editing here. Unfortunately, this also tends to be expensive.
This is where self-editing comes in. By fixing as many mistakes as you can yourself, including everything from grammar to plot holes, your editors will have less to do, so it should cost you less. This is why editors will usually ask for a sample of your writing before giving you a quote – this allows them to assess how much editing your work needs.
Self-editing should also improve you as a writer, allowing you to identify problems in your work and how to fix them. This should help in the long run, as you will find you make fewer mistakes as time goes on.
How to Self-Edit
Read Aloud
One trick you can use to help you self-edit is to read your work aloud. Doing this can help you pick up on errors you might not have noticed otherwise, such as missing words or sentences that are too long. If you are struggling with when to breathe, your readers will feel much the same!
If you can, try to have an audience when you read aloud. This could be a family member, a friend, a writing group, or even a pet! Just reading in front of an audience can help you take your writing more seriously. If you are only reading to yourself, you may find that you are muttering or speaking too quickly, which makes this exercise less useful.
Even better is getting someone else to read it back to you, as they will not be familiar with your manuscript and are less likely to skip over mistakes. Alternatively, you can use a text-to-speech program in the same way. Most computers have this function.
Keep it Simple
Another point to bear in mind when you are editing is that your writing works best when it is simple. There is no need to use several complicated words where one simple one would do. Remember that your aim is to keep your readers interested, so you want your writing to flow well and hook the reader.
Avoid going into too much detail about every little thing that is happening – trust that your readers will work it out. For example, if someone in your book sits down, this is probably not worth mentioning unless it is to illustrate their shock or relief.
Consistency
It is also really important to keep your manuscript consistent. This means a few things; firstly, make sure the characters’ names and place names stay the same. It seems obvious, but this is actually a really easy mistake to make, especially after you have spent so long writing your book and know what everything should be.
If any of the names you used are ones flagged by a spelling checker, add them to the dictionary! This means that any misspellings of their name should still be flagged, drawing your attention to them. Otherwise, you can use a Find tool to search for any common misspellings you think you might have used.
In addition, keep your tenses consistent! If you are writing in the present tense, describing things as they are now, don’t swap to the past (unless this is part of your narrative) as this makes your book look unprofessional and will confuse your readers.
Wrapping Up
I hope that this helps when it’s time to self-edit. In my next blog post, we will be looking at some more self-editing tips, focusing on methods that you can do on a computer. Thanks for reading!
Want help proofreading your work? Contact Carmine Proofreading for a friendly, professional service from a qualified proofreader.
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