Happy July Dammit!

Happy July Dammit!

Well, here we are. This has actually been a pretty productive month as far as writing goes. I have mentioned in the past that I am just a dude trying to figure this whole writing thing out. At this point, I am very close to being finished with the first draft.

Would I show anyone my first draft?

Hell no!

But, as I sit this afternoon around June 20, 2024 I am about three thousand words, give or take a few, from being finished with it. I feel like that is a major accomplishment, at least for me it is. My goal has been at least sixty thousand words for this first novel. I am just over fifty-seven thousand and the story is winding down. It feels like it is going to come in around sixty so that works for me.

I have really enjoyed this project. The journey of learning all of the stuff that goes into something like this and then creating something has been really cool and challenging. It has really filled a lot of my not-so-free time this year.

While I have started to bring this thing down for a landing, it has launched the next phase. What would that be you may ask?

Well, I am talking about editing.

Everything I have researched has put editing as super important. Basically in the process of writing a novel, the actual writing is the first quarter of the overall work, editing is the next two quarters or half the work, and then marketing is the last quarter of the overall work.

If that is true, I have a lot of work to do…

Should I get someone else to edit it?

Well, yeah I probably should, but what is the fun in that? I have a good friend who says her family motto is something along the lines of “Why would we do something the easy way when there is a much more difficult and cheaper way to do it.” I chuckle every time she says it.

Anyway, the issue with getting someone else to edit this story is that I wouldn’t learn how to do it that way. This entire project has been about being creative and learning how to do this. So why would I stop now?

So, as the story winds down, there has been a deep dive into the practice of editing. More specifically self-editing. I am really fascinated with the concept of editing this story and seeing how it changes it. I don’t want to put the cart before the horse and start doing that before the story is done, but I am excited about diving in.

So let's talk about how this works in function. I think I am going to edit in a few phases.

Phase one is Developmental Editing. This type of editing takes a broad strokes look at the overall structure of the manuscript.

Phase two is Structural Editing. Like developmental editing, structural editing takes a broad look at the structure of your manuscript. Structure and flow go hand-in-hand and are kind of hard to pin down. And every book (both fiction and nonfiction) needs a good flow to pull the readers along, either entertaining or providing information.

Phase three is Copy Editing. Copy editing isn’t concerned with stylistic choices; It’s looking for spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes.

Somewhere in this process either before or after will be beta-readers. Beta-readers take a look at your story and provide feedback.

Also, it is not so clear what order all of this is supposed to take place depending on who’s input I am looking at for it. Some say to start with beta-readers and let that guide some of the developmental editing. Some say start with copy editing so your spelling, grammar, and punctuation are on point before you allow anyone else to look over it.

Where will I land? I don’t know yet, but I am enjoying the process of researching it.

Another big key to self-editing is looking at your manuscript with fresh eyes. You are supposed to put your manuscript down for a bit and walk away from it. That way when you come back to it you have fresh eyes to look it over and don’t feel so close to it.

Anyway, I hope your July is awesome!

Summer is here… but honestly, I live in Tampa, Florida and summer never really goes away.

Shamon