Self-editing for beginners

Part of the writing process is getting to know your self-editing style. Throughout the creation of your masterpiece, it’s good practice to stop and look it over. Take notes. It’s important to remember that everyone has corrections and edits that need to be made. It’s not saying that you’re not a good writer when you edit your work, in fact it’s saying the opposite. You are taking the time to care about what you produce to look over it. Here is a list of things that might help you edit your own work. And it’s okay if you edit your editing process. Tweak it until it works for you. Everyone has a different process. I’m a list keeper, so I track everything by checking off things on my list as I’ve done them.

1. If you use an outline as a framework to help you write, keep it handy. Take notes as you go along. Are you changing an important detail halfway through the story? Write it on the outline and make sure you keep it in mind when you go back to edit.
2. Read your work aloud. It helps to highlight errors or if something sounds forced and is not working.
3. It sounds weird, but read chunks of your work backwards. It will help you catch errors you might not catch otherwise.
4. Spellcheck is not always your friend. Highlight a problematic word as you’re writing and go back when you edit. Spellcheck only checks for words spelled correctly, not always words used incorrectly. For example: There cake looked good, but they used the wrong flower. (There should be their and flower should be flour.)
5. Avoid too many adverbs. This is one of Stephen King’s rules. I’ll add this: if you’re reading your work and something sounds too descriptive, scratch the adverb (and sometimes adjective) if it makes a sentence clumsy. It’s a little like the Coco Chanel quote about dressing with accessories, “Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off.” Keep it simple. Don’t add too many accessories to your writing. This leads to the next point.
6. Don’t overexplain. One of my favorite Argentinian authors, Juan Luis Borges, loved writing the short story because its “indispensable elements are economy and a clearly stated beginning, middle and end.” This can apply whether you’re writing a novel or short story. Keep descriptions moving and use the active voice whenever possible. Otherwise you might accidentally patronize your readers.
7. When writing fiction, listen to the voice of your characters. Don’t use perfect grammar if they wouldn’t. Perfect grammar isn’t necessary for fiction. Self-editing is more than this.
8. Keep a list. I have a list of common things I look for as I go back and read my work. This goes back to point one. If you start your work with American English spellings, keep that going throughout the book. Don’t change over to British English a third of the way through. I also keep a cheat sheet of words I misuse. The cheat sheet serves two purposes. 1. It reminds me to look for the often incorrectly used word. 2. Hopefully, I eventually learn from my mistakes and can cross off that word.
9. Be an avid reader. Study the genres that most interest you. Familiarize yourself with established authors in those genres and see if they have any advice for new authors. One of my favorite books about writing is On Writing by Stephen King. His advice applies to writers of all genres, not just fans of horror. You can’t write about that which you do not know. The more you read, the more you know.
10. Use the resources you have. Not everyone can afford copious books on grammar, editing, writing, etc. Here are just a couple of my favorite free resources. (I’ll post a blog soon about great resources to consult when you’re stuck.
    1. Spelling: merriam-webster.com is my go-to free online dictionary.
    2. Grammar: Grammar Girl’s free site answers some common grammar questions: https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar

I saved the most important tips for last. Enjoy your writing. Take a break. If you find yourself getting frustrated, it’s best to walk away for a bit otherwise it’ll be less enjoyable to get your story out so the world can enjoy it too.

What self-editing tips work best for you? Do you have a not-so-common tip that you don’t mind sharing?

Here are three articles that I referenced to help remember quotes:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/stephen-kings-top-20-rules-for-writers/

10 Best Coco Chanel Quotes on Jewelry