I’m moving to the next phase of writing my novel—revisions—and thought you might like a peek into my process.
As of now, my first draft is finished. All authors do this differently, but my first draft is simply writing the story as it comes to me, from start to finish. My first draft usually comea in 1/2 to 2/3 the length of the finished product. Why? Because I start by teliing the big picture story. After that, I need to re-read what’s on the page to see which parts need expanding and which need to be cut.
How do I do that? Let me show you!
First, I print out my first draft. Front and back, this one sits at 250ish pages. The fonts might be off, the spacing different for each chapter. Doesn’t matter. I just need a hard copy to read.
At this point, I read through my manuscript as I would any book, with one difference—I have my red pen in hand and I’m not afraid to use it!
As I read, I note typos, plot holes, repeated words, character inconsistencies, location and timeline questions, stakes for the characters, and beginning, middle, and ends of scenes. I also mark spots in the story where more description or more action or more internal monologue is needed. I dont’ rewrite any of this, I just make notes.
Finally, it’s time to makes changes to my original document. I use a program called Scriviner, which was designed for writers. In my document, I can move scenes or whole chapers as easily as drag and drop. I can add pictures of things or people I need to describe and split screen with them as I write. I can do the same with research links to have information right at my fingertips. And at this stage, I’ll need all those things many times each day!
This is the most time-intensive part of the process, too, which is yet another reason I am thrilled to be at home instead of on the road for the next few weeks!
Honestly as much fun as it is getting the story out of my head and onto a screen, this is stage where the story really comes alive for me. I love adding the details that put a reader in a specific time and place. I also love deciding what descriptions are important to the story and where they need to appear. While I see the first draft going on like a movie in my head, the revision phase is more like directing a dress rehearsal—making sure everyone is where they need to be, when they need to be there, and dressed as they ought to be. Oh, and that everytime the stage goes black (or the chapter ends!), there is something that keeps the audience or reader engaged in the story.
From screen to paper to screen again.
Once I’ve turned the last paper page in the revision, I’m ready for feedback from others. But while they are looking at it, I return to a paper read-through myself as well. When I get to this stage in another few weeks, I’ll be sitting on pins and needles waiting for feedback, but all in a good way. Becuase even though I will have done my best to tell a good story, I know there will be more to polish to make it one worthy of a reader’s time and attention.
I hope you enjoyed this peek into the process of bringing a novel to publication. If you are a reader, did any of this surprise you? If you are a writer, do you have a different process for revisions that you want to share?