First Draft - Just Get it Down
The first step in the draft to manuscript journey has been given every name in the book—the Dump Draft, the Hell Draft, the Discovery Draft—and they’re all fitting. Getting that very first attempt of the story living in your head down on paper can be so challenging because we writers want to get it “right” right away. Sadly, that’s not how crafting masterpieces generally works. It’s messy, it’s "wrong", it’s guesswork piled on a dozen or more shots in the dark. And that’s okay. I like to think of Draft One like a bad 90’s road trip flick, maybe you’ve got a map (howdy, planners), maybe you don’t (howdy, pantsters), but most likely you have a final destination in mind and a few sights you’d like to visit along the way. Great. That’s plenty. Get going, enjoy the journey, and let it take the time it needs. My first first draft took about a year to complete (and it looks nothing like the current version), but I learned so much from going the “wrong” way. Never fear a detour.
Edits pt.1 - Make a Plan
So, draft one is done! Congrats! But, if you’re human, it’s likely riddled with holes and inconsistencies. All good, you went on your road trip, it was an awesome adventure, and now that you’ve taken some time to rest (yes, you and your story need rest), you have a map, a bunch of memories, and maybe an idea of how you’d do it differently if you were to repeat the process. And you will be repeating the process, several times over. So, buckle up, buttercup!
There are a lot of editing “how tos” out there, but over the years and across the manuscripts, I’ve learned no two projects require the exact same editing approach. Some stories will have great plot structure from the get go but an underdeveloped cast. Others will have characters that jump off the page but don’t know what the heck to do once they’re set free. As such, when you’re turning Draft One into Draft Two, or Two into Three, etc., etc., you want to have an editing goal in mind. If you try to do it all—fix characters, fix plot, fix sentence structure—you’re going to spend a lot of time tweaking things that may get chopped two-three drafts down the line.
Usually, in the first few rounds of edits, I like to focus on big picture items. Maybe that’s character arc—is my main character operating in agreement with their goals at any given time throughout the story? Maybe it’s world-building*—do the parameters of the world I’ve created make sense and remain consistent? Whatever it is, let that be the focus for this edit.
*Not just for SF/F writers, whether on a world-hopping spaceship or on good ol’ planet Earth, if it takes twenty minutes to get from point A to point B, then it always takes twenty minutes to get from point A to point B (time travel, looping, jumping, etc. notwithstanding).
Edits pt.2 - Execute the Plan
Once you’ve got your editing goal locked in, it’s time to do the work—break the story into pieces and put it back together again. I start this process by creating chapter summaries of the old draft, noting what’s working and what isn’t, then planning changes that align with my new draft goal. Up to you how you do this, but I like to make a spreadsheet with columns labeled: Old Draft Chapter Summaries, Proposed Changes, New Draft Chapter Summaries (fill in as you write). Fun fact, I do this for every single draft. Keeping track of the changes you make along the way can save Future You a lot of hurt. You never know, Draft Six might need something you ditched back in Draft Three…or was it Four?
Now that you’ve planned the changes from start to finish, reworking the draft is just a matter of applying those changes to the document. Of course, that’s way easier said than done. And, chances are, you’ll hit a few bumps in the road. But have no fear. If you’re turning Draft One into Draft Two, you’re not aiming for perfection; you’re aiming to see through on your goal.
Review? Revise? Rewrite? - Give Your Story the Work it Deserves
There are certain questions that turn every writer’s stomach: How many drafts is too many drafts? Too few? How do I know when I’m done? At some point, maybe two drafts in, maybe five drafts in, you’ll want to invite others into your writing process because being your own objective reader is really tough. Welcome beta readers, critique partners, editors, and the like!
Now, I’ve gone about the whole reader-feedback thing every which way. I’ve had friends read to give me a vibe check, I’ve had beta reader’s read to look for plot holes, I’ve had writers (critique partners, editors [hey, Erin!], and even literary agents) read to give me constructive criticism. Work with what you’ve got. When I was a baby writer, I didn’t know any other writers. My first readers were my spouse and my auntie (a million thanks to them). Pssst: even non-readers/writers can have really great ideas! Now I’ve got a few trustworthy writing buddies who I go to, probably too often, all panicked and flustered because one stupid plot point just won’t fit into the damn narrative.
Long story short, take whatever feedback you can get. Sit with it. Cry with it. Let it inspire you. Let it break you. Then ditch the bits that don’t resonate, wrestle tirelessly with those that do, and, if you think your project needs another round of edits, do the work.
There’s no magic number of drafts. No magic number of beta readers. Nobody but you knows when your story is done. Do you love it? Is it bullet-proof? Does it convey the message you so badly wanted to share when you started writing? Would you feel confident handing over any chapter, any scene, any sentence to your favorite author?
If the answer is yes, I’d say you’re done editing. Congratulations! What a feat.
If the answer is no, don’t get down on yourself. Ask yourself why? What’s not working?
Many a-time I’ve gotten to the end of a draft and thought, Holy Crapoli! It’s done! I’m a genius! Then I hand it off to another reader, let my brain rest, and maybe they notice—or I do—that Chapter 11 isn’t landing the way I want it to or that my main character’s motivation in the first half of the book is a little wishy-washy.
Sometimes the fixes required are small, a tweak here, an adjustment there. Maybe Draft 8 becomes Draft 8.5 because it was so close to being just right. But sometimes the fixes required are big. Maybe you need to go back to “making an editing plan” and “executing” it. Maybe you need to rewrite fifty, sixty, ninety percent of the story?
If your heart just sucker punched your gut, I FEEL YOU. I have been there. It sucks. The voices in your head are questioning whether or not your story’s even fixable, whether or not you’re capable of fixing it. It is. You are. So long as you want the story to exist—and exist really effing well—more than you don’t want the story to exist, keep going.
Rewrite it. Edit it again. Get more feedback. Make it all that you want it to be.
Final Touches - Polish Her Up and Send Her On Her Way
It takes a loooong time for most writers to get to the polishing phase. Hell, I’ve polished only to go back, do a rewrite, and watch half of those lovely polished pieces slip down the drain. But, let’s say you’ve nailed down your story, your characters, and everything from your plot to your prose is just working—cue the hallelujah chorus—now it’s time to proofread and, depending on what you hope to do with your novel, share that baby with the world.
How you do that is entirely up to you. I’m not going to deep dive into publishing options here (though you can!), but if you’re planning to self publish, you’ll likely want to invest in an editor or two or three (developmental, line, copy, depending on your needs, budget, goals, etc.) to make sure your manuscript is as close to perfect as possible before publishing. If you hope to publish traditionally, you’re likely ready to start querying your manuscript.
Some trad folks, depending on how much they’re able/willing/wanting to spend, may invest in an editor prior to querying to help with any stage of the writing process, but doing so isn’t necessary or expected by literary agents. I had the great fortune of getting to work with Erin, along with several other wonderful critique partners over the years, to clean up my manuscript and get it query-ready. Wish me luck as I deep dive into the query trenches.
Closing Remarks
The writing process isn’t linear, there is no perfect path from where you started to where you want to be. You will learn and keep learning as you go, take wrong turns here and there—some will be great, some will dead end—you might even get a flat tire or two. Remember that crummy road trip metaphor I introduced back in paragraph one then neglected for two pages? Well, I’m bringing it back. Long drives are more fun with others. Meet people along the way! Give someone a ride! There is no need to go this journey alone. Writing can be so hard, so spirit-crushing sometimes, having a community of others going that road with you makes it way more fun when you’re riding high and way more manageable when you run out of gas.
Bio
Rain’s a sci-fi/fantasy girlie with a bit of a dark, thrillery edge. Her short stories Luck and Other Things, Digger, and The Girl Behind the Glass can be read in Elegant Literature Magazine’s May, June, and September 2023 issues, respectively, or on her website: RainSullivanWrites.com.
Currently, she’s juggling a few novels, all SF/F adult with punchy prose, shocker, one of which she’s hoping to query soon. In her spare time (phrase used lightly), she enjoys backpacking through the Olympic Peninsula with her partner and occasionally dashing into the Pacific Ocean despite it being viciously cold in Washington State. Her academic background is in biology, and she works in physical therapy. Fun fact: she was a gymnast for sixteen years and can still do a backflip, but not on a balance beam because ahhhhh!
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