I've read many articles advising when to submit your work, and its clear that I need to do a couple more drafts of my novel to be confident enough to submit. Even though I'm itching to just do it now...
But from a conference at Bloomsbury I saw that you can buy full manuscript reports from professional editors at £600-£680
That is a lot of money to me, but I have finally saved up. However, now I'm not sure whether I'm at the stage to even show an editor. I've had my manuscript proof read by a lecturer, though I'd still say my novel is only at its 1st or 2nd draft. And I've had feedback from 4 people who have read the book. Should I still be redrafting before paying for a report? Or shall I get it while the book is still this raw?
I would be very thorough and maybe even put the manuscript away for weeks at a time and then go back to it. I only say this because I submitted my first three chapters before I was a100% happy with the rest of the novel and had two agents come back to me that day! I sent the full manuscript to one immediately and it was rejected but I made the other one wait. They are still reading it so I don't know the outcome but I wish I'd have waited now!
Hi, Amy.
Do not be in a hurry to submit your manuscript. It takes many thorough edits to make a manuscript shine. Those who rush to submit in their excitement at crossing the finishing line usually regret it.
Below I have I have written parts of the editing process that a would-be author should consider, however, I'm no expert.
Aspects of Editing
There are many aspects to the editing procedure. It is mind-bendingly hard process with many head-scratching moments. The restructuring, re-writes, cuts and add-ons are very time-consuming, and can take as long, or much longer to complete than a first draft.
In order to save time, the more important aspects should be tackled first. Aspects like grammar and punctuation can wait.
The first thing a would-be author should do is, A Thematic and Structural Edit of their manuscript. Study the themes and endings of each of your chapters and edit them to ensure that the plot and storyline run smoothly.
Chapters should have broad themes and be strong as a unit. Each chapter should be a self-contained water-tight episode that ends with a cliff-hanger, or a hook, that must help to advance the plot and storyline.
Another thing to consider is whether there is too much going on in one or more of your chapters. Are there, ‘diamonds in the dust’, important details that lessen the impact of a chapter’s ending. These details must be cut or placed elsewhere in your novel.
A clue to changing a working chapter title to a final chapter title, is how a chapter ends. Of course, you must be careful not to spill the beans about what happens next, when deciding a chapter title.
Chapter One and the Final Chapter
You should steam in Medias Res in your first chapter. Give the reader a puzzle to solve, something to worry about, something to read on to find out what happens next. It must start on page one, not page 3.
Introduce the main character as early as possible. This can be through a unique voice, a startling action, an inciting incident.
Ground the reader in the setting. The reader needs to know immediately WHEN and WHERE the story is taking place. Specific sensory details (sight, sound, smell, touch, taste) should cue the reader to the exact location, even if you don’t specifically say where we are in the first couple paragraphs.
Many traditional and contemporary novels have failed to be acclaimed simply because of a poor ending. How do we avoid spoiling our novel with a bad ending? In poetry, the last verse of a poem usually refers back to the first verse. A novel is a dramatic poem. The ending should relate to what happens in the exposition. It should reveal how the protagonist has grown. Whether he or she succeeded, partially succeeded, or failed to achieve their aims. In short, the end of a novel Must have conformity with the beginning.
Below is my editing checklist.
Storyline:
Check for Weaknesses and Repetition.
'Shoes and Socks' problems – should information that is revealed to the reader in later chapters be placed much earlier?
Characters:
It is not wise for a would-be author to have to many characters like, Anthony Crossley-Holland. 5 or 6 rounded-characters is best, including the protagonist. Focus the readers like and dislike in your characters.
What is the function of my characters? What specific quality defines each of my characters? Eg: Elianor is sensible, Marianne is over-emotional, Macbeth is ambitious.
Also, race, ethnicity, class, gender, age, sexual orientation, morality, religion, belief system, occupation, wealth, poverty, and environment help to define a character.
Sign-Posting:
No-one knows your story better than you do, but to avoid confusing the reader you must make it clear to the reader where the next part of the story is leading.
Chapters:
Are my working chapter titles suitable?
What is my chapter’s broad theme?
Who or what is each chapter about?
Does my chapter end with a cliff-hanger or hook?
Dialogue:
Make sure that the dialogue between characters is relevant, that it advances the plot and storyline.
Only use stream-of-thought for private, or highly individual experience.
Do not use dialogue or streams-of-thought to explain to the reader what is obvious to the characters. It’s a lazy way to convey information. The reader should be drip-fed information and left to work out what happens next.
Is my dialogue speakable?
Does it make sense when spoken aloud?
Use characters’ streams of thought to let people know their inner world; perhaps reveal things that would not be revealed in any other way.
What did your characters, think, see, hear, smell, taste or feel.
Do my streams-of-thought make sense when spoken aloud?
In short, dialogue keeps the storyline moving, reveals the characters, is believable and interests the readers.
Descriptions:
There should be something filmic on every page. Descriptions should be vivid, but not too long that they kill the pace of the storyline.
Settings:
Settings have to be generally motivated and have a strong purpose.
What is its function?
What role does each setting play in my novel?
Style:
Does my prose flow when spoken aloud. Does it have Pace? Have I written in the active-voice? Writing in the active-voice makes for forcible writing. Passive writing will spell doom for a would-be author. Passive writing should be used sparingly.
I highly recommend that would-be authors download a kindle copy of, The Elements of Style by Strunk jnr. 99p well spent.
Basic Editing Tasks:
Fix clunky and overloaded sentences.
Cut superfluous text - Every-Word-Must-Earn-Its-Keep.
Check Spelling.
Check Grammar.
Check Punctuation.
Famous Author’s Advice
Henry James: Dramatize, dramatize, dramatize. Add as much credible drama and suspense as possible.
Ruth Padell: Show Don’t Tell.
Professor Walter Allen : Settings should be generally motivated.
What is the purpose of the setting?
What is its role in the novel?
Raleigh: Good novelists are great novel readers.
James Patterson: Outline, outline, outline. Plan you novel.
FR and QD Leavis : The Function of characters, their roles in the novel should be made clear.
What is unique to each individual character?
Alain: (French Philosopher) An abstract style is always bad.
George Orwell’s 6 rules for writing
1. Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
2. Never use a long word where a short one will do.
3. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
4. Never use the passive where you can use the active.
5. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
6. Break any of these rules sooner than say anything barbarous.
I hope that helps.
Readers are free to copy my post and edit it to suit themselves.
Good luck.
I feel your pain Amy!
I have just penned my début fantasy novel and I am slowly convincing myself that my writing is utter dross!
I have polished it to a level that I feel I can no longer improve upon, until an industry expert forces me to potentially make further changes, no matter how drastic and seemingly cruel they may seem to be...?
Do I invest in a good editor and take the financial hit? (Aspiring authors are not usually basking in wealth!)
Do I trust in my ability and continue to send to literary agents, also trusting that they expect the writing to be a little 'raw'?
In the end, I suppose it comes down to how much you want it? I thought writing the book was a 'labour' of love, but it seems quite an insignificant hurdle in comparison to the minefield of publication doesn't it!?
I wish you the very best of luck Amy, because quite often, after everything we can do is done, we just need a little luck.
Mark