Sometimes I get so caught up in the details of a particular scene, or involved with developing one character, that I lose sight of the big picture.
Losing My Perspective
This is especially frustrating when writing the first draft since events later on may change portions of what I’ve already written. It’s tempting to go back and revise earlier chapters or scenes to take into account things that happen later, but in most cases this isn’t the best approach for a first draft. You can lose momentum, or you may come up with an idea you like better later down the line–meaning you have to revise the beginning yet again. One way to minimize this problem is to put off the editing process until the entire story is down on paper.
Get the bare bones of the story down before you start editing, then set it aside for a while. When you go back to it, you’ll be able to read it more objectively and clearly see errors or plot holes in what you’ve written. Knowing how everything fits together will help you layer in details, foreshadow events, leave clues, develop subplots, and clarify what’s going on.
The Big Picture
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Do you wait until the first draft is complete to make major revisions, or revise as you go? How do you keep track of things that you change later in the story, such as details about the backstory, or name changes? At what point do you start checking the grammar and punctuation?
Thanks for the great advice Carol. Loved the pictures.
Grammar and punctuation are the very last thing I check. With everything else I tend to revise as I go and then revise again when I’m finished. It’s a never ending process
Glad you like the post, Elizabeth.
It’s hard to know when we’ve done the best we can do. Sometimes we just have to say “The End.”
The two photos are perfect for your post! Your words make sense to me. I am sure you are right.
I edited as I went along in my first draft, but not obsessively. I had no clue that the first draft was the easy part. After countless revisions from beginning to end, I think I am finished, but only I have read it. I know every detail by heart, so it’s difficult for me to be objective even when it sits a long while.
Thank you for a post that may spur me into starting that, oh please, LAST walk through before query.
Thanks, Carol Ann.
Best wishes on that final walk-through! I know it’s hard for those of us without critique groups to find people to read manuscripts before we send them out. This is a busy time for me so I couldn’t review the whole thing, but I’d be willing to read through the first couple of chapters if you’d like a little objective feedback. If you’re interested, just email me and say what you’d like comments on.
I revise as I go and sometimes it can get confusing, especially if a story jumps back and forth in time. I’ve been struggling with my current WIP a bit because I have so many scenes written but haven’t decided where some of them should go. The good news is, I’m figuring it out. It just takes time.
Laura, congrats on figuring out the sequence of events problem! I change scenes around and then forget where I put them. As you say, it’s very time consuming to straighten things out.
When writing the first draft my goal is always to get the whole story down on paper first. I leave off revision and editing until later, when I can come back to the completed manuscript and be objective.
Otherwise it’s too frustrating with trying to cope with all the minor detail changes that need to be made mid-manuscript. It’s not efficient either and wastes a lot more time.
Jai
I like your method, Jai.
I don’t sweat grammar and such until much later. I write “balls out” as my husband lewdly says. ^_^ I bust out a draft as fast as I can and then revise revise revise.
I try not to think about grammar until I officially start revising, but sometimes the obsessive need to spell things correctly slows me down.
I love your photos… they’d make a great POV example, too.
I dash through a first draft, rarely going back to make any major changes but fixing minor things that would bug me if I left them… spelling, grammar, time lapses, multiple POV, etc. When I’m done I usually print out the draft and read through with a red pen in hand, marking plot problems and making notes.
My first major revision includes any major scene changes, inconsistencies, etc., and adds description and details. The next revision tidies up smaller things… mistakes that were created by the revising, things I missed the first time. And all subsequent revisions are word-tweaking… finding better ways to say things. That stage seems to go on forever!
I keep a spreadsheet of scenes and of details that I could easily lose track of. If I decide to change a name or eye colour, for example, I use Word’s ‘Find & Replace All’ feature, and make sure I also update my spreadsheet.
At least, that’s the theory of how I do it! I don’t consciously follow a set pattern and in retrospect I think it varies from book to book.
Carol, your “theory” makes sense. Thanks for sharing the steps you follow.
When I type my first drafts, I tend to make minor revisions as I go. It is easier for me to correct spelling and typos on the computer screen as I go. Then when I have finished a chapter or a first draft of a short story, I print a copy and do a more detailed revision for grammar and punctuation. Also I reread the draft for clarity. I make notes about changes I have made in my drafts on a notepad and keep them for reference when needed during the revision process.
Hi, Katrina. You sound very organized!
I correct spelling and some grammar issues as I go, too, as I’m afraid I won’t notice them later. I tend to lose notepads, so I’ve been making notes in yWriter5 to keep track of changes. It’s also a handy tool to keep track of my progress and view chapter summaries–which means I don’t have to keep re-reading what I’ve written to know where I’m at in the story.
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