This is really helpful, especially the transitional scenes. I do my own developmental editing as well as coaching writers with theirs so it’s always good to improve one’s skills
"So if you clicked on this video about revision, then you probably just finished your novel and you're wondering what to do." Me, still in the outlining phase 👀 All jokes aside, I really love your tips. Especially the "take your time developmental editing" was really reassuring. I'm actually re-outlining for a series I already drafted, and it feels like it's taking forever. But I always find myself yearning for a different part of the process; when I'm outlining, I wish I was writing. When I'm writing, I wish I was outlining or revising. So now i'm trying to embrace the stage I'm currently in and enjoy the process.
LOL it's never too early to think about revision ;) thank you so much!! i totally understand feeling sick of a certain stage of the process and yearning for another, and you're so right that it's important to enjoy the process, wherever you're at in it!! best of luck with outlining!
These tips are so wonderful!! will be looking more closely at my transitional scenes from now on ‼️i too get so hung up on line edits in both my first and second drafts LOL :’) as always your setup is SO pretty and calming and ty for posting this
ok i got excited and commented before watching the video but these are really really good tips omg. especially the “write a short story” thing !!! this is my favourite exercise to do between drafts and HIGHLY recommend. the dopamine is writing a whole story arc in 5k-ish words and feeling that sense of accomplishment is so good. i like that you mention transitional scenes too bc i have a ton of dead weight in my first drafts. recently i cut almost 10k words JUST from line editing out long descriptions and transitions !!
ahh thank you kris, i'm so glad you think so!! THAT DOPAMINE RUSH... it hits so good. sometimes i churn out a story in a day just to feel alive yep i'm just starting to really think about my transitional scenes more, some of my earlier novels are SO cringey because there would be whole moments of just... voyaging or walking... embarrassing af. 10K IS SO IMPRESSIVE btw!! ty for watching!!
What a great video!! I remember when I revised my first book, I had *no* idea what to do. I was so scared about pursuing my second draft because I knew I had to do so much surgery on the book. Just as I started, I ended up spilling water on my laptop and destroyed my local files LOL but I literally wasn't even mad I lost that second draft because I knew it was so poor LMAO. The chapter-by-chapter summary is SO helpful and I really recommend every writer do this step. Thanks for this video
aw thank you so much kelley!! it can be SO overwhelming to have to fix the meat of your story. if i lost my local files i would freak out dlkfjadf i'm glad it turned out ok!! omg i also struggle with that. pdf method definitely does wonders to stave off my impulses lol
Oh, wow! All of this is so wonderful! I love the advice about taking a break from a current project (however long you need) and writing a short story! It’s been awhile since I’ve written short fiction (I think the last time I worked on short fiction was when I had to add a scene to my story in BEING ACE before it was published). I did write a lot of short fiction in 2022, so I didn’t write as much this year. Hardly anything. I really wanted to focus on novels and my TV pilots this year. I also love what you said about focusing on developmental edits and waiting on line/copy edits for future drafts. I only do line/copy edits for earlier drafts if I’m submitting to a grant or contest, but I also want to write the draft all the way through. So many wonderful gems about writing in here! Thanks for sharing! I may contact you re: your podcast! 🥰💜
Lynn I absolutely adored this video !! So many good tips, taking notes lol 📝 also really resonated with what you said about reading with an analytical eye to see what works and what doesn’t in books, that’s been such a game changer for me. also love the setup w the sunset lamp so cute :)
Wow, will be checking out your writing podcast. Will you post the entire discussion with your guests? I live for long-form podcasts I can put on over cleaning!
thank you, i love the long-form podcasts too!! i post almost the entire discussion, i just cut out moments of dead air or things the guest or i feel uncomfortable sharing
Your videos are always so helpful! Thank you for posting this. I’m about to jump into editing after Nano so this couldn’t have come at a better time! So excited to implement these tips! Also your channel is a gold mine❤🎉
Thanks for the tip on reading the draft in pdf form! Doing this will be invaluable to me. I have yet to make it past the first act without fixing and tweaking every damn thing, when I’m supposed to be reading from start to finish. So thank you for the intervention 😆
I'm going to be jumping into my first revision of my novel soon, so these tips were really helpful! I'm currently reading through the first draft, so now I feel like I'm on the right path ☺
A heads-up, Lynn, that the timestamps are wonky ... they jump the gun on when you actually start to describe a step. On an unrelated note, I hope you're enjoying this weekend. It might be the last warm one (as in above 5 Celsius) that we get until spring.
Thank you for letting me know, it should be fixed by now!! haha where i am it's still very firmly 30C, but I hope you enjoy the weather while it lasts!
Congrats on holding the world record on how fast I was immediately inspired to keep chugging at my first draft- lol All jokes aside, tysm for the awesome tips!
another good vid. looking forward to the editing phase. also really good point about transitional scenes. i’m finding they give me anxiety cuz i worry mine are too boring
