6 Ways to Approach Your Edits With Objectivity

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You wrote a novel! Now what? NaNoWriMo’s “Now What?” Months are here—this January and February, we’ll be helping you guide your novel through the revision and publishing process. Today, literary agent and editor Elizabeth Kracht shares her wisdom about tackling the edits on your novel:

Objectivity is one of the most difficult things for writers to apply when it comes to editing their own work. As an agent and freelance editor—having helped develop hundreds of manuscripts, and having read many more—I’ve seen the subtlest of problems become the difference between a manuscript ready for traditional publishing and one that is not. Here are 6 tips from the agent/editor perspective to help you think about your work with objectivity as you approach your revision:

1. Structure

Think of the structure of your novel as a road map for the reader. A disorganized structure can add confusion for the reader. I rarely see “parts” work in a manuscript. If you have alternating POV chapters, make sure they’re evenly alternating or repeating systematically (one to one, three to one). Make sure your chapter lengths are fairly even—twelve to fifteen pages, longer if literary. Pay attention to how you use breaks within chapters, and be consistent.

2. Themes

Agents and editors are looking for rich and layered projects. One way to add layering to your manuscript is to think about what three or four themes your project addresses—what are your characters struggling with? Take the time to write the themes down. When you’ve finished your revision take a look at each chapter and note what one or two themes you’re addressing in each chapter. If you can’t identify a theme being addressed, find the opportunities in each chapter to bring them in or build them.  Themes can also help bring the internal nature of your characters to life.

3. Chapter Arc

Approach your chapters like standalone short stories. Too often the chapters I see don’t have enough happening in them to warrant a full chapter. I often suggest authors compound and edit down chapters so they have rich and layered chapters. Strive for chapters that have the feel of a beginning, middle, and end. What three things in each chapter are driving the story and characters forward (themes, plot points, important clues…)?

4. Timekeeping 

Think about time in your novel and remember the reader can make logical jumps in time without you (the author—or narrator) having to account for or mention time as having passed. Don’t indulge the feeling that you need to account for every movement of your characters’ time. You can end your chapter in one place and jump ahead further into the story as you start the next chapter. Remove all unnecessary time-related language such as then, suddenly, after awhile, a few minutes later, a month passed…

5. Overwriting

Live by the rule “less is more” when it comes to description—whether about setting, your characters’ appearance, your main characters’ internal thoughts… When you load your sentences down with a lot of description it not only slows the reader down, but also the pacing. It shouldn’t take three pages for your character to cross the room. Be economic with your words, but also make them count. And strike an even balance between your characters’ internal and external worlds.

6. Characters

Avoid introducing too many characters at once, but do be sure to introduce your main players in the first couple chapters. Don’t spend too much time on characters we’ll never see again (unless you’re George R. R. Martin). Make sure developed characters string through to the end, and that most of your primary and secondary characters have character arcs, goals, and plans of their own. Most important, be sure to develop the internal/emotional world of your characters. And last, avoid clichéd, stereotypical, and caricature-like characters; think outside the cultural norm.

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Elizabeth K. Kracht is a literary agent with Kimberley Cameron & Associates and a freelance editor. Visit her website at www.elizabethkracht.com or www.kimberleycameron.com.

Top photo by Flickr user Cliff.

Jan. 9 2017
#nanowrimo #now what #by oll guest #Elizabeth K. Kracht #writing #editing
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