Congratulations on having a finished draft of your manuscript. The next step is editing the manuscript to the best of your abilities before you hand it off to a crit partner or editor. This is the essential checklist to get you started.
Search for an unpack the following words: Thinks, Knows, Understands, Realizes, Believes, Wants, Remembers, Imagines, Desires, Loves, Hates
Ninety percent of the time there is a better way to say this. If it’s in dialog it’s probably okay. If it’s outside the quotation marks try a rewrite.
Weak words to consider changing (acceptable occasionally and in dialog): about, actually, almost, like, appears, approximately, basically, close to, even, eventually, exactly, finally, just, just then, kind of, nearly, practically, really, seems, simply, somehow, somewhat, sort of, suddenly, that, truly, utterly, were.
What is the main plot?
- Is it in every chapter?
- Is it resolved fully?
- Is it emotionally fulfilling?
- Is it fully described?
What are the minor plots?
- Is there one in every chapter?
- Is each subplot fully resolved?
- Does each subplot add layers to the main plot?
- Which subplots fulfill each of these emotional needs…
- ~Wanted
- ~ Anger
- ~ Love
- ~Justice/Injustice
- ~To be unique/special
- Does each subplot hit an emotional high and an emotional low?
- What repeating themes were used?
What is your theme?
Did you touch on the theme in every scene?
Change Points?
Does every scene have something that changes (location, mood, status, information). If any scenes do not have a change point, cut them.
Does every chapter end in a hook?
A hook is something that makes the reader turn the page. It could be the big reveal. It could be you end with a question. It could be the character is falling asleep and their phone rings. Whatever it is, make sure the chapters end in a way that the reader will want to turn the page.
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