My Editing Process

After I type those wonderful words, “the end,” the biggest part (and probably the most important part) of my writing process begins. The editing and revising parts are key to creating a good book. Agents and publishers are looking for manuscripts that are well polished. This is the process that works for me.

• When I finish the first draft of the manuscript, I read through it two, three, or maybe four times from beginning to end to make sure my word count is on target. I also want to make sure that I didn’t leave any plotholes, things that are not plausible, and clues or situations that are not completely explained.

  • This is also where I check for boo boos like she had lunch twice on the same day or her boyfriend’s eye color changed midway through the book.

  • One of my series has Jules as the sleuth, and another has Jade. I always have to check to make sure the gals are in the right book. I also have to make sure that the place names are also in the correct series.

  • If I change any character names, I have to make sure that I changed it everywhere.

• After every major revision, I run a spellcheck and a grammar check to make sure I didn’t create any other issues.

  • I also have a list of my over-used words and phrases that I go through and correct.

• Then I send the manuscript to beta readers and my critique group. When the comments come back, I review and make another round of edits.

• If my agent is querying this manuscript, then I send it to her, and her team reads it and provides feedback. (Another round of revising)

• About six months before the book is due, I do one or two more rereads to make sure I didn’t miss anything.

• Then about a month before the deadline, I do one more last read before sending it to the publisher.

This is the process that works for me. I used to hire an independent editor for an early review and feedback, but I usually only do that now for a new series.

My editing buddies through the years (Riley, Disney, and Cooper).