How to Keep an Edit Notebook
In my How to Edit a First Draft post, I mentioned something I call an edit notebook. Edit notebooks help you figure out what level of revisions your WIP requires, and exactly what is wrong with your manuscript. I use a 3-subject notebook per project, and a section per draft. An edit notebook is composed of a few parts:
1. Chapter-By-Chapter Notes
this is where you read through your manuscript and take notes on scenes
you usually want to note what happens in the chapter, how well it is written, and whether or not it is relevant to the plot
these also happen while you’re reading over your WIP
I usually made them in-between sections of chapters, but some I made while reading
these include things you’d like to add/change/remove from the plot
3. Analysis (Note: This is the most important part! The whole point of an edit notebook is to figure out how much editing you actually have to do. I sort these into different “levels.”)
Novel-Level: If all your notes say “delete scene,” “scrap,” “poorly written,” “unecessary” etc., then you’re probably looking at a full-on rewrite. Pull on your big-boy pants, grab a cup of coffee, and start re-plotting.
Chapter-Level: If your notes are less about how bad the plot is and more about how bad the writing quality is, then your revisions should focus more on pacing, the order of your scenes, point of view, and rewriting/recrafting scenes to make them better.
Line-Level: If the plot is flawless, there aren’t any plot holes or dull moments to be accounted for, just grammar/sentence structure problems, then this is when you print out your novel and go through it with a red pen.
Of course, there are steps in-between, and sometimes you’ll spend several drafts in one level. But in general, this is what you should be looking for!
4. Redrafting (Especially important when making novel-level edits, which is probably what you’re dealing with when you have a first draft)
list possible scene ideas, brainstorm
try to write out your new plot, or at least the “tentpole” moments (the important events)
from there, fill in what goes in-between the major events
remember, you can’t really know if it works or not until you actually write it!
I like to make a summary sheet (below the cut), which ideally includes your major plot points, major flashbacks, subplots, symbols, conflicts, resolutions, and the story arc (as well as anything else you want to keep track of)
plot out timelines/arcs for characters
basically do whatever you would normally do before you begin writing something new. Except, this isn’t new! You know what you’re doing and where you’re going this time. You got this.
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