Ive got a mini-door stop, now how do I revise it?
Definitely, definitely put it aside for a little while. It gives you time to breathe, but it also gives you time to think. The further away you get, the more likely you are to get those staircase wit moments- fortunately, a month after the fact is not too late when it comes to revising a novel. On top of that, before you revise, go back and read the whole thing. You may have written it, but you haven’t read it. Things that you had in your head when you were crafting the story may have never made it to the page; necessary things may be part of the experience of the novel to you, but may be missing from your exposition. Go back and read it, and make sure that everything you think you said, you actually said. Then fix the places where you didn’t- there will be plenty of them. Finally, you do need someone else to read it. Preferably, not someone who loves you and doesn’t want to hurt your feelings. (Likewise, not someone who wants to hate you and longs to destroy you.) Ask them to be compl
What I did: went back to it, redpenned a chapter, but then, rather than make changes in my existing file, I typed the whole chapter in again, revising as I went. Some author, I’ve forgotten who (possibly Beryl Bainbridge) writes a whole first draft on her computer, prints out a full hard copy (or maybe two, to be on the safe side) then deletes the computer file, so all she’s left with is the hard copy. She then laboriously re-types the whole thing, editing as she goes. If you’re brave enough, I think this is a great way to work. It means you’re still in writing, rather than editing mode, so are still riding that wave of inspiration.
First off, sit back, relax congratulate and reward yourself in whatever manner you see fit. Writing out a novel length work is an achievement in itself and just getting to the end is something that the vast majority of people starting a novel will never do. Now the fun starts. I would second putting it in a bottom draw for a while – you really do need to look at it with fresh eyes. And also getting someone else to look at it with critical but not over-critical eyes (though finding a good second reader is hard), then take on board anything they say that gels with you. If you don’t like it, remember it’s a golden rule that first drafts are allowed to be rubbish, and you get the good stuff out by re-writing. And it sometimes takes a lot of re-writing. I’ve heard of 30+ times in some cases (Dean Kootz?). Every writer writes in their own way, and you have to find that way yourself, unfortunately. (Like I tend to edit/revise as I go, but that’s no help to you). Saying that you might find
Congrats. When I wrote my first novel, I had one of my good friends / fellow English majors take a look at it and start to make global changes. I made those, and red-penned it myself. Then I had him red-pen it and go over the nitty-gritty stuff. Then I did a final re-read. One thing that may help: in Word, do a find-replace on each of your main characters’ names and change them to something completely different. Makes things seem a little less familiar and fresher, since it breaks up the narrative in your head that you had when you were writing it in the first place. Good luck. The editing bit is tough.
