A List of Editing Resources for Editing your own Work
I personally have found editing a challenge. I’ve tried tinkering, to full manuscript rewrites and have found it frustrating trying to determine if I’m improving the story or making things worse. These are the editing resources provide methods for editing and the criteria by which you should be judging your writing.
Structural / Developmental Editing
Story Grid: What Good Editors Know by Shawn Coyne
Shawn Coyne is a seasoned editor who has worked with the big-five publishing houses. The method described in this book was his way of evaluating manuscripts and providing constructive and practical feedback to the authors he worked with. I have been obsessed with both the book and the podcast of the same name.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25455700-the-story-grid
https://storygrid.simplecast.fm/
Bell gives you great checklists for editing your writing. I found the way breakdown of the process of editing into the Macro and Micro particularly helpful. The Micro section of her book would probably be better classified as Line/Copy editing while the Macro section focuses on the larger structural elements.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1791971.The_Artful_Edit
Line Editing / Copy Editing
One thing I’ve learned is it is always best to read your writing out loud, preferably to another person. Reading out loud will very clearly highlight awkward phrasing, and your audience’s wandering attention spans will tell you when you’ve gone off in the weeds. If you don’t have a ready and obliging soul willing to do this for you, you can always record yourself reading and then listen to the recording (warning, this can be excruciating).
The Copyeditor’s Handbook: A guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications by Amy Einsohn
There was a brief time when I thought I wanted to apply for a copy editing job. I bought this book in preparation. It is a thorough resource with examples, exercises, and answer keys. If you want a comprehensive resource with a glossary of editing symbols this is a good book. I do have to say that I did not end up applying for that job.
Check out the Writing Resources page for works on how to improve your story structure and craft
Photo by Kelli McClintock on Unsplash