From First Draft to Delivery

85,000 words is a lot to edit!

Editing a novel for publication is much like the birth process—emotionally intense and at times, physically exhausting. By July 4, 2000, I had “finished” my novel and with tremendous satisfaction and joy, delivered it to my first editor. The word “finished” is in quotes because I truly had no idea I’d be spending five more years rewriting and editing the manuscript.

Only a few problems in this early edit.

It took that editor six months to return it. Why? Let’s see. Oh yeah, Covid, which upended his career at UW-Madison. Like everyone, I had other things to worry about rather than getting my manuscript back. But once I did, the realization set in that I had a lot more work to do. There were too many characters, not enough emotion, and a protagonist with the depth of a cardboard cutout. Ouch!

In 2017, during “Write by the Lake,” a seminar at UW, the instructor recommended mapping out the characters’ personalities using enneagrams and worksheets, from their mannerisms to their beliefs, to the way they dressed and their backstories. At the time, I thought “That’s ridiculous. I know who my characters are.” I was what’s called a “pantser," the opposite of a “plotter,” writing by the seat of my pants.

Since then, I have read through and edited my novel over a hundred times. At one point, I thought it was finished (again) and spent a month plugging each chapter into ProWritingAid, a program that identifies grammar issues and points out redundant language and a lot more. When my query letters fell on deaf ears, all that work felt like a huge mistake—the manuscript was still not ready. But I sure learned a lot about grammar and redundancy!

With each batch of rejections from literary agents, I studied books on storytelling and writing, each time going through the manuscript and applying the new knowledge. I hired a second editor. This time the manuscript was polished enough for her to focus on story, not triage.

In short, I accidentally earned the equivalent of a masters degree in novel writing. Luckily, the novel was picked up by Fresh Water Press, and after a few months of more developmental and copy edits, it was published!

Radio Storm, the sequel to Radio Starr, has been a different experience. Armed with new skills, I planned character arcs, chose a theme, and outlined the plot before starting to write. Turns out this is much easier and more fun than chaos.

Elizabeth Gilbert expresses how the editing process can go on forever:

From Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear
“I could sit down with you right now and go through each of my books, page by page, and tell you everything that’s wrong with them. . . But now that work was finished, and it was time for me to shift my attention to something new—something that would also, someday, be released as good enough.”

I’m close to finishing the first draft of Radio Storm. Let the editing begin!