{"id":246,"date":"2015-12-07T20:26:39","date_gmt":"2015-12-07T09:26:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/eviemcrae.com\/?p=246"},"modified":"2020-12-09T08:43:36","modified_gmt":"2020-12-08T21:43:36","slug":"life-after-the-first-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/butterfly.writefromsource.com\/?p=246","title":{"rendered":"Life after the first draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cHurray\u00a0– I have finally finished the first draft of my first novel\u201d. When I posted this update on Facebook a few months ago, I was overwhelmed with the number of friends that congratulated me on my achievement. I was feeling pretty chuffed with myself as you can imagine. All previous attempts to write a novel seem to fall by the wayside at around 30,000 words, so all things considered 120,000 words was impressive.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A few days later I felt a complete fraud. It was quite apt that I stumbled across this quote.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think it’s fairly common for writers to be afflicted with two simultaneous yet contradictory delusions \u2013 the burning certainty that we’re unique geniuses, and the constant fear that we’re witless frauds who are speeding towards epic failure.\u201d I concur with that statement wholeheartedly. You see the first draft is not the end of the story. Far from it.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

First drafts embody effort and hopes \u2013 dreams and potentials that could be realised \u2013 if you’re willing to put the hard work in. The cold, hard reality is the First Draft <\/span><\/span>never<\/b><\/span><\/span> gets published.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

So what now? Well in simple terms it’s all about making your novel as good as it can possibly be. You’ll notice how easy it was to say \u201cas good as it can possibly be\u201d. Well, I’m here to tell you \u2013 particularly if you have just discovered this post after writing your first draft \u2013 it is a long road ahead. And I mean a long road.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Even assuming you polish your novel until it is positively gleaming, I was reliably informed by a Literary Agent in London that the average novel may be edited up to 12 times.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

If you haven’t realised it by now, I’m not trying to pour cold water on the project \u2013 merely setting expectations. If you’re serious about getting published, you can’t send your baby out into the world half dressed.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Infinity and Beyond…<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Once I committed to the editing process, I was genuinely surprised how much I enjoyed it. It’s early days but here is my advice based on my experiences so far.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

1. Hold it \u2026 hold it<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Initially, I was raring to get my book progressed to the next stage but it is useful to have some breathing space (typos, spelling and punctuation pick-ups aside). Aim to give yourself a week between the end of the first draft and the beginning of the next phase.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

2. Time to wear your editor’s hat<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There are those that just like being writers, but even on the most basic level you need to edit your work before it is sent out into the world. Now is the time to start thinking like an editor \u2013 not a writer.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

3. Print out hard copy<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Do a fly through to pick up obvious typos, gaps or weakness in the content. Scribble away in the margins. You might have more ideas, or change your mind, continuity issues, timelines to check\u2013 that’s OK just right it all down.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

4. Taming the beast<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

I realised very quickly that while 120,000 had an impressive ring to it, publishers aren’t necessarily looking for a novel with such a long word count. From all my research, I deduced that either 80,000 or 100,000 was the word count I should be aiming for. That means I need to cull at least\u00a010% content. Now here’s the thing. What do you cull? Have you ever heard the expression \u201cKill your darlings\u201d? Yup. Every bit as painful as it sounds. But if you want to be a published author and taken seriously \u2013 needs must!<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

What to Cull?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n