I just typed the last word of my novel's first draft. Many have gone before me, and probably done better, but many times I doubted I could get even this far.
I'm sharing this here because many here have helped, directly and indirectly over the last 6 months, plus folks here can appreciate it more than most.
Whoo-hoo.
Now, anyone have words of wisdom for the rewriting/revision process?
quote:
Now, anyone have words of wisdom for the rewriting/revision process
Let it sit for a few days. Go write a short story or two, then come back to it and give it a once-over. Here, you're not looking to revise so much as simply make corrections. Guaranteed, you have spelling errors, grammar errors, typos, places where you got distracted and have a sentence that doesn't make sense--that sort of thing. Go fix those, then give the novel to your first reader.
quote:
Now, anyone have words of wisdom for the rewriting/revision process?
Congratulations on finishing your first draft! I'm currently finishing up revisions on my novel, myself, so I'll tell you what I'm doing.
Unlike Spaceman and several others on here, I don't think that 'revision' is a bad word. I give my first draft a thorough going-through before asking for readers/critiquers. I feel like asking critiquers to read a first draft of a story or one that was only briefly self-edited shows an astonishing amount of disrespect and laziness. It'd be like I was saying, "Your time is less valuable than mine and I just can't be bothered to make this story the best I can, so I'll let you do it for me." However, once I've done my best a revisions, then I think that getting a critique is a great was to improve my writing and will help point my blind spots out.
So, unless you got an A+ on grammar in your English courses, I'd recommend reading through a good grammar book before starting on revisions. (I did get an A+, and I still do this.) Several published authors once told me--and I agree--that nothing detracts from the story you're trying to tell like incorrect grammar. Also, I've heard that agents and editors aren't impressed by poor spelling and grammar and will often dump your manuscript because of it even if the story shows promise in other ways.
Also, while you're revising, try to make sure that everything is consistent within your story, especially if you changed something later as you wrote. Look for accuracy. For example, if you don't know how to apply first aid to a wound but you write in detail about one of the main characters doing just that, then research how it would really be done. Getting the details right is one of the differences between a reader saying, "That was a fun romp in fantasy land" or "Wow, I'm sure this really happened somewhere!" Also, reading every word of your manuscript out loud is a great way to identify repetitive words and awkward sentences. Good luck on revisions.
Or so is my attitude.
I can only imagine.... 
(I do finish things... I've sold 32 'specialty' short stories... I'm just newer in terms of writing novels.) Anyway, based on my experience with shorter works and what I've read and heard from others, a 'cooling off' period is a good thing before you plunge into revisions. While your manuscript is chilling, you could use the time to read Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Browne and King if you haven't already read it. There are tons of good advice in that slim little volume. If (heaven forbid) I were only able to have one writing book, that would be the book. I also recommend How to Grow a Novel and Stein on Writing, both by Sol Stein, and Donald Maas's Writing the Breakout Novel. All of those books have much good advice to help you in your revision. The advice to get hold of a grammar book if there are any points of construction and punctuation that you are not already sure of is excellent advice as well.
Beyond that, one area to look at involves resisting the urge to explain things to your reader (often abbreviated by editors as R.U.E.). If you hit spots where it seems as if you are explaining something to your readers, look for a way that the story can show them instead of you having to explain it.
Redundancies are another big area of revision, not just finding the little redundancies (like, say, overuse of a particular word in a given paragraph), but the big redundancies, that will make your readers feel as if you don't trust their intelligence because you are telling them the same thing over and over. Let's say your character has a phobia about dogs, due to an unpleasant childhood experience. You might mention the origins of the phobia (or, better yet, the character might), but if every time the character has a dog experience you explain the whole origin again—or the character does—that would be an example of a gross redundancy.
Checking to make sure you have plenty of "conflict" (a poorly used word that can include various complications that may or may not be what one might think of as direct 'conflict') is also very important. The modern tendency is to demand it in just about every paragraph, though personally I sometimes find books that push that hard very tiring to read. You do need lots of it though, if you want to sell your novel. You might make a list of scenes or chapters and rate each one for amount of conflict, and get rid of or rework any that are weak in that department.
I think there may be a section on revision on Holly Lisle's website that might be worth checking out, but be warned, she is merciless on the rewrites when it comes to eliminating anything that doesn't reek of conflict. (As a result, her books are very tight and compelling, but 'relax with a good book' isn't exactly what I do when I read Holly Lisle )
In terms of asking for crits, I'm with DebbieKW. I don't see any point in putting something up for a critique until I've done everything I can think of to make it better myself. For me (please note I said "for me"), it would be unfair and lazy to ask someone else to do work I can do myself.
Argh. I've got to get layered up to go out and prune fruit trees because my helper will be here soon. Hope some of this helps, and best of luck as you head on into revision.
Best Regards,
SharonID
Let it cool off for a while before revisions. Many writers advise to write something new and different for a couple of weeks to a month. This is for two reasons: One is that it gets your mind out of redundant thought patterns; Two is that you will be able to read it more like a reader, with new eyes, than the self-critical writer.
[This message has been edited by InarticulateBabbler (edited March 05, 2007).]
I look forward to saying it again.
Congrats to you for getting there!!
Karen (new here)
For the sake of my sanity, I'm going to set it aside for a month or so, with the hopes of getting a frresher perspective.
During that time I hope to get three or four short stories out (including the rewrite challenge), so I won't be idle.
I've wrestled with when to get it out for people to look at. People have differing opinions but I can't shuck the feeling that it needs one good overhaul to tighten it up (ended up at 137,400 words) and connect all the plot threads properly. While I wrote I made a concerted effort to never go back and fix things (if I had, I'd probably have beaten the life out of it before reaching the end and never finished). So it's not that I don't value outside perspective, it's just not the right time. I see it as holding a housewarming party while the structure is still being built.
Thanks again, all!
[This message has been edited by dee_boncci (edited March 07, 2007).]