I want to talk a little bit about the little-discussed steps and things that must happen between the moment you add "The End" to your manuscript and when you turn it over to a professional editor.
This phase is called self-editing and/or revision.
Then I want to talk about a writer's homework. This is what I am calling our self-guided and necessary pursuit of improving our craft or at least making the one volume we are writing the best it can be, especially if we intend to be the kind of writers who are also read.
Writing coaches and professional editors and writers often give the necessary and hopefully paralysis-breaking advice to writers: “Sit down and write,” "Get those words on the page," "Just write.” And just writing is sometimes the scariest and toughest part, but then what? We’ve bled all over the page. The words are there. What’s next?
I want to break down for you here what should be happening adjacent to the actual writing process the moment you decide you want to write a book, through the writing process, and before you get ready for outside readings and critiques. Let’s start by taking a quick look at the revision process.
Revising Your Book
When you have finally gotten all the words down into something like a manuscript, you have just completed your first draft or rough draft. It is not ready for publishing, and really, it's not ready for an editor. It is ready for you to step away from it for a time and come back to it and read it again, and maybe again, and maybe again, making sure that every word, sentence, paragraph, illustration, anecdote, statistic, example, argument earns its keep. Scrutinize it. Interrogate it. Grab it by the collar of its shirt and ask it, “Why are you here? What business do you have?” If you can’t effectively advocate for its presence, it needs to go or it needs to be moved to a place where its purpose is more founded. If it isn't directly tying into your themes, cut it. The revision process: don't skip it. I covered this topic in greater detail here.
Your Homework
If you are new to writing altogether and you are taking a stab at a first book, know that you are entering into a world that has some rules that help make a creator's unique contributions palatable and even desirous for a hopefully large group of readers.
Here it is. Here’s what I recommend you do before you think you are all done with your book and before you send it for editing or even a critique:
Research the writing process. Google is your friend: "What is the writing process?" "How to write a book" "What are the steps to writing a great book?"
Research "How to write a memoir," "How to write a nonfiction book," "How to write a novel," "How to write a picture book," "How to write young adult (YA)." Look up tips and advice for how to write the kind of book you are writing. If you don't know what you are writing, look up, "What is a genre?" "What are the different types of books?" So much free and good advice out there. You do not have to go around groping in the dark and feeling so lost and uninformed as you try to get anything on paper.
Read a book on writing, and choose one that discusses the genre you are writing in—memoir, nonfiction, fiction, children's book. You should also choose one on general writing mechanics.
Take a workshop on writing, and then take one that specifically teaches the genre in which you are writing.
Follow professional writers and writing accounts in social media: Jeff Goins, Writer, Jerry B. Jenkins, Jane Friedman, The Creative Penn, Writers Write, Writer's Digest, Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators. (They most likely offer writing workshops or recommend some good ones.)
Join a writers group: FlourishWriters, Hopewriters, Indelible Ink Writers, Pneuma Writers, Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators... I know there are more.
Watch a documentary on a famous writer's life. Actually, watch as many as you can.
Get a subscription to MasterClass and take as many of the writing masterclasses as you can. They are phenomenal.
Research the revision process. Google: "How to revise my book," "How to revise my novel," "How to revise my memoir," "What is the revision process in writing?" (You will also find help with the revision process in the writing books you're going to buy or borrow from the library.)
Read a few books (like, three to five) that have been written on the topic you are writing about. This will give you ideas for what to cover, what you are bringing to the table that's unique, how you could organize your book, and more.
Read the books in your book’s categories that have sold well or have great reviews. Read good books so you know what good writing is. Read good books to expand your vocabulary. Read good books to be inspired.
If you are telling your story, read a couple memoirs talking about similar things you are writing about. Then read a nonfiction book that teaches about what you are writing about. And maybe also read a novel that has a similar theme. Get to know how your topic is being covered in the industry—and the different ways it is being covered. If you haven't heard this before, hear it now, the best writers are ravenous readers.
“Is My Book Ready for a Critique? Is It Ready for an Editor?”
If you have not done any of the ten items I list above—especially numbers 1, 2, 9, 10—you are not ready to send your manuscript to an editor for a critique or for editing. Really, before you send it off to have an editor or someone else critique or begin editing your manuscript, ask yourself:
Do I understand the writing process, and have I employed it?
Do I know and understand the genre I am writing in? Have I stuck to its conventions?
Do I understand the revision or self-editing process, and have I employed it?
Have I read three or more best-selling or highly recommended books written on the same topic as my book?
Have I incorporated the changes to my work that these books inspire?
Even if writing will not be your full-time vocation, you owe it to yourself and your readers (if you want to be read) to do your homework. You do not have to sit in a vacuum and try to pull something from nothing to write a book. Feed your mind, build your knowledge base, and fuel your creativity by learning, watching, and reading all you can on writing and the topic you are writing about. Take writing your book on as a full commitment. It's your life now.
What I’m Learning About Writing from Critiquing Manuscripts
I perform manuscript critiques from time to time, and I can tell when the author has not read much on the topic they are writing about. I can tell that instead of doing their homework and getting their manuscript as good as they can get it, they just put the period after the last word and sent it over to me.
That's OK. I'm here to help, but there are some things I can't do. I can’t be a replacement for the work your piece requires that only you can do as the author. What I do instead is provide the critique and render my comments, mentioning and suggesting some of these homework items I list above.
I understand that new writers and aspiring authors may not know there is homework, especially if they are just coming into even accepting they may have something to write about. I connect with that deeply. There are many things I learned on the fly, as information was not always shared with me, especially as a writer, editor, and agent of color. Oftentimes I still feel like I am on the outside looking in, trying to piece together a network, trying to piece together how things are done. So I share this as one coming alongside you: there are prerequisites to writing a book. There is a learning curve to try to get over—though you never will. None of us will, and this is a good thing. Writers are always learning and growing, always wanting to learn more about one thing or another. We are insatiably curious individuals, signed up for a lifetime of continuing education.
After seeing multiple manuscripts come across my desk with very similar issues, I thought, "You know what? These authors were brave to send me their work to critique. They ought to be proud they finished their book, but I don't think they realize they've only just begun."
New writers, first-time authors, and aspiring authors, you must
Educate yourself.
Read good books.
Revise your first draft, which is your rough draft, and revise it again
Read more good books.
It’s all part of the life you’ve now committed to.
In her MasterClass, Amy Tan said, "I revise about 100 times. For every page you see in my book, you can figure that I have revised it that many times."
And that's Amy Tan, y'all. How much more for me and you?