The 5 Edits Every Writer Must Make

Tips for Editing Your First Novel

The -LY edit

A Stephen King recommendation (I think), go through your entire novel and replace/remove all words that end in -ly. Readily, sweetly, abruptly, nicely, beautifully.

The End Edit

Look at the last two paragraphs of every chapter. Brutally edit for clarify, for goal. Add cliffhangers.

The B.S. Edit

Back Story — you shouldn’t have very much of it. Go through and put an highlight every paragraph in your book that is backstory. Figure out a way to make 50% (or more!) into dialogue.

Consolidate Characters Edit

We typically have a main character and a cast of secondary characters throughout our book. Do a Find and word count of each character name. If it’s less than 10 throughout your entire book for a secondary character, can you eliminate them? Consolidate several weak characters into one that is more interesting?

The Overuse Edit

There are some words that we just… get attached to… when we write. For me, it’s the word dark. Dark hair, dark skies, dark feelings. Or “looked”. You probably know what your top five overused words are already. Do a find and replace with synonyms, or better yet, figure out a more elegant way to describe something. Check your use of seemed too.