An Editor’s Advice and Tips for Self-Editing Your Book!
It’s a great feeling to write ‘the end’ once you finish your book, but that’s when the true self-editing begins, and we have some excellent self-editing tips to help you make the process a little easier.
Even if you plan to send your manuscript to a professional editor for editing, such as developmental editing or copyediting, before proofreading (and you should), self-editing is an essential step in the editing process that you can’t afford to skip. You want your editor to receive a manuscript that’s been reviewed, polished, and crafted to the best of your ability.
In the following article, we’ll cover self-editing tips prepared by our experienced editing team to assist you as you self-edit your book.
If you’re a new Canadian author considering where to self-publish your book, read “The Best Self-Publishing Platforms for Canadian Authors!” We cover everything there is to know about the most popular self-publishing platforms in Canada, including Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), IngramSpark Publishing, Apple Books, and many more.
At Indie Publishing Group, we have an experienced team of Canadian editors standing by to assist you with professional editing services, including manuscript evaluations and appraisals, beta reading, developmental editing, copyediting, and proofreading. Contact us now for a competitive quote on manuscript and book editing.
Fresh Eyes and Taking A Break | Self-Editing Tips
It’s easy to fall into the trap of pushing through your exhaustion and trying to finish your self-editing in one session or as quickly as possible. However, self-editing when you’re tired isn’t ideal, and there are more than one reason to step away and take a break.
After you’ve spent months writing a book, it can get hard to view it objectively. Repetitive mistakes can be hard to spot, and your brain would start to skip over certain parts of your manuscript, especially if you already spent a lot of time on them when you were writing.
Instead of rolling straight out of writing mode and into self-editing mode, take a break for a few days, weeks, or even a month if you need it. Take as long as you need so that when you self-edit your manuscript, it doesn’t feel like you are reading it word-for-word.
Break It Down | Focus On One Element At A Time
When it’s time to start editing and you’ve had a decent break, pick one area at a time and focus on that rather than starting at the start and trying to line edit from start to finish. If you begin to notice the same repetitive mistakes or typos, try creating a style sheet with a list of your most common errors.
Below is one strategy for breaking your manuscript apart as you begin the self-editing process:
- Plot and Structural Elements
- Character Development and Character Arc
- Relationships Between Characters
- Authenticity of Dialogue (reading it aloud is a great way to hear how it sounds and remove any clunky structure or words)
- World Building, Settings, Scenes, and Visuals
- Line Editing, Typos, and Grammar
Self-Editing Takes Practice
Self-editing, even with our self-editing tips, takes practice. No one’s expecting you to be perfect on your first or even tenth book. That’s why there are professional editors ready to step in once you’ve done a few passes.
You don’t need to edit the entire book in one go. Take your time and work through it piece by piece or chapter by chapter. Use the list we gave you above to help you break down your manuscript or story into manageable pieces.
Beta Readers and Alpha Readers
Self-editing is a lot of work, and often being so close to our work makes it extremely difficult to spot those big picture issues. However, a beta reader or alpha reader who’s never read your manuscript before can be the perfect way to spot something you’ve been missing all along.
A beta reader is typically someone whom you pay to read your manuscript and provide feedback. If you choose to hire multiple beat readers, ensure that they all receive the same feedback form to complete. Most beta readers will add their own thoughts, but you want to ensure you get an opinion on the same areas.
Alpha readers are typically friends, family, and other authors or writers. While their feedback can be valuable, it’s not always easy to get a 100% honest opinion from friends or family.
Don’t forget, at the end of the day, it’s your story. You can certainly consider beta and alpha reader feedback, but you don’t have to implement every suggestion they make.
Tips for Self-Editing Your Book | Conclusion
Don’t work on self-editing your book until you hit the point of frustration or exhaustion. Take your time, break it down into manageable pieces, and when you feel frustrated, put it down and take a break.
If you are writing a book and need any assistance with paperback or ebook formatting, cover design, professional editing, uploading to self-publishing sites such as Amazon KDP and IngramSpark, or Amazon KDP keyword and category research, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We also offer children’s book illustrations and formatting services.
For Canadian authors still considering whether Amazon KDP is the best self-publishing platform for them, check out “The Complete Guide to Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing for Canadian Authors,” where we cover everything you need to know about getting started on Amazon KDP for the first time.
If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below, and we’ll do our best to answer them or direct you to the correct information.
