Dreame Writing Guides

Part 19 How to Make Self-revisions And Improvements

I: The Necessity of Self-revision

1. Improve readability 

Good works are produced through the process of modification. Structural problems, leaks in text, and even simple spelling errors are enough to make readers doubt an author's credibility and affect whether they read a book to its end. Thus, it is necessary to rewrite and revise until it is as perfect as it can be. 

2. Deepen your understanding of the characters

Before the novel is finished, reviewing the previous text can help flesh out the plot and deepen the author's understanding of the characters he's created. Revisions are particularly important for long novels, as they can help with consistency and fluidity.

II: Key Points to Self-revision

1. Dialogue modification  

1) The rationality of the dialogue

Dialogue, as an essential part of the novel, usually makes up a considerable proportion of the text. If the author has adequately planned, readers will not only be able to imagine the characters from the dialogue, but they will also be able to predict future plot developments, which should arouse readers' curiosity. Therefore, when revising, the author should pay attention to the rationality of the dialogue to confirm whether it can express the characteristics of the key players and promote the development of the plot. In addition, redundant content should be deleted.

A bad dialogue will weaken the authenticity of the characters. The author must consider whether the mannerisms of each character, while speaking, is consistent with their personality, education, experience, current emotions, and the limited amount of information one can know in that scene.

2) The choice of perspective

Sometimes, in the same scene, the author would like to use multiple first-person narratives (somebody's point of view). The advantage of this method is that it allows readers to see events from another person's perspective, which can have a massive impact on how each character is viewed. Perspective changes, though, should not happen without a well thought out justification for it.

Tips: key points to check in regards to dialogue

a) Dialogue should represent the thoughts of the characters, not the opinions of the author.

b) Dialogue should create a sense of immediacy and authenticity.

c) Dialogue should push the story forward by sharpening contradictions, laying out lies, and revealing secrets.

d) Dialogue should reveal a character's characteristics, attitudes, ethics, and worldview.

2. Plot modification

1) Points to consider when creating revisions:

Have you considered deleting a plotline? If it meets one of the following four conditions, you may want to: the plot is boring, there is no conflict in it, it does not advance the plot in any way, or there is nothing new, interesting, exciting, or refreshing about it. It is useless, for example, to describe in detail the process by which the protagonist buys a cup of coffee on the way to work. A scene like this could be deleted, but it could also be redeemed. One way would be to have the protagonist bump into another customer and get coffee spilled all over himself. If this led to a chain reaction of events that made this thread exciting or leading in some way, it could be worth preserving. 

2) The arrangement of events and important incidents

Every chapter should either have an event, or it should be leading up to an event.

The rhythm of the story may be lost if a reader cannot find a point of interest in each chapter.

An important incident does not have to be big or cataclysmic (like the end of the world). In fact, it can be small. What is important is that it must have some impact on the character, in a way that causes the character to respond to it in some way. With a well-constructed story, new incidents come one after another, and the plot progresses.

A smaller incident can lead to a large, or perhaps dangerous, event. For example, a late-night phone call or a mysterious email could lead to a wife discovering that her husband is having an affair with a much younger woman.

3) Here are some tips on how to add plot twists: 

a) From lost to found, looking for something important (or perhaps a missing relative) could add some exciding incidents that eventually lead to a resolution to the problem. As an example, after an extensive search, a hero might find a heroin's missing dog. 

b) From trouble to a solution - to overcome and succeed by working hard. As an example, after an extensive search for employment, the protagonist might find a better job than the one that they lost.

c) From conflict to reconciliation, two people quarrel, and after some struggle (or triumph), they meet in the middle and makeup. As an example, after surviving an earthquake together, a quarreling couple might come to realize that their gripes were not as important as they seemed before the traumatic event.

d) From danger to safety, tension is built. This tension serves to further the plot as the characters face and overcome the threat. As an example, after discovering that a group of thugs is following him, the protagonist might escape through a labyrinth of tunnels and alleyways. 

e) From secret to revelation, a character solves a significant mystery, one that has likely been haunting him for some time. As an example, a husband might discover who killed his wife at the beginning of the story.

III: Directions for revising

1. When sequentially reviewing chapters, authors should check that incidents are thoroughly explained, characters' motivations are clear, and determine, in the context of the plot as a whole, what is necessary and what is not. 

2. Authors should be careful about how much backstory they give. By deleting previous minor parts, the author can get to the point and often enhance the interest of the story, and perhaps have key characters begin interacting with each other sooner in the story than they otherwise would have.

3. Analyze whether the rhythm of the story is allright and whether the development of the story, especially the development of the characters, is reasonable. Do not take your characters out of their original setting. If you do, you may weaken their role or function in the story.

4. The longer the story is, the higher the probability there is for contradictions. A detailed outline can help improve consistency. When writing, it is good to periodically review what came bore, least you forget what has happened so far. Pay attention to details, both big and small. If a character's eyes are blue, they should remain blue throughout the book.

5. An author should consider deleting all adjuncts. Effective writing should rely on nouns and verbs to convey the strength of sentences. Too many adjuncts will make it difficult for a reader to understanding what is going on and lead to fatigue. 

6. Common sense mistakes and technical problems, including grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other details need to be corrected.

Tips:

a) There should be a cool-down period of 2 to 4 weeks between drafts and revisions. The longer, the better. This allows the author to come back with a "fresh set of eyes."

b) Create revisions on a new document. Save the original and back it up in case you need to go back to it, or, God forbid, the revised version is lost. After each revision, back it up, and start the next revision as a new document. 

c) Remember that the purpose of self-revision is to make your story better. Don't allow yourself to be daunted by the fact that several people have already read the previous version. The revision is for a new audience and should bring you the satisfaction of knowing that you have put your best foot forward. If old readers reread it, they may comment and tell you how much your story has improved!

d) It is a good habit to review and revise the content of novels from time to time, but we should limit the degree of self-revision that happens. Don't obsess over it. Three revisions are plenty. The first draft should focus on telling the story. The second should emphasize the development of the plot and characters. The third time should concentrate on minutiae, particularly spelling and grammar. 

e) Through repeated reading, we can find defects and modified them. You can read dialogue several times, out loud, and seek problems.

f) The content of a book is familiar to the author, but not the readers. You can pass your manuscript to someone you trust and ask for guidance. People who are entirely unfamiliar with the content can often catch mistakes that the author did not. 

                                                                                                                                                                                   BY Blair