Write it. Right it.
Manuscript appraisal
Once you have completed the draft of your manuscript, it can be useful to get a written appraisal to assess its strengths and weaknesses, before you launch into the editing process. Having a non-biased third party read your complete manuscript and tell you what is working well, alongside how you could improve it, can help significantly, especially if you are not an experienced author.
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This is a 'big picture view' focusing on the plot, the overall structure, the characters, the narrative voice and writing style. In addition, I consider any specifics for your story's genre. The idea is to provide constructive feedback; make recommendations; and propose suggestions which are actionable.
The appraisal is a written report, typically 2 to 3 A4 pages long. I also like to include a synopsis of the story as it provides a comparison for you between what the reader thinks the story is about, and your original intent — which can sometimes be different!
After describing what works well, I then point out areas that are weak, providing examples where appropriate and making recommendations of how it might be improved. My appraisals are always pratical and implementable but they are also a very honest critique. Of course, I'm always available to discuss the report with you and answer any questions arising from it.
Developmental edit
Next, an editor directs their focus towards the characters, although in reality this often happens in parallel with assessing the continuity of the story and structure. The editor looks at the development and consistency of each character, as well as whether each one contributes meaningfully to the plot. Does their motivation make sense? The editor also reviews the dialogue for consistency and authenticity.
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The editor assesses the linguistic style, readability and point of view (POV), ensuring the narrative voice is clear, with consitency throughout, checking that the story's tone aligns with the intended audience's expectations. Does the narrative shift from first person to third person? Does the tense remain consistent?
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Usually the comprehensive detailed feedback is provided as comments in the Microsoft Word document alongside your text, accompanied by a separate report when required, depending on the extent of the recommendations or changes suggested. The subsequent revisions are a collaborative, iterative process between you and the editor. It's a partnership — the developmental edit is tailored to each author's and manuscript's unique needs.
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There is some overlap between the developmental edit and the copyedit. For example, character-trait consistency would be picked up by both editorial processes so it really boils down to a question of focus: the developmental edit, although detailed, looks at the macro-level whereas the copyedit looks at a manuscript line by line, correcting the style, spelling, grammar and word usage.
A developmental edit sometimes called a structural or content edit, is an in-depth review of your manuscript. It is a comprehensive and somewhat time-consuming process but necessary to turn your story into a polished work ready for publishing, regardless of whether you choose to do it yourself or engage an editor.
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The first step is to evaluate the overall structure, style, genre and potential of your story. Once the complete context of the manuscript is understood, the editor next looks at the plot and structure of the book. Does it flow logically, are there any errors or holes in the plot, is the pacing good — basically does it all make sense?
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Copyedit
A copyedit ensures your work is readable and grammatically correct. It is a line-by-line edit of your manuscript done in a sympathetic way that does not change your narrative voice and retains your writing style.
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As well as correcting the spelling, grammar, hyphenation and capitalisation etc, it looks at:
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repetition
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effectiveness of sentence-level narration
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awkward language and metaphors
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authenticity of phrasing and word choice
A copyeditor will also flag excessive use of adverbs, unusual style which readers may struggle with, and whether the author is 'telling rather than showing'.
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Similar to a developmental edit, a copyedit will identify any issues with chapter sequencing and pace of the story. A thorough copyedit will provide guidance on layout, standardise the document format with Word's styles, ensuring that the dialogue style, its tagging and its punctuation are correct.
Self-publishing help
There are a wealth of both free and paid-for tools, software, and services available to authors who choose to go down the self-publishing route. There are also many online communities and thousands of websites providing support and advice.
If you have just finished your first novel and you are going to self-publish it, looking at the array of what's on offer and what options are best, can be quite daunting and can detract from the creative process of actually writing.
Many questions arise during the self-publishing process such as:
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do I need to buy an ISBN number if I am only using KDP?
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how do I create an author bio on Amazon?
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what is the best free software to format my eBook for different reading platforms?
I can provide answers and pratical advice either via a Zoom discussion or written report, having spent many many hours (!!) researching this in order to help my partner who is a published author.
This service can be as small as providing an online resource list for specific topics to a longer, deeper researched engagement to help you get published faster.