REVISE REVISE REVISE at SCHMOOZE SCHMOOZE SCHMOOZE in Santa Clarita
by Cindy Marcus
The
amazing and inspiring Laurisa White Reyes lead the Santa Clarita
Schmoozers this month, sharing her insights and wisdom in the
challenging art of revision. Wow. Writers walked away with many
helpful handouts as well as usable hints on how to approach the
intimidating process of revising their novels. When broken down into
Laurisa’s handy dandy three-step process, revising just seemed so
do-able, though time consuming. However, Laurisa reminded us that time
consuming is part of the writing journey as can be tediousness, but it’s
that kind of dedication that turns a book from lumpy coal to a shiny
diamond. Not only that, revision is really important. Competition is
fierce and it’s important to put your best “word” forward.
To
begin the revision process, you start with Step One. This is the
developmental stage of revision, which involves making sweeping changes
like revising plot, replacing character, examining pacing. After the
sweeping changes have been made, it’s time to check for words usage and
grammar usage. A good tip was to use that search bar in your document
to find out just how many times you are using a word. Or go to
wordle.org. The word “was” can be way overused. The last stage, is
proofreading. Here you check for spelling and punctuation. Laurisa
also shared the most common mistakes to avoid, like its vs.
it’s. (its is possessive and it’s is “it is”).
She
wrapped up with her 6-tips for effective revision, like read it aloud,
or have a friend or your child read it to you. And don’t be afraid to
seek out a professional. Editors can be expensive, but you don’t have
to pay for their entire services, maybe pick and chose what you think
your book will need. Does it need a sweeping revision or a line edit?
Getting a professional’s eyes on it is always worth it - as are beta
readers.
What a great schmooze. Can’t wait for next month!
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