How to Self-Edit Without Being Overwhelmed

How many times has self-editing distracted or made a mess in your drafts? It happens to the best of us. NaNo guest Elzevera has prepared a guide to help you conquer your self-editing tendencies and do it in a more productive, efficient way.

If you consider self-editing a necessary evil you need to get over with as quickly as possible, you are not alone. Most writers heave in despair at the thought. Not to mention the crippling fear of not being good enough.

But self-editing can be an empowering experience that leaves you bursting with pride instead of wallowing in the darkest corner of your mind.

No idea how? That’s what I’m here for.

Once you master the elements of BLOT, you’ll be self-editing effectively and efficiently—with confidence—in no time.

BLOT – Break & Breathe

The first step that will make a major difference to your self-editing experience is to take breaks. Many, lengthy breaks. And here’s where the second part comes in: breathe. Know that it’s okay to take your time and to adjust self-imposed deadlines.

Many writers fight me on this step because they’re afraid of losing touch with their manuscript and of taking too long to get to the finish line.

But you know what? Losing touch with your writing is the goal here. By stepping away from your book for a few weeks—a month is ideal—you ‘forget’ what you’ve written.

This makes it easier to consider your manuscript from a fresh perspective: you’ll spot things to improve straight away. You’ll also be surprised by how good some passages already are.

BLOT - Learn & Prepare

A common mistake I see writers make when self-editing is diving in without a plan. When you wing it and read your manuscript over and over, just hoping to come across elements you can improve, several things happen:

The process gets real tedious real fast. When you repeat the same step again and again because you feel you have to, your energy will go down the drain. You miss important things. Because you’re looking for everything at the same time–while not understanding what you’re really looking for–you get pulled into specific passages and ignore others.There’s no indication of how far along you are in the process, which can cause despair and hopelessness.

Luckily, there’s a simple solution to avoid all the above: educate yourself before you start. Find a framework to follow and know exactly what to look for in which round. This can reassure you that you will get to the end.

BLOT - One thing at a time

This step ties into the previous one: when you attempt to edit everything at once, you end up exhausted and frustrated. And you’ll miss a huge number of things you could have easily tackled with a one-by-one approach.

Some writers feel they should be able to do it all at once because they believe that’s how professional editors work as well.

First: self-editing is not the same as professional editing. The goal of self-editing is to make your manuscript as good as you can make it with the tools and skills you have at your disposal.

Second: when I was an editing intern at a children’s book publisher, it was the In-House Editor who kept reminding me to focus on one thing at a time. And it’s made a world of difference to how much I can improve in any piece of writing.

BLOT – Time is your friend

You may feel you need to get your novel published as soon as possible. With the entire internet shouting, you should write more and faster and daily social media posts from fellow writers who just published their book, that’s not surprising.

What no one tells you is what I’ve seen many times: when writers rush to publication, 99% of the time, they’re unhappy with the quality of their writing.

There’s the initial rush of hitting publish, but the pride fades away and is replaced by self-doubt and more negative feelings revolving around ‘why am I not good enough?’

I’m here to tell you that you are good enough. You will experience the thrill of launching your book AND the pride that comes with publishing a book you nurtured as much as possible by taking your time.

If you have questions about BLOT or self-editing, message me on Instagram @willowediting or email me at elzevera@willowediting.com. 

Are you ready to BLOT your way through the self-editing process once NaNoWriMo is over, during Camp NaNoWriMo, or as a NaNoWriMo rebel? Download my free Self-Editing Checklist here for support.

Elzevera is a self-editing coach on a mission to help fiction writers self-edit effectively and efficiently so they can self-publish without regrets. She loves to read and write fantasy, and has a soft spot for talking animal characters. She lives in the Netherlands with her husband and baby daughter, who cheer her on in the background.

Top Photo by Faye Cornish on Unsplash