How I Tackle Revisions

Last month, I wrote about feeling stuck. Little did I know that a few days after that, I’d be diving into revisions on my new book, a YA thriller ala Knives Out meets The Inheritance Games in a town wide treasure hunt. I’m almost done with my edits and loving it more than I ever have before.

As I dove into revisions, it got me thinking – should I write a blog about this? Before getting chosen for RevPit, a mentorship program that matched me with a professional editor, I didn’t understand what revisions were. Sure, I had a vague sense it meant cleaning up your book, but how? Where does one start?

Here’s my definition for it: revisions are a term for any changes you need to make to your book on a scale greater than line edits. 

I kind of use it synonymously with “edits,” although I do tend to think of edits as less big picture changes and more scene tweaks. But this is how I like to categorize things in my brain. Everyone’s different, I’m sure.

In my opinion, the key to revisions is having someone else’s eyes on your work. For me, it’s my critique partners and agent. Before I found critique partners, it was just my own eyes reading through and jotting down spots where my attention fell flat, the characters felt unrealistic or disconnected from their goals and wants, and most importantly, pay off. Does the end feel like it does the rest of the book justice? How did the main character grow? What’s their arc? 

You can make a lot of these critiques on your own, but I always recommend an outside perspective. They’ll see things you won’t and might have different strengths that complement yours. However, also keep in mind that there is such a thing as too many cooks in the kitchen. Having lots of feedback is great, but when it starts clashing, it can get overwhelming. My advice is a few trusted pairs of eyes!

I will say, this gets easier when you have an agent! While I do send my book off to critique partners first, those fixes tend to be less intense. I’m sure every agent/author relationship works differently, but for me, my agent reads my book and then we hop on a call to talk through major edits. I personally love this because we get to brainstorm together and it allows me to ask questions in real time, although I do often follow up with more questions via email. We also talk about the parts that work, so I feel solid in knowing those aspects don’t have to change. And I’ll be real – it’s also just fun to talk on the phone with my agent!

Based on this conversation and CP notes, I make a big list divided into two categories: Things to Chop and Things to Change/Add. This is Phase 1 of my revision outline. Here’s an example of a redacted version:

Things to chop:

• Unnecessary character 1

• Unnecessary character 2

• Unnecessary setting 1

• Lightly chop unnecessary subplot 1

• Still need to keep some of it though 

• My darling moment in [redacted] scene that will kill me to chop but must go

• [Redacted] moment during [redacted] scene

• [Redacted] scene 

• [Redacted] detail 

Things to add/change:

• [Redacted] needs to be at [redacted] to bring [redacted] in sooner

• [Redacted] will live at the [redacted] and get [redacted]

• Add more [redacted] dynamics

  • [Redacted] actively pushing [redacted] away at the beginning to strengthen their arc

• Mention [redacted]

  • Add in [redacted]

• Explain why [redacted] has such a dislike toward [redacted]

  • Point 1 of explanation 

  • Point 2 of explanation

So ANYWAY – you get the picture. Lots of redacted!! Usually, these lists are pretty long, especially the add/change one. But, I think it’s so helpful to lay everything out. Otherwise, I will most definitely forget at least one thing. And let’s be real, I usually still do anyway.

Onto Phase 2!!

In Phase 2, I take all this juicy info and make a chapter outline. It’s intimidating to break your book down into chapters, especially if you’re like me and average like 30 chapters rip. 

Something I did to make it more fun was add chapter titles that are just for me. Now, maybe you already have chapter titles. That’s fine! But I don’t and I needed something to make me laugh while combing through my book chapter by chapter. And therefore, the silly chapter title game was born.

Here’s what it looks like:

Chapter Outline

Chapter 1: A Party Like No Other

• Keep the same up until [redacted] goes into the kitchen

  • Instead of [cut character], [redacted] will have a conversation with [redacted], who’s been in the kitchen checking out [redacted] through the sliding glass door

    • Introduces [redacted] earlier and hints at [redacted]

• When [redacted], take out mentions of [cut character]

  • But allude to [redacted]

• Make [redacted]

  • Add in more explanation to help strengthen pay off later

Chapter 2: Eat It or Wear It

• Keep the same up until right after [redacted]

• [a few lines of me brainstorming out loud how the scene will go]

  • [More lines because it’s all new!]

  • [A few more for good measure]

• Keep the ending line ?

Because of all the redacted, it’s a lot less chunky! But basically, this is my space to think out loud. And listen – it’s tedious. Sometimes, I don’t even finish my chapter outlines. My books tend to have fairly solid act 3s, so the beginnings often need a lot more elbow grease when it comes to revisions. That said, I still think it’s helpful to create a chapter outline for the whole book. It forces you to read your story with changes at the front of your mind. 

After I finish the outline, I dive into revisions. Starting is the absolute WORST! I usually underestimate them, so then when I’m in the thick of it, I’m just like “What did I get myself into?” If you’re the same, don’t get discouraged! It can be difficult to change gears from drafting to revising, but I promise you’ll find your groove.

Here’s the part where you’re going to be like “Mackenzie, what the HECK??”

I almost never look at my detailed outline after I start.

LISTEN I KNOW!! All that work!! All that painstaking time!! Gah!! But by taking that time upfront, almost everything is lodged into my brain that I need to change. I’ve already visualized the altered scenes. I am ready to go.

I still keep the tab for the outline open so it can glare at me in betrayal. I even occasionally glance over it, but rarely. Mostly just to check myself every several chapters. But knowing it’s there if I need it is a huge comfort.

I do things linearly, so I start at the beginning and work my way through. When I have bigger revisions, I copy and paste chunks of chapters into a new draft doc. For smaller things, I’ll edit right in the doc, just change the draft title and re-save it. I’m also supposed to use track changes, which is a function in Word, so my agent can see what’s changing. 

Once I get through the entire manuscript, I’ll start from the top for a read-through. Usually, there’s a few things in earlier chapters that I’ll have to tweak to reflect later changes. Once I’m happy with the edits, I ship it off to my agent and a small round of beta readers.

That’s the point I’m almost at now! I’m hoping that by next week, I’ll be there. But everyone goes at their own pace, so don’t sweat it if your process seems to take longer than mine or your friends. No book and author are the same. That’s the beauty of it!

If you have any other questions pertaining to revisions/edits, feel free to ask me on Twitter!