On Line Editing, September 3rd 2018

To say I’ve learned a lot in these last two years would be one Hell of an understatement. From accepting my first critique to practicing law through contracts to being there when houses fold… It’s been quite an adventure.

One thing that I’ve definitely improved on, is line editing my own work. Now, do not confuse line editing with copyediting, because I am NOWHERE near a good enough copyeditor. I, to this date, rely on in-house publishers, betas, and critique partners to save my precarious patootie where copyediting is concerned.

(For those curious, here’s a good definition as to what copyediting is. This example is taken from New York Book Editors  2015 Webpage,  WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COPYEDITING AND LINE EDITING?

“a copyedit is [used] to address flaws on a very technical level – to make sure the writing that appears on the page is in accordance with industry standards.”  )

Previously, almost a year ago, I wrote a blog post about streamlining.  (See ON STREAMLINING, NOVEMBER 19, 2017)

But, this year, after offering REMNANTS to Kyanite Publishing, I began to get a lot of requests to line edit upcoming author’s works, and I realized, I now have a more in-depth list of what I look for when line editing, beyond just Streamlining.

• Sense words: I felt, I heard, I saw, I smelled, etc. For the most part, these can make the reader drop out of the world and realize they’re reading a story. You want to trick the reader into FEELING like they’re there.

What holds more impact?

I heard a crack of the rifle and felt my insides go numb as the bullet impacted my stomach.

Or

The Crack of the rifle echoed off the walls and my insides went numb as the bullet plowed through my intestines.

• Repeated beginnings:

I walked through the door. I paused. I knew I’d been right.

Three “I” to begin a sentence. Time to do something I call, “actioning it up”. Psychologically, if you start with a verb, you can trick the reader into feeling urgency or activity. You might have heard that trick used in writing resumes or reports. Instead of “I cleaned the coil”… use “cleaned the coil”. Boom, verb makes it more powerful

Walking through the door, I paused. I knew I’d been right.

• Grouping Descriptions: When describing something, try to keep it together. You know the song, Head, shoulders, knees and toes? Try that. Don’t start at the head, go to the feet, back to the neck, focus on the groin then the knees then the shoulders….

Our vision doesn’t normally bounce. If there is something that stands out, save it for last and enunciate THAT object, but everything else goes in an order: Top to bottom, Close to far, Left to right, Etc.

• Show vs Tell: When describing something, it oft helps the reader of you don’t just list the object:

It was tall, six feet high. It had wide shoulders and chest, but a skinny waist.

Instead, show it by relating it to objects around, colors, smell, THIS is where you use the senses to really give something weight, but don’t use sense words on the narrator. Use it to PAIN a picture.

It was taller than the surrounding cars, and easily visible over the top of the van as it trundled past. Wide, powerful shoulders, resembling that of a rugby tough rolled with power while all perched on a waist so narrow that the beast should have snapped in two at such a tiny point in its flesh.

• Redundancy and repeat:

The storm looked evil. Inside the storm rolled thick black clouds and the storm cast darkness upon the land. I had to hide from the storm.

Yawn We get it. Storm bad. Instead, there are two things that could be done.

1. Love your Thesaurus (Lyt)
2. Group and Trim (G&T)

Inside the storm rolled thick and evil black clouds that sucked the very light from the sky, casting darkness upon the land. The tempest looked large, dangerous, lethal, and without cover, I was in for a very bad time.

• Give Someone an ARC:  Okay, this one is a Doozy. An Arc is a showing of how a character grows or evolves over time, but it doesn’t mean that they have to change, per se. There are two types of Arcs.

Transformative: The character changes their outlook. For example, Uncle Bill really hates flowers, but when he finds out that the lovely plants he has been paving over have medicinal and nutritional value, he changes his minds and becomes a spokesperson for greenery and natural parks.

Steadfast: Uncle Bill loves flowers and plants, but when his company comes up with new artificial turf, he takes a stand against his income shoring himself up and becoming braver, willing to risk losing his job over losing his lawn.

• Does each Chapter/Story have a point: Yeah, let me really get the ire flowing. Question: does your story, or chapter if it’s a long enough work, have a point? Does it progress either the plot or enhance a character? If not, BLOW IT AWAY.

This is where a summary can make or break a writer, and why plotters have an advantage over pantsers. A Plotter can make each chapter have a point before they begin, whilst a Pantser often has to do so in their edits. Knowing beforehand what you, as a writer, want each chapter to say can alleviate SO MANY HEADACHES.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this list. It’s more of a guide for me when I write and edit now, but if it’s helped you too, I’m happy.

Fin.