Editing Tips For Writers

Editing is key when it comes to polishing your book and creating the best product possible. Before you send your book to an editor, you must first do a self-edit. Here are a few common mistakes writers make and what to look out for.

• Knowing the difference between they're, their and there. This is a frequent issue and it is important to know how these words are used. They're is the shortened form of they are. An example of this word in a sentence is - "They're not here yet." The easiest way to know if you are using it correctly is to read they are and see if that sounds right. Their means belonging to someone - for example "Have you seen their tickets?"  There is a direction or calling attention to something. For example, "They are over there." 
• Missing words are common especially when you are typing quickly. Our brains automatically fill in the missing word making it harder to spot. The best way to find them is to read your work out loud or use the Read Aloud function on Word. 
• Plot holes are easy to create especially if your story changes over time. Some people like to write without plotting first and this can lead to changes to fit the story. Sometimes they can be small holes such as a change in eye color - something I have seen many times before. Bigger holes can really impact your story. These can be changing the rules of how things work such as magic, including or excluding a character, or putting your characters into a situation they cannot get out of without breaking your own rules. This causes confusion for the reader. Have a clear plan before you start writing.
• Show Don't Tell - you may have heard this before. It is important that your audience 'sees' events play out rather than being told about them. For example you would write a fight scene, you wouldn't start a chapter telling your audience that a fight had taken place. This would be boring for the reader. 
• Cut out unneccesary scenes if they don't add to the story. Readers want a story that keeps moving forward and is exciting to read. Be ruthless when it comes to making cuts. If it doesn't serve the story, get rid of it.
  

Every time you edit, you will learn new skills which will improve your writing over time.