Before I get into today’s post, I want to let you all know that in the future, new posts will appear on Go Teen Writers on Wednesdays only.
Why are we changing to posting one day a week?
Because my 3 kids are on 3 different school schedules, Jill landed her first teaching job (yay, Jill!), and Shannon is juggling remote schooling for her kids on top of a book release (Winter, White and Wicked is thisclose to releasing!). On top of these commitments we all want to continue writing fiction, so we are scaling back here on Go Teen Writers.
Fresh content will post every Wednesday (except the rare occasions when it doesn’t). We also have 10+ years of archives you can search if you’re really craving more.
Back in January, we started on a messy journey together to breakdown the hard work that goes into finishing a novel. I’ve created a landing page dedicated to this series so that you can easily access it whenever you find yourself at the various steps: The Beginning Writer’s Guide To Finishing A Novel: The Complete Series
Say you’ve finished your scene-by-scene micro edit that I talked about last week. Now what?
Read the book from beginning to end one more time
You’ll find all kinds of lingering typos, places to tighten your writing, or details you overlooked last time.
Run spellcheck
Never hurts to doublecheck your spelling!
Run a check for the words you often interchange or overuse
This could be words like “think” when you mean “thing,” or vice versa. “Imaging” when I mean “imagining” is a common one for me. Search for like, just, very, bit, something, or any other words that tend to clutter up your writing.
Jill and I compiled a list of our “weasel words and phrases” which you can find in our Free Downloads For Teen Writers section.
Format your book properly
This crazy popular video of Jill’s will teach you how in 15 minutes:
Send your book to a writing friend or two
At this point in the process, I feel like I’ve taken this book as far as I can, and I need outside help. If you don’t have writing friends yet, I encourage you to do the hard work of finding and developing those relationships. You won’t regret the investment. (If you have Facebook, consider joining the Go Teen Writers Community Facebook group. I recommend emailing us to let us know you’ve applied.)
Sharing your writing can feel scary. Here’s a post from Jill on preparing to get your manuscript critiqued.
Take a break
While your friends are reading your manuscript, STAY AWAY FROM IT. You need the space from your story so that you can see it clearly when the time comes to evaluate your friends’ thoughts and suggested edits.
This might even be a great time to start a new book (for thoughts on why, check out Write Another Book by Roseanna M. White). Getting yourself emotionally invested in something else can help you to not cling so tightly to this story.
You also might want to read other books in the same genre or pursue your other hobbies or artistic interests during your break. Whatever you choose, STAY AWAY FROM YOUR STORY.
Evaluate and input the edits from your writing friends
Depending on the type of person you are (and the feedback you’re receiving) this might be fun and energizing or it might be difficult and draining. I’ve been on both ends of the spectrum as well as in-between.
If you’re energized and excited: Get to work! Start on whatever edits and changes you want to make based on their feedback.
If you’re struggling: I’ve been there too. I’ve had writer friends give me feedback that made me angry or cry, even as a published novelist. I usually give myself a time limit on being mad, like 24 hours, and then I have to roll my sleeves up and get to work.
(Here’s an article I wrote that’s about processing rejection, but it’s applicable here too.)
If you’re confused: What if you have multiple writing friends who read your book (lucky you!) and their feedback contradicts each other? Friend 1 loved your antagonist and Friend 2 thought he was too cartoony. Friend 1 thought the love triangle was the best part of the book, and Friend 2 said, “Blech! Cut it!”
First, see if you can find any middle ground. Maybe a few tweaks to your antagonist will keep everything Friend 1 loved while fixing the problems Friend 2 had with him. If both your friends agree about something, pay attention to that for sure. And don’t forget to factor in your opinion as the tie breaker.
Or what if you have only one person who read for you, and some of the feedback doesn’t sound right? If you search your heart for signs that you’re just being defensive and the truth is you really don’t agree with your friend, keep what you think works best. This is your book. You get to make the decisions.
Have your book read aloud to you by your computer or Kindle
This step is sooooo tedious, but it’s also the best way I know to catch lingering typos, repetitive words, or even continuity issues. I do this through Microsoft Word or my Kindle. The monotone voice isn’t fun to listen to, but it works extra well for catching problems.
You’ve finished! Celebrate!
Now you get to start querying agents, entering contests, working with a freelance editor, or doing whatever it is that you envision as the next step for this book.
Remember way back in January (back when you possibly owned zero masks and had never heard the term “social distancing”) when we talked about getting ready to celebrate? Don’t forget to actually do it! Completely finishing a book is a big deal, whether it winds up published or not. Celebrate!
Is there anything else you would put on this checklist? How do you celebrate when you’re completely done with a book? (Or if you haven’t gotten there yet, how would you?)
I am nowhere near finishing my novel, but this is good information to have nonetheless. I know I’m not the *best* at accepting negative critiques, because I either start crying, smash the draft in my “Bantha Chara” folder, and start sobbing about how I’m a terrible writer, or, more likely, get mad and ignore their helpful comments. Or accept them and watch as my dusty old fantasy becomes a BEAUTIFUL MASTERPIECE. Sort of.
Also, I’m really bad at compromising. So if my friends say “I don’t like Yin” and “I LOVE Yin” I never know what to do. So what to do in that instance was very helpful.
Thanks for the post! And good luck with your children!
I have slooooowly become better at accepting critical feedback. It’s a journey, for sure.
Thank you! Like a lot of people, we’re just trying to roll with our new normal!
Thanks for the writing post! So, to be honest, I’ve never celebrated when I’ve finished a book. I guess I’ve never thought about it. *shrugs*
Thanks again!
We’re all wired differently, so maybe a celebration wouldn’t do much for you. You also might be surprised to find the right celebrations makes the process feel more meaningful. I don’t need a lot to motivate through my daily word count goal, but making note of how many words I wrote in a day gives me an extra bit of satisfaction, similar to crossing an item off a to-do list. It’s all about finding what works best for you!
This post series has been full of amazing tips! Thank you so much! And good luck in all of your other endeavors. As much as I love reading all your new posts, I think you guys deserve some rest time. I genuinely do not know how each of you have found time to put up new content once a week with everything else you have going on.
Thank you so much for understanding. Having a great, responsive community has definitely been motivating!
I’m certainly nowhere near done my WIP, but a couple of my friends are reading part of my draft, and both of them said my main character slightly annoys them… Of course, he’ll change throughout the story through his arc, but… I don’t know. I guess just keep on keeping on and see what they think of him when it’s all done?
This was a great series! My favorite posts were the ones about writing the middle (because I stink on ice at writing middles), and the “all is lost” moment post. Thanks for the great posts! It’ll be sad to see less posts, but good luck and have fun with the things going on!