Here’s why we get trapped when it comes to this question. There’s no such thing as a perfect book. No such thing as an errorless manuscript. The “rules” of writing, even when it comes to grammar and punctuation, are fluid, which means there is no final “perfect” version available to us no matter how hard we try.

If there’s no such thing as perfect, then editing could go on until infinity. So, I ask again, how do we know when we’re done? The answer isn’t as easy as “it always takes this number of passes looking at these aspects.” But here are some factors that come into play when we decide enough is enough so you can stop editing.

How You Publish

Not every writer will need to complete by themselves or pursue with a professional every stage of editing—depending on how you are trying to publish. 

If you are self-publishing, your book should go through, at minimum, a developmental edit (big story ideas), a line edit (paragraph-level issues and wording), a copyedit (grammar and punctuation), and a final proofread (to catch any last errors). You’ll want to have a mixture of self-editing and professional editing for these stages.

If you plan on traditionally publishing, your novel will also need these four stages, but you might have the help of your agent’s and publisher’s editors for copyediting and proofreading. You’ll still want to complete at least a developmental and line edit before trying to attract agents.

Law of Diminishing Returns

If we still need to do all this editing ourselves, how do we know when it’s done? This is where Gabriela would mention the law of diminishing returns. As simply stated as one can get with an economics principle, the law of diminishing returns is something like: when you invest effort into something, after a certain point—if nothing else changes—the profit from that investment will begin to decrease.

There are three stages to this principle: increasing returns, diminishing returns, and negative returns. Increasing returns happen on your first or maybe first few passes through your manuscript. You’re making big changes that are objectively altering the book for the better. 

Diminishing returns begin when you reach the peak of your knowledge. Remember the phrase from our definition—“if nothing else changes.” If we aren’t acquiring new skills to apply to our manuscript, then applying our given knowledge will begin to have less of an impact as we continue.

We need to stop ourselves somewhere along the curve of diminishing returns before we slip into negative returns. This occurs when you’re “editing your manuscript to death.” Even bread dough has a point at which you can over-knead it. Don’t fall down the slope of negative returns so that you no longer recognize your beautiful work.

Goal Setting

It can be difficult to find the balance between making changes that help the manuscript and making changes for changes’ sake. Identifying when to stop is easier if you simply set a goal and stick to it.

For developmental editing, your goal may be a quick read through for structural issues (followed by a rewrite) and then a deeper developmental edit for any further plot holes or inconsistencies (followed by a rewrite).

Line editing, which includes word choice, could go on forever and ever. Again, it can be helpful to name a number of passes through the manuscript as a goal and then call it quits. Whether that’s just once or many more times completely depends on your level of comfort with this stage of editing. 

Same for copyediting. Once may be enough to get all your commas in the right place. Or you may need multiple passes, some with the help of a grammar checker. When it comes to proofreading, make it a goal to set aside some cash because, let’s be honest, it’s better to hire a professional.

In the end, it’s all about goals. Tell yourself you will only do “X” number of passes for each level and stick to that. Otherwise you could find yourself on the revision hamster wheel.

That Gut Feeling

It’s difficult to tell you when to stop editing because there’s something to be said for that gut feeling. I, as an editor, cannot feel your gut feeling and therefore cannot fully advise you on what your manuscript needs.

But you know what it needs. I know you know. 

One day, you’ll be reading through a paragraph and think “that’s really good,” and that’s when you stop tinkering and move on to the next stage or start querying/press publish. 

Because we tend to doubt our guts or forget where we felt our gut speak up, I like to highlight sections in green when I know I’m done with them. It helps kick imposter syndrome to the curb when you see how much of your own writing you’ve perfected.

Overall, I wish I could give you a better answer. But the only way to do that is to have a professional look at your manuscript and evaluate your self-editing skills. Even then, it is ultimately up to you when you call it finished.

Jeanette the Writer is a freelance editor and writer based in Dallas, TX. When not at her computer, you can find her crafting, scuba diving, or posting pictures of her cats on Instagram. Visit JeanettetheWriter.com for more info and follow @JeanettetheWriter on Instagram and Facebook.

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The goal of copyediting is to escort the blunders out the door so your words can shine through. Whether you hire a professional for your work or not (learn more about the editorial process here), I recommend getting the manuscript into the best shape that you can. If it’s a book manuscript, your beta readers will thank you, and if it’s a news article that will appear in a local newspaper or online blog or zine, you may be responsible for the copyediting anyway.   

I’ve been a freelance editor for decades, and I teach three copyediting courses for Writer’s Digest University, so I know well the mistakes writers most often make. Here are five common copyediting issues to look for and eradicate on your own.

1. Commas and Independent Clauses

Use a comma to join two independent clauses (those that can stand on their own as a full sentence) that connect with a conjunction.

Example: The bird flew up to the feeder, and the cat let out a cry.

“The bird flew up to the feeder” is one independent clause. “The cat let out a cry” is another independent clause. The two are connected with the conjunction “and.” The conjunction is paired with a comma.

Seems straightforward enough, but it’s very easy to forget this comma.

Do not, on the other hand, use a comma to separate a compound predicate. This occurs when one subject is shared by two clauses. Do not use a comma to cut the subject from the second verb.

Incorrect: Lainey went to the store, and bought a bag of oranges.

Correct: Lainey went to the store and bought a bag of oranges.

2. The Semicolon

Many writers fear the semicolon, but it has its uses. For one, you might want to connect two sentences that are very closely related, but you don’t want to use a conjunction to do so. One statement flows into the next, enhancing or expounding on it.

Correct:  I am traveling to China; I’ve always wanted to go there.

Correct: Ginger swam to the other side of the lake; it really was the only option.

You will also use semicolons when dividing items in a complex list in which one of the items is a sub-list.

Correct: Her favorite color combinations were black and white; pink and green; and red, white, and blue.

3. Quotation Punctuation and Dialogue Tags

Many are baffled by the quotes, commas, and dialogue tags that are used to indicate spoken words. The dialogue tag may start the sentence, fall in the middle, or end the sentence. A sentence leading into the spoken words can act like a dialogue tag, but it will not be punctuated like one.

Example 1: He said, “You’re going to regret this.”

In this example, you have the dialogue tag at the start, a comma following the tag, and the quotation marks before and at the end of the spoken words.

Example 2: “You’re going to regret this,” he said. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Here we start with the quotation mark and spoken words followed by a dialogue tag. Note the comma at the end of the spoken words and the period following the tag, putting an end to the sentence. The speaker continues, however, with another sentence, so you start this second sentence with a new quotation mark and a capitalized word. It ends with a period inside the closing quote because there is no tag to follow. The tag in the middle works for both sentences.

Example 3: “You’re going to regret this,” he said, “and don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Here the sentence continues after the dialogue tag, so a comma is used after the tag and a new quotation mark starts the rest of the sentence, but a lowercase letter is used to start the second phrase because it is a continuation of the same sentence.

Example 4: “Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” he said.

When the dialogue tag follows, you’ll use a comma at the end of the spoken sentence followed by the closing quote and the dialogue tag.

Example 5: James grabbed a handful of the candies by the cash register and unwrapped one. “I’m known for having a sweet tooth.”

Here the sentence that comes before the quotation indicates who is speaking. It is not treated as a dialogue tag. It’s a sentence in its own right.

4. Colon Use

I would venture to say that a majority of writers do not know how to properly use colons. Improper use appears in print constantly, so it’s certainly not their fault. Here is the No. 1 rule to remember when using a colon: a full sentence must come before the colon. (I have used the colon correctly in the sentence before this one.)

Incorrect: The paper listed ways to earn a living including: starting a business, working for someone else, getting a temporary job. (Remove the colon and add a comma after “living.”)

Incorrect: The instructions are: cut the paper, glue the paper, and color the paper. (Remove the colon and the sentence works.)

Acceptable: Pros: attractive and affordable. Cons: far from work, no animals allowed. (A single word used to introduce a list.)

Correct: The question was obvious: How would we get out of here? (Use a colon to introduce a question or quote.)

5. Dashes

Dashes work in pairs, but don’t send a dash to do the work of a comma. Save the dashes for the “special” instances when you want to set off an emphasizing statement or one that further explains. I like to think of it as going off on a quick tangent. Please note: be sure that the words before the first dash and after the second form a complete sentence.

Tangent: She worked long hours at her desk—in spite of sitting being the new smoking—each and every day.

Emphasis: He would not listen—no matter how hard she tried to explain—to any advice she gave.

Non-Essential Clause: He put the Beatles album on, a favorite of his, and sat back in the easy chair. (“A favorite of his” is the nonessential clause, and you will not use a pair of dashes here.)

Search for these scenarios in your own work, and get in the habit of using this punctuation correctly. If you can handle the above punctuation well, your manuscript will be that much closer to reaching the goal of a smooth and enjoyable read.

Kim Catanzarite has been a freelance writer and editor for almost three decades, and she teaches copyediting for Writer’s Digest University. Her debut sci-fi thriller, They Will Be Coming for Us, published June 1, 2021. You can subscribe to her self-publishing blog at AuthorKimCatanzarite.com/blog, or follow her on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.   

The post #5onFri: Five Copyediting Mistakes You’re Probably Making (and How to Eradicate Them) appeared first on DIY MFA.

What can your editor do for you?

Editing is not a “one-size-fits-all” kind of process. Understanding the differences between the types of editing is crucial to making sure you get the most polished manuscript possible. Here are the three main types of editing you can request from your editor.

Developmental editing

Sometimes called substantive editing, this kind of editing involves taking your manuscript apart, polishing all the pieces, and then putting them back together again in the optimal configuration. Why would you do this? If you have gone through a few drafts and this is your first attempt at having your manuscript edited, you’ll want to have an editor take a deep, critical look at your writing to make sure that your voice is consistent, your characters are multi-dimensional, and your plot is air-tight. This process often involves line-editing, where the editor will rewrite portions of the text to fix any problems or to illustrate the direction she thinks you should take when you begin your next draft.

Copy editing

Copy editing is the slightly less invasive cousin of Developmental editing. Copy editing assumes that you’ve gotten the plot, characterization, and structure correct and only points out the most glaring of errors in those aspects of the manuscript.

Copy editing instead focuses on the grammar, spelling, and punctuation you use, and makes sure that your text conform to the industry standards. There are several different style guides, so if you know that your treatise on the mating habits of freshwater clams is required to follow MLA guidelines, make sure your copy editor uses that and not the Chicago Manual of Style to do their job. Sounds nit-picky, doesn’t it? But trust me, it’s important. Style guidelines exist to help authors and publishers maintain consistency in spelling, formatting, notation, and many other aspects of the manuscript across all publications of a certain type.

Proofreading

Not to be confused with copy editing, proofreading is the lightest kind of editing out there. If developmental editing is a bull dozer and copy editing is a machete, proofreading is the feather duster of edits. A proofreader comes to the text assuming that everything is as the author intends it to be. Their job is not to question usage or structure. Their job is to check for typos and formatting mistakes, to make sure that there’s a period where a period is supposed to be and that you spelled “hodmandod” correctly.

This is the final stage of editing, the last tweak you make before you send your manuscript out into the world. It’s not the first thing you should ask your editor for, unless you’re sufficiently confident that there are no problems at all in your manuscript.

Mix and Match

These editing types are very easy to mix and match. You can request that your editor perform light developmental editing or heavy copy editing or proofreading that includes a light copy edit. And your editor may have an entirely different idea of what level of editing you need. The surest way for you and your editor to figure out what kind of edit your manuscript needs is to have a sample of it (usually the first 10 to 20 pages) edited. Imagine how you’ll feel if you go into the editing process thinking all you need is a light copy edit, and then suddenly find out that the editor you are working with has requested that you rewrite half your chapters.

A sample edit will determine whether you and your editor have aligned expectations for the amount of work to be done on the manuscript. But even better, if this is your first time hiring an editor, a sample edit allows you and the editor a chance to assess each other before you commit to working together. If you and your editor agree after a sample edit that your manuscript needs a developmental edit, and you can appreciate and learn from their style and approach to the text, then you’re golden. If not, then it’s easy to move on before too much time and/or money is lost on either side.

It’s important that you find the RIGHT editor. Not just anyone will do. We’ll discuss that more in detail in my next post.

………………

Elisabeth Kauffman is a freelance editor in California. Her favorite genres are YA fantasy, sci-fi, and romance. She regularly obsesses over board games, Doctor Who, and Harry Potter. Come share your ideas with her on Facebook and Twitter–@WritingRefinery–and on the web at www.writingrefinery.com

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