Masquerading as a Real Person

EDITING PROCESS

When editing a draft, I do two or three passes, with 6-8 total steps (the third editing pass is optional). I’m going to be describing the process I use for myself, but you can adapt any part of this, or just take inspiration from it.

LET THE DRAFT SIT. Once you finish the draft you want to edit, set it down and leave it alone. I do this for anything between overnight to up to three days (the latter is usually because I forgor, or because I got busy.) Sometimes I forget it for a week and that's usually when I do best, but I can't recommend it since people are usually impatient to get started lmao.

FIRST PASS: READ IT. Literally just read it. Don’t edit it just yet, if you can help it; you can mentally note stuff down, but don’t mark it. This is the step where you make sure you still actually like where it’s landed, and decide if this IS the draft you want to edit or if you can already see parts you want to change or unsatisfied with.

LET THE DRAFT SIT AGAIN. If you’re not going back to the drawing board, set it down and enjoy the fact that you finished the draft at all. I usually only set it down for a day, or at the very least overnight.

SECOND PASS: ROUGH EDIT. This is where you’ll catch a lot of the proofreading errors and formatting mistakes, which you should fix as you find them. If you’re planning on using the third editing pass, what you should mark down but NOT FIX YET are spots where your phrasing is clunky, unclear, or just doesn’t feel right. Whether that’s dialogue, narration, or just general pacing/staging in scenes, you mark it and move on. That said, I often don’t listen to this advice and fix everything as I come across it lmao

LET THE DRAFT SIT. YES, AGAIN. I’m not kidding. Let the draft sit for a day or two, because it’s always best to try and do things with as fresh eyes as you can.

(optional) THIRD PASS: SMOOTH EDIT. This is where you go in and fix the parts you marked before, as well as keeping an eye out for formatting and errors you might have missed before. I often skip this step, unless I want the final piece to be as smooth as I can physically muster. Smooth as my brain. No wrinkles, only a glossy finish.

(optional) GUESS WHAT? LET IT SIT. Really can’t emphasise enough how important this part is. There’s a reason it happens three times (four if you’re being extra.)

FINAL PASS: READ ALOUD. If you skip the third pass, this is where you’ll catch almost all of the formatting and grammar/spelling errors you might have missed on the way. Reading it aloud slows you down and makes you pay attention to weird phrasing, stilted dialogue, or anything else you might have missed. Even if it’s just muttering the fic to yourself, this step can’t be skipped. Do a chapter at a time, or sections of a oneshot, instead of doing it all at once. Your throat will thank you, I assure you.

When it comes to editing someone else's fic, keep the following in mind:

Discuss boundaries beforehand. If the writer doesn’t want critique, just marking mistakes or unclear parts, respect that. If you feel like you’re being asked to ‘fix’ or rewrite parts of the fic and you’re not comfortable with that, tell them, or politely decline.

Letting the fic sit is often overkill if it’s not your own writing. Let it sit for at most a day after reading it for the first pass, and then move onto the second pass.

After the second pass, return it to the writer – while you can fix spelling errors with their permission, only mark grammar/formatting mistakes, because these are sometimes intentionally wrong for style or effect.

For things other than spelling/grammar/formatting, ALWAYS NOTE DOWN WHY YOU MARKED IT. Don’t suggest fixes unless the writer wants clarification or a suggestion, just say what caught your attention. Editing is a dialogue between editor and writer, and as the editor, you need to respect that this is not your fic.

The writer will decide if they want a third pass; if they feel that after fixing things they don’t need any more editing, offer to read it one more time, but otherwise your job is done.

HOW TO NOT HATE EDITING

Okay, after all that it’s perfectly normal (or at least common) to get thoroughly sick of what you’ve written. You’ve read it so many times, picked it apart, put it back together again; you’re just sick of it and want to move on.

Good news! You can, because it’s done! Here’s how I get around the issue of getting sick of editing/of the piece itself; the first one is the most important one, but all of them might be able to help if you really want to avoid getting sick of something you just want to enjoy.

STOP EDITING WHEN YOU STOP ENJOYING IT. If you start to get sick of it after it’s beta-read, you’re done. If you start to get sick of it after proofreading? You’re done. Is one editing pass your limit? Congrats, you’re done! You’re not being paid for this, and if people don’t want an imperfect fic that you love, then the back button is right there. You don’t owe anyone any polish; you should only edit to your own satisfaction, or at least 80% satisfaction. Past that you get diminishing returns, and it’s not worth hating something you love just to impress strangers on the internet.

EDIT IN PHASES. I never try to tackle an entire fic all at once, even though I strive to FINISH the fic before beginning the editing process. I always split it up into parts, and only let myself edit until it starts to feel like a task. If it feels like a task that day, then I edit the next day. If it always feels like a task? Then I’m either done or I just let myself read it for enjoyment without trying to fix it.

EITHER DO OR DON'T SET DEADLINES. If they stress you, don’t have any deadlines. Readers usually understand breaks, long upload times, or even hiatuses – and if anyone gives you trouble about it, block them. This is something you’re writing because you want to, and if they’re not patient, then they don’t deserve the fic in the first place. If they DON’T stress you unduly and you work best under pressure, do set yourself a deadline, and past that deadline, you’re done editing. Don’t let yourself convince you to push that deadline back, either - pick a day to be done, then be done.

SET TIME LIMITS. Exactly what it says on the tin – particularly if you don’t want to edit in phases. Limit yourself to two or three hours on the long end, and only continue if you’re in the groove – but don’t be afraid to cut yourself off either, especially if you’ve forgotten to eat or get a drink. (I am so, so guilty of this lmao)

ONLY WRITE THINGS YOU WANT TO READ. If you’re excited to read the final project, editing is never painful – it’s just part of getting there. If it feels like it’s getting in the way, then you’re done.

I think that’s everything, though I welcome questions! I only do editing for friends whose work I already know, but I’m happy to give tips on HOW to edit your things, if I haven’t covered it here.

Thanks for listening, and happy editing!!!