I finished this manuscript back in June, and for some months now, I have been practically vibrating with eagerness, ready to just QUERY THE DAMN THING ALREADY, but it is not time. Not yet.
I haven’t always been the patient little Padawan I am now. Oh no. For my first book, I queried before I really even finished my first draft. I know, I know! Very, very bad. But we all do stupid shit when we’re just starting out, right? So I’m here to keep you from doing stupid shit by showing you just how long it takes to edit a book. Here’s my book’s timeline:
June: Finished the book! Hooray!!
July: I didn’t touch the manuscript for all of July. Not once. This is the mandatory marinating period. And yes, it is totally mandatory.
August: Completed two read-throughs of the book. Authors normally tell you that you’re supposed to try to read your manuscript like a reader (i.e. all in once sitting), but I can’t keep my confidence up if I do that; I have to correct the prose as I go. During the second reading, I created an outline of all of the chapters I’d written.
September: I went through my chapter outline and identified those plarts I wanted to change (e.g. where the story needed help, where I could help flesh the characters out a little more, etc.). I spent the whole month correcting these meta issues.
October: I read through the whole thing twice, each time, polishing the prose and checking for inconsistencies. I fact-checked some of the areas I had breezed over before, and I tried to identify plot holes. This was about the time when looking at my manuscript started to make me sick to my stomach.
November: Off to the Betas! I worked on a new manuscript for NaNoWriMo and completely ignored this one all month. By the end of the month, I really started to miss my other manuscript (It was so polished by comparison! So developed! Wow, could I ever write like that again?)
December: No word from the Betas yet; so I took this opportunity to read the manuscript afresh. And I loved it! I was floating on a cloud of I-am-a-literary-goddess delight! And it was glorious. Still, I identified the weakest sections and strengthened them, and by the end of the month, I was like: the manuscript is definitely ready.
January: Comments back from Betas. The manuscript was not ready. I made the wall of edits (see image below), where I put chapter outlines on index cards and wrote edits I wanted to make on post-its. Every time I completed an edit, I would rip off the post-it until there were no post-its left. Then one last read through, and I am finally, finally ready to query.
February: Just kidding. Two more edits. And then we’re off!
*sigh* And that’s how it goes! And even though it takes forever, the experience was rewarding and empowering and kind of incredible. When I was finished, I realized that the process had changed me into a better, more thoughtful human being. And a part of me was glad it took so long because it meant I had this chance to grow.
What about you? Are you ready to query? Are you closer/farther than you thought? Best wishes to all you guys who are editing and querying. It takes a tough writer to stomach all of that, but as I’m reminded constantly, this is a marathon, not a sprint. And for it to be worth it, you have to figure out a way to take pleasure from the running like hell part.
and sometimes longer. It took me seven months to revise and rewrite my first book before I could send it to ninja agent Barbara. For some reason, I sent it to other agents who requested it before it was really ready, but I waited seven months before sending it to Barbara – as if I knew it had to be perfect for her. And now, when I get feedback in my crit group on my second book, I still go in there thinking “this is pretty damn good!” and they come back to me with “yeah, you still need to work on this.” It’s a never ending cycle – but eventually, what your working on really does acquire the polish it deserves. writers need to buy patience in bulk.
PS. i freaking love your index card/post it board. it’s a work of art.
Yeah, I should mention that I have the freedom to work on my book almost constantly; so for people who actually have lives, this will probably take MUCH longer.
I love that you waited seven months before sending the ms to Barbara. I love it because it is real. For everyone who is successful at getting an agent, I think, it’s about working your ass off for way longer than you thought you could and then getting help from this amazing writers’ community, even though a part of you is still afraid to ask, afraid that they will judge you or they will hate your work or you will seem like a complete jackass. And it is a reminder not to get discouraged because our work is always getting better, no matter where we start out at.
Thanks again for the STELLAR crit/beta/whatever that was.
The allure of self-publication most definitely motivated me to give writing a try again. Silly me thought I could go through the entire novel-writing process in a mere year. HAHA, especially after not writing much creatively for close to a decade. A DECADE. As my writing groove has slowly returned, I’ve also realized that good writing isn’t something to be rushed. Seeing where you are at in the process gives me hope that I too can finish my book and eventually query agents as well. Only after I give all that my best shot, will I self-publish my novel. It just always amuses me when a writer is putting out two, three, or four books a year. I don’t even want to open them for fear of what type of prose might be lurking between the pages.
Yeah, I think as writers we SIGNIFICANTLY underestimate how long writing/editing will take (I know I do!). But I’m glad to hear you’re going to take a shot at getting an agent before self-pubbing your manuscript. I think I prefer that route for new writers because there is so much we can learn by working with experienced professionals that will help us improve our craft. So why would we turn down that chance at growing as a writer just because it is hard to get agents’/editors’ attention? The real winners will be the ones who play the long game. That’s my two cents anyway.
I like your note board approach to editing. It is such a great way to give you visual clues of where you are and what you need to do.
Thanks! And it let me tell you, it is VERY satisfying to rip off post-its and crumble them up every time you finish an edit.
Yay Jenny! Your process sounds a lot like mine.:) And I <3 the post-it notes. Visual stuff like that can work wonders.
Good luck querying!:) *sends happy query vibes* You sound ready, armed with a shiny MS. I can't wait to hear good news!
Agreed! And the post-its definitely helped me break all of the edits down into smaller parts so that I didn’t feel completely overwhelmed.
Thanks for the happy query vibes! I wish you the best as well. And you’re always welcome to use my blog to share good news. I love that kind of thing!