One of my writers’ group members recently got asked to send
the first one hundred pages of her manuscript to a literary agent. In the past, I had offered to do line edits
and substantive edits for group members, providing my school schedule
permitted; she asked me to have a look at her work.
So, I took a break from Underground
and began editing. The novel was
historical fiction, though set in a time period with which I was
unfamiliar—Anglo-Saxon times. I found myself
questioning phrases like “last nail in my coffin,” (did Saxons use coffins?) and
historic terms like ceorl, and began to understand why Sam Hiyate (an agent at The
Rights Factory) had suggested modernizing some of the Welsh terms in The Harper’s Word. “Is using this term really necessary?” has become
a question I now ask of myself, as much as of other historical fiction
writers. There is a tightrope to walk
between historical authenticity, and readability, and editing my friend’s work
made me much more aware of that fine line.
In addition, I began asking the question “is this really
necessary?” of plot devices: is it necessary to give us the whole back-story
now, or can we find out in bits and pieces?
Is it necessary to give a history lesson, or can we infer historic context
from the things characters discuss? Is this character important enough to warrant
describing him/her? These questions,
among others, I put to my friend, and now ask of myself. One chapter of The Harper’s Word was edited down from four pages to six, simply by
removing unnecessary plot devices and as I begin editing the fourth chapter of Underground, I’ll be asking the same questions
all over again.
I have always admitted that cutting my own work is
difficult. Although I don’t think of
each sentence in terms of the time it took to construct it (I know some authors
who do), it is often easier to spot flaws in others’ work than in my own. Editing my friend’s work has made me more
aware of what is necessary and what isn’t, and has allowed me to bend a more
critical eye on my own writing.
If you have a writing group of your own, try swapping
writing with someone, and go through their story with a fine tooth comb. Be critical, but not cruel. Ask the questions that aren’t answered. If you think something is too long, say so. If something doesn’t make sense, say so. If something seems inaccurate, point it out and
ask if the author did research. Not only
will this help the writer, but it can teach you to recognize problematic passages
in your own writing, and it’s better to find them now, than to wait until you’ve
been rejected by agents and editors because the manuscript isn’t tightly written.
Thanks to my writers’ group for all the critiquing, and for letting
me learn more about editing on their work!