This is the second in a three-part series of tips for revising fiction. Barbara Daniels introduced this series by suggesting that writers approach the revision process “a step at a time, focusing on one strategy after another. The result should be a much improved work of fiction.”
The first tip — “Start Revising” — appeared in Cleaver’s June 10th newsletter.
A Writing Tip by Barbara Daniels
REVISE ONE STEP AT A TIME
Part 2: A Second Look
Do you want to take your story to the next level? Cutting, adding, and reorganizing can give your story additional meaning and power.
- Whose story is it? Revise to move the point of view closer to one of the characters.
- The Russian writer Anton Chekhov advised cutting the first three pages of drafts of stories. Would your story be stronger if you deleted the first one or two paragraphs?
- Did you focus your story so that it seems to tell itself?
- Print your story and cut it apart to separate the scenes. Try reordering them. Are there too many? Should any scenes be replaced by summaries?
- Evaluate your summaries. Have you used sensory, evocative language to lead to the scenes that follow the summaries?
- Look at your backstory (your explanation of what happened before the story started). Do you need more? Less?
- Vary distances, depicting events from a distance and then zooming in.
- Try adding DAT—description, action, or inner thoughts—to most dialogue.
- If you’re using the present tense, reconsider. Does it impart immediacy and speed? If so, is it worth the loss of characters’ thoughtful reactions to their past experiences?
- Put in some grit to counteract sentimentality. Emotion is good, even essential, but normally you’re better off not signaling it too early or too clearly.
- Look at your paragraphing. Is it inviting to readers? (Very long paragraphs may not say “Read me.”) Use paragraph breaks like line breaks in poetry to control the pace of your work.
- Find two good readers for your work, one who loves every word you write and one who can help you locate possible changes to make.
Before you do your final revisions, let your story rest for a while. Time away will probably give you a fresh perspective on it.
For tips on revising earlier drafts, check out Part 1: Start Revising. For tips on finalizing your work, keep an eye out for Part 3: Finishing Touches. Coming soon.
Barbara Daniels’ most recent book, Talk to the Lioness, was published by Casa de Cinco Hermanas Press. Her poems have appeared in many journals, including Cider Press Review, One Art, The Lake, Packingtown Review, and The Shore. She has received four fellowships from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts.
Read more from Cleaver’s Writing Tips.
