Jaye Marie and Anita Dawes

You’ve written a 50K plus novel.  It’s been a difficult road.  Perhaps you spent six months or six years, but it is finally done and you feel that sense of accomplishment that comes with completing such a monumental task.

Now what?

The following is my personal regimen that moves a rough draft to a finely polished, publishable document:

Proofing – I read through the novel at least three times, repairing grammar errors, looking for type-os, making sure all of the plot points and subplots have logical conclusions, and refining character elements to make sure they jibe with the rest of the story.  I also look for elements that didn’t work or that seem to take too long to develop and eliminate them.  If it can be cut without ruining the plot development, I drop that like it’s hot.

Beta Readers – Once I finish with the proofing I send it…