How to edit?

[Soraza]

What methods do you as an author employ in your editing process? What are your opinions on ai driven tools like Grammarly? Do you pay someone to do it? Do you do it yourself? I am just starting out and find myself posting chapters that I think are fine until I go over them a few more times with a fine-toothed comb.

 

[melchi]

Pays @K5Rakitan to edit... :D

 

[ManwX]

Mostly use grammarly to get mistakes out. Then spend half an hour just looking for mistakes in sentence structure, dialogue, grammar etc. Im just learned by self after experiencing it first hand. Been revising my first novel (its first 15 chapters) after i got a hang of the process

 

[Representing_Tromba]

I have an editor that I pay but I edit myself with Grammarly and the Oxford dictionary/thesaurus before all that.

 

[melchi]

I have an editor that I pay but I edit myself with Grammarly and the Oxford dictionary/thesaurus before all that.

Yeah, most editors want to see a second draft. It is a bit rude to ask someone else to look at it if it hasn't had a once over already.

 

[Representing_Tromba]

Yeah, most editors want to see a second draft. It is a bit rude to ask someone else to look at it if it hasn't had a once over already.

I would even say a 3rd or 4th draft is good before sending to an editor.

 

[RepresentingCaution]

Pays @K5Rakitan to edit... :D

Once I'm done with my current project, you'd have to pay me $1000 per 1000 words because that's how over it I'm feeling right now.

 

[Deleted member 120990]

Once I'm done with my current project, you'd have to pay me $1000 per 1000 words because that's how over it I'm feeling right now.

I'm gonna need a bigger piggy bank.

 

[Bobple]

Editing... my nightmare....
I do use free version of Grammarly and standard grammar checker of docs. Read over the chapter a couple times (2~4), and try to find mistakes.

Then post the chapter, and realise I have literal hundreds of errors I somehow missed.

 

[Deleted member 54065]

What methods do you as an author employ in your editing process? What are your opinions on ai driven tools like Grammarly? Do you pay someone to do it? Do you do it yourself? I am just starting out and find myself posting chapters that I think are fine until I go over them a few more times with a fine-toothed comb.

ProWritingAid, then my own edits, which is good for three times.

First edit: plot holes.
Second edit: sentence improvements.
Third Edit: anything that PWA and I missed from two edits.

Still, I tend to miss some things. I want to hire an editor, but my budget doesn't allow it.

Also, once I release it to the online wilderness, I don't come back to it. Unless, there's a glaring mistake I missed again (I'm usually called-out by my readers).

 

[Paul__Michaels]

ProWritingAid, then my own edits, which is good for three times.

First edit: plot holes.
Second edit: sentence improvements.
Third Edit: anything that PRA and I missed from two edits.

Still, I tend to miss some things. I want to hire an editor, but my budget doesn't allow it.

Also, once I release it to the online wilderness, I don't come back to it. Unless, there's a glaring mistake I missed again (I'm usually called-out by my readers).

Yeah similar boat with you man. It's mostly rereading my chapters a few times in google docs than it's usually some of my readers catching things that I missed and try and fix them asap.
Not the best mothed but that what I got with zero budget.

 

[Lloyd]

I use grammarly, plus try to find a free editor/beta reader

 

[Nyctoria]

Pays @K5Rakitan to edit... :D

Carefully.

 

[Deleted member 54065]

Yeah similar boat with you man. It's mostly rereading my chapters a few times in google docs than it's usually some of my readers catching things that I missed and try and fix them asap.
Not the best mothed but that what I got with zero budget.

Before, I'd edit (thrice) the manuscript only after I finished it entirely.

16 Volumes later, I found it more efficient to edit it as I complete each chapter with ProWritingAid, then reread three times before releasing it to the wild.

 

[LordAstrea]

I edit everything myself, but I do use the spellchecker in OpenOffice. Might try Grammarly if people seem to like it.
I don't really have a set number of times I reread it because I agonize, but it is usually around five times or more for a nearly finished chapter. First read is usually for typical grammar, punctuation, etc. Next time is for stuff like unnecessary or purposeful repetition, word choice, seeing how show versus tell is working, etc. Let it stew for a bit to see if I need to add any extra details or trim anything unnecessary off. Let it stew again to see if I think of anything else to add that might be interesting or worthwhile. Let it stew. Let it stew...let it stew...let it stew...let it stew...let it stew...LET IT STEW
I'm thinking of decreasing my editing time because too much editing is not always good mentally and can be detrimental.
D:

 

[prissi]

I edit chapter-wise. Actually, scene-wise since I use yWriter, which is a great tool for me. Much better than a large monolithic word file, at least for my writing style.

I first write, then two day later read again (and weep), and only after this start to correct grammar.

When writing grammarly is active, and if the sentences seem very strange, I do a crosscheck at deepl.com/write. It is the only (free) AI tool that keeps most of the sentences unchanged and goes mostly for the bad guys. Since I use yWriter, I export a finished chapter to RTF and then Word have a final say on things missed before.

If I do too much editing in Word, then the chapter goes back and is exported a second time. When I am writing, my creativity overrules all orthography and grammar, unfortunately.