Tag Archives | self editing checklist

I’ve run across a number of editing checklists as I’ve read through the blogosphere. Seems every writer has one. (Google “editing checklists” and in 0.17 seconds you get 983,000 results.) Nothing wrong with checklists. I usually peruse them and think, “Good points. I need to remember some of ‘em the next time I’m editing a manuscript.” Do I ever refer back to any of them? Nope. Why not? Well … to be honest, most of the checklists are l-o-n-g. They are more like editing encyclopedias rather than checklists. Do writers really do all those dozens of steps? If I could distill editing down to the basics, what would those key points be?  I would divide editing into two phases: a Big Picture Edit and Fine Line Edits. A Big Picture […]