by Sarah Juckes, @CompletelyNovel
Any writer nearing the end of the writing or editing process may be all-too familiar with the worrying prospect of sending their newly-fledged work out into the big, wide world. With questions like: ‘what if it flops?’ ringing in your ears, it’s easy enough to sink into what I like to call ‘publishing-procrastination’ – where you keep tinkering with your manuscript and changing the odd word, only to then change it back again. Sound familiar? Here are ten things you can do to prove to yourself that your manuscript is 100% finished. Do these, and your book is officially ready to fly.
- Check for chronological inconsistencies
It’s so easy to get dates mixed up – especially if you’re writing fiction with flashbacks or a memoir. Try plotting your events on a timeline and match the dates up with the dates you have written in the book. There are some great online timeline tools that can help, such as Office Timeline. Although it’s made for presentations, it’s pretty easy to use and will help you get a clear view of how your book works in real-time.
- Do a ‘find and replace’ for character names or references
Do you reference a name with an unusual spelling, or did you change a character’s name between drafts? Doing a ‘find and replace’ in Word is a really easy way to pick out those slip-ups without having to re-read your book – again. Just press ‘ctrl+’F’ (on Windows) or cmd+’F’ (on Mac) to search and correct.Continue reading