Writing Diary #6- First Read and Editing Techniques

I'm pretty sure this isn't a spoiler.... you can't zoom into clear words.

Previous Writing Diaries will be linked below this post in case you missed any!

Having finished reading the first draft in January (and realising it was all rubbish), I've jumped straight into editing and now am nearly half way through the book with first edits.
I'm so happy about the fact that I actually enjoyed reading through my first draft and, while there are many things that need immediate changing because they're so rubbish, there are also sections- even sentences- that I really love. And this makes the whole thing worth it. Now it's just the job of making every sentence as good as those great ones.
I know I need to expand character- wise and definitely with certain relationships. Some are too fast -I'm being very cautious of insta-love- and I need to add more dialogue as they were the best parts of the book, I think.
When writing the first draft, I was constantly wary of not having enough words to make a cohesive novel. Now, I'm so conscious of not making it too long! There's so much I want to add and I'm already at a good 130,000 words!
When I finish the second draft, I'm going to have my older brother read it because he's studied Creative Writing and I know that he'll give great and constructive advice- I've discussed some plot lines with him before.

I've got a system of how I edit- the picture above showing my technique. I begin with re-reading through the chapter and highlight any immediate things that need editing in yellow. I highlight sentences I really like in blue (I need that ego boost) and write notes around things in red. It's a long long process but it's working for me at the moment. If you're struggling with editing your own work, I'd recommend trying this method. Either that, or go through each chapter again and again, focusing on a different thing each time eg. dialogue, sentence structure, vocab use.

It's a slow process but I'm hoping to finish the second draft by the end of August mainly because of my upcoming exams and the lack of time I have to edit.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment your thoughts! Stay amazing!
Chloe

Writing Diary #1 | Writing Diary #2 | Writing Diary #3 | Writing Diary #4 | Writing Diary #5