On Writing: Questions to Ask Yourself During Editing

Yes, I know it's not All About Editing week anymore. But I'm editing again, so it's on my mind again, which means you lovely readers get yet another post on the subject. This time, I want to talk about the questions you should ask yourself as you're reading your work and editing it.

The subject for this post first occurred to me when I was editing Please, Sir and working on a particular scene. Paige is standing in her boyfriend's childhood home, in the foyer, and there are pictures on the wall. Originally, there were photos of her boyfriend's father. That just didn't make sense. I needed a certain reaction moments later, when Paige meets John, that just wouldn't have happened if she had seen pictures of him. Logic. Sometimes I have it.

Does this make sense?
My number one question. If you ask nothing else, ask this. Does this make sense? As I mentioned before, it made no sense for Paige to see a photo of John and then react as though she hadn't. If the answer is "no," things need to change. If the answer is "maybe," you should probably try to figure out why it isn't "yes." And if the answer is "yes," can you explain why that is?

Does this help or hurt the story?
A protagonist moves the story. There are various other definitions, but that's the one that helps me the most when it comes to identification. For me, words are also the protagonist. Each word should help move the story forward. (Or backward, whatever; I love Tarantino as much as the next cinema fan.) Every word, every sentence, every paragraph, every scene should move the story. It should help. It should help tell (by showing, but you knew that) the story. If it doesn't move things along, it hinders. It hurts. Hurting is bad. Pain means that something is wrong. So, you know, fix that or something.

Is this the right word?
If you've checked out the word usage tag here on my blog, you probably already know that I'm a big fan of the "use the right word" piece of writing advice. Not just because I have a literary lady-boner for Mark Twain, either. The right word makes all the difference. Are you using the right ones?

Why does this story need to be told? (What's the point?)
Maybe you're really good at asking this question before you even start writing. If that's the case... Okay, you can't see me, but I'm totally making faces at you. For the rest of us, a good time to ask this question is during editing. Why are you telling this story? Why does it need to be shared? The answer doesn't have to be epic and life-changing. It could be something as simple as, "Because I wish I could have read it without having to write it." If you can't come up with a reason--for real; if you ask yourself this question in a fit of insecurity and frustration, the results won't be accurate--then it's time to reevaluate what you're saying and why you feel the need to share the story with people.

Each and every piece you shove out into the world should be your very best. Taking the time to edit, to examine your work and your choices and your motivations, is vital to the process of making it the best.