What happens on a discovery call?

A discovery call is a thirty minute chat about what you need help with. It’s very informal, and is like having coffee with a friend.

What will we discuss on a coaching call?

We will talk about anything you like to do with your writing. I use my experience as a creative writing tutor to both offer possible solutions to issues, as well as coaching you to understand why you are experiencing the issue and how we can move forward. I also set tasks outside of our time together so that you can work toward your goals. All our conversations are confidential.

Can we meet in person?

During Covid I am happy to work with your time zone and meet you on Zoom.

May 2023 – Rachel Grosvenor Author

Editing is an essential part of the creative writing process that allows you to refine and polish your work. While writing is the act of putting your ideas onto paper, editing is the art of shaping those ideas into a coherent and engaging piece of literature. It involves revising, proofreading, and fine-tuning your writing to improve clarity, flow, and effectiveness. Unsure what to look out for when editing? Read on.

The primary goal of editing creative writing is to enhance the reader’s experience. It’s about creating a seamless and immersive journey through your words, where readers can fully connect with your story, characters, and ideas. Whether you’re writing a short story, novel, or poem, the editing process plays a crucial role in transforming your initial draft into a polished and impactful piece of writing.

Ready to get started? Here are eight things to look out for when editing:

Eliminating Repetition: Read through your piece and identify any repeated words, phrases, or ideas. Replace them with synonyms or rephrase the sentences to make them more engaging and varied.
Strengthening Verbs: Look for weak or generic verbs in your writing and replace them with stronger, more specific verbs. This will make your sentences more vibrant and impactful.
Removing Unnecessary Adjectives and Adverbs: Scan your writing for excessive use of adjectives and adverbs. Consider whether each one is essential and contributes to the overall meaning. Remove any that are redundant or don’t add value.
Enhancing Sentence Structure: Vary the length and structure of your sentences to create a more dynamic and engaging flow. Mix shorter, punchy sentences with longer, more descriptive ones to add rhythm and keep the reader interested.
Consistency in Point of View: Check that you maintain a consistent point of view throughout your piece. If you’re writing from a specific character’s perspective, ensure the narrative stays true to their voice and experiences.
Tightening Dialogue: Review your dialogue and remove unnecessary tags or speech attributions. Make sure each line of dialogue serves a purpose, reveals something about the characters, or advances the plot.
Show, Don’t Tell: Identify passages where you tell the reader something dramatic instead of showing it through action, dialogue, or sensory details. Reword these sections to bring the story to life and engage the reader’s imagination. Remember – there is a place for telling in your story. Click here to find out how to differentiate between show and tell, and when to do either.
Proofreading for Grammar and Punctuation: Finally, carefully proofread your piece for grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors. Pay attention to commonly misused words, subject-verb agreement, and sentence structure.

Remember, editing is an iterative process, so don’t be afraid to revise your work multiple times. Each round of editing will help you refine your writing and make it more polished and impactful.

Want to read something similar?

5 Things to Consider When Hiring an Editor
How to Edit Creative Writing for Clarity, Style and Substance
How to Find and Fix Plot Holes

If you have any questions about editing, feel free to get in touch and ask me. To learn more about the editing packages I offer, click on the editing page on my website! As a writer with a PhD, MA and BA in Creative Writing and a previous CW lecturer, I’ve done my fair share of high-level fiction editing, and have very happy testimonials. Get in touch today for dates, questions, and information. I’m always happy to chat!

I have just finished running the Writing Week Retreat with my fellow writer, editor and coach, Isobelle (of Inspired Creative Co.), and it was wonderful. We had some fantastic writers join us from around the world, and overall, the final word count for the week was over 50,000 words between us. That’s an amazing achievement for six days! Let’s talk about how we did it.

1 – Community

For me, there is nothing as powerful as community support when it comes to writing. I thrive when surrounded by writers, whether in real life or virtually, and I have witnessed the impact on others, too. During the retreat, we had two hour-long writing sprints a day. Having that dedicated time meant we could focus on our words with others.

Your Task: Find your community.

2 – Goals

My goal at the start of every hour-long writing sprint was to write as much as I knew I could – 1000 words in one hour. I know that I can write this because this is my creative data (if you’re not sure what I mean, check this blog post out!), and so I pushed myself to achieve this goal. This meant that my 12000 word achievement was my goal all along, and I am delighted to have made it!

Your task: Discover your creative data and set realistic goals.

3 – Plans

I’m a dedicated plotter, but during the retreat, I tried something completely different. I had an idea of where I wanted my story to go, and I discussed it with others, but overall I allowed myself to be a discovery writer. This means that the characters took me where they wanted to go, and out of that came a story I absolutely love. While it does differ from my original idea, I am loving the new tale, and the process is exciting and really fun.

Your task: Don’t be too rigid in terms of plans, allow yourself to discover too!

4 – Vision

To help visualise my finished book, I played with title ideas and covers on Canva. The mocked-up image is below! This sort of thing really helps when it comes to picturing the finished novel, which helps motivate me to create and write more.

Your task: Give your work in progress a title and a cover. It doesn’t have to be final.

5 – Craft

Despite having spent eight years in higher education learning the craft of Creative Writing, there is always more to learn. That’s why one of my values is education! During the retreat, Isobelle and I ran classes on everything from character arcs to raising the stakes, and our focus on that craft element helped tighten up my prose.

Your task: Don’t be afraid to improve your craft and take a class.

Are you looking for community, creativity, and craft advice? Well, stay tuned. We have more planned and can’t wait to share it with you.

If you still need to grab your copy of the Story Development Workbook (unfortunately, we have had issues with Etsy on their end!), it is now available. Click here to learn more because this workbook is jam-packed with help, and you don’t want to miss it!