Editing

Editing is crucial for writers. However, when editing your own work, it is often easy to miss or overlook problems. This is usually because you are so familiar with your own work that your mind automatically replaces the tiny typo with the correct word.
There are also times where your mind will completely overlook glaring holes in your plot line, because you know what your story is supposed to look like.
Let’s skip the simple editing problems, like typing errors, or grammatical errors, and take a look at some larger issues.
Ask yourself:
Is there a clear, believable main plot?
Does the plot move fast enough to grab the reader’s attention?
Have you glossed over important details?
Are action scenes written in a direct fashion, propelling the reader along?
Does the description of the setting transport you into the fictional world?
Do the descriptions amble on for pages or are they interspersed throughout the story?
Does the order of events remain consistent throughout the story? Has someone who died on page 54 come back to life on page 87?
Don’t be afraid to cut whole sections out of your work. If there are any redundant scenes or descriptions, take them out, or perhaps rephrase them with stronger writing. Once you have ruthlessly skimmed all the fat out of your story, re-read it again. You will usually find that your tale is much easier to read than it was before you edited.

John Dean