Last week we talked about how to know when we’ve learned enough that we can start our editing process. As we discussed in that post, we all have a natural tendency to underestimate where we are on the learning curve because we don’t know what we don’t know.
That means we might think we’re ready to start our editing process before we really know what we’re doing, which can lead to us wasting time and/or money. Not to mention our endless frustration and struggles if we jump the gun.
Instead, as mentioned last week, we need an intelligent guess at where we are on the learning curve before starting the editing process because any advice will be of limited use if we’re not ready to understand.
In that post, Step Two advised us to create a “master list of craft skills.” With that list, we might have a better idea of where we fall on that learning curve, and we’ll get ideas of what skills we should study next.
Me, being the perfectionist that I am, decided to try to take on this project of working up a “master list” that we all can use. But I’m just one brain, so I’m going to get things started, and we can add to this list with your help. *smile*
I’m going to break down this project into three posts, one for each phase of editing:
- content/developmental editing (fix story and character-level issues)
- line editing (fix scene and paragraph-level issues)
- copy editing (fix sentence, word, and grammar-level issues)
The craft skills we’re discussing come up both when we draft and when we edit. After all, whatever we don’t understand during drafting will need to be fixed in editing, and editing generally happens in the order above (as there’s no point in polishing words in a scene that might be cut or entirely rewritten).
We started with story development and line editing, and now we’re continuing with copy editing…
What craft skills do we need to
understand and be able to apply
to perfect our writing?
What Is Copy Editing?
This phase of editing looks at the nitty-gritty: grammar and mechanics, word choice, verb tense, missing words, etc. We’re editing the copy—the actual text—on the page.
Do you know all these Copy Editing Skills? Here's a “master list”... Click To TweetMany of us learned the basics of copy editing in school: punctuation usage, watching out for homonyms, etc. Because of this familiarity, readers often feel qualified to point out nitpicky errors in the books they review.
Between our school experience and seeing reviewers pick on these kinds of errors, copy editing might be what we first think of when imagining going through an edit process. In fact, far too many publishers will complete only a copy editing pass or will do only a surface-level pass of the other phases.
I’ve lost track of how many authors think their work has been fully edited simply because of a glorified spelling and grammar check. However, I hope given those mega lists on the other posts, we now know just how important the other editing phases are as well. *smile*
That said, similar to line editing, we can’t effectively evaluate copy editors if we don’t know what the rules are. A sample edit won’t tell us whether a copy editor knows their stuff unless we know whether their changes are right or wrong.
The Ultimate List of Copy Editing Skills
(Disclaimers:
- Yes, this list is hella intimidating. We don’t—and can’t—learn everything at once.
- No, we don’t have to be skilled at all of these before moving forward in our publishing career. Many of these skills will be an ongoing learning process, and the advanced ones will only come with lots of time and practice.)
Don’t worry. This list gives us a map for our journey, but we’ll never reach the end because there’s always improvements we can make. There is no “done.” *smile*
We need to know:
Grammar Rules
- how to use and tweak grammar rules for our voice (we need to know and understand the rules before we can break or use them with intent)
- what makes a sentence complete or incomplete
- when we might want to intentionally use incomplete fragments (voice, emphasis, etc.)
- verb tense options (singular vs. plural, present vs. past vs. past perfect, first person vs. third person, etc.)
- what subject-verb agreement means
- what verb tense to use for our story (fiction is often written in past tense, but some genres/stories use present tense)
- how to identify and fix unintentional shifts in verb tense
- how to handle verb tenses in internalization (direct vs. indirect, first person vs. third person, etc.)
- how to handle verb tenses in flashbacks (in a past tense story, flashbacks would be past perfect, but we might be able to structure sentences and paragraphs to transition to normal past and avoid dozens of “had”s)
- how to construct and use compound nouns and compound verbs, especially with possessive use or mix of singular and plural
- how to construct and use possessives (and common mistakes)
- how to construct and use phrases and dependent clauses with main clause
- when to use modifiers and when not to (unnecessary, hurts clarity, slows pace, etc.)
- common mistakes with modifiers (too vague (“good,” “large,” etc.), dangling modifiers, drifting/squinting (too far from word modified for clear meaning), too many (if we modify everything, we’re emphasizing nothing), etc.)
- the difference between cumulative and coordinate adjectives and how to punctuate each
- how to identify and fix dangling and unclear modifiers
- the rules for dialogue paragraph breaks (change of speaker)
- what present and past participle phrases are and when we can (or should/shouldn’t) use them
- common errors with leading participle phrases and trailing participle phrases, such as overuse, impossible simultaneous action, etc.
- how to identify and fix comma splices and run-on sentences
- how to construct and use gerund phrases
- how to construct sentences with restrictive or nonrestrictive elements (including the difference between that and which)
- how to strengthen our writing by tightening and combining phrases
- the difference between fiction and non-fiction editing to follow the correct “rules”
- what subjunctive mood is and how/when to use it
Punctuation Usage
- how to use and tweak punctuation rules for our voice (we need to know and understand the rules before we can break or use them with intent)
- proper usage of quotation marks for dialogue
- when periods, commas, question marks, or exclamation points should go inside or outside quote marks
- how dialogue punctuation varies with dialogue tags vs. action beats (connected by a comma or separate sentences)
- punctuation rules for narrative interruptions of dialogue mid-sentence (commas vs. em-dashes)
- when are commas required (and where do they go)
- when are commas optional (and how we decide whether to use them—length of leading phrase, clarity of sentence or meaning, style sheet rules on serial/Oxford comma usage, etc.)
- the most common mistakes for comma usage (splitting compound verbs, separating subject and verb, missing paired commas for asides and appositives, missing necessary commas for compound sentences, missing paired commas for nonrestrictive element, etc.)
- how to properly use apostrophes for possessive (especially with plurals, compound nouns, etc.)
- the difference between hyphens, en-dashes, and em-dashes and when to use each
- when words should be separate, hyphenated, or combined (will power, will-power, or willpower, etc.), especially with adjectives
- how to write asides with either commas or em-dashes
- how to use em-dashes for emphasis
- the difference in reader impression of em-dashes vs. ellipses and when to use each
- how to appropriately use punctuation for rhythm and micro-level pacing
- the difference between colons and semicolons (and when to use each)
- how to use semicolons correctly (and the most common mistakes)
The Importance of the Right Words
- how word choice affects our voice, pace, tension, mood, tone, etc.
- the importance of being intentional with our writing
- how to find and fix our writing crutches (cliché gestures, etc.)
- how to find and fix unclear pronouns (including “it”) or dialogue attribution
- verify use of unfamiliar words (watch out for thesaurus overuse)
- what creates voice and what makes up our voice
- the difference between author voice and narrator/POV character voice
- how to choose words and metaphors appropriate to character voice or author voice
- the importance of strong verbs for narrative drive and showing vs. telling
- how to eliminate unnecessary adverbs with stronger verbs
- the importance of precise nouns for clarity and showing vs. telling
- how to avoid overusing words or echoing unintentionally repeated words
- how to find and fix word choice weaknesses
- how to balance the need for clarity with the problem of overusing proper names (especially in dialogue—people in real conversation rarely use each other’s names)
- how to handle unusual dialogue tags (if/when we should use words beyond said, asked, or whispered)
- how to fix common homonym and homophone issues (there/their/they’re, its/it’s, rain/rein/reign, horde/hoard, complement/compliment, etc.)
- how to choose from commonly misused words (everyday/every day, awhile/a while, then/than, less/fewer, farther/further, etc.)
- how to choose proper word form (breath vs. breathe, loath vs. loathe, envelop vs. envelope, etc.)
- how to mix sentence beginnings to avoid 3 or more in a row with same subject unless intentional
- how to identify and fix cliché phrases and ideas, such as avoiding a “mirror” description
- how to ensure each character has unique voice (humor, rhythm, style, word choice, etc.)
- how to pick the right words for tone/mood/feel
- what point of view (POV) means
- how word choice can affect point of view
- how deep POV can inspire unique writing
- how specific word choices can deepen POV to strengthen reader emotions
- how to use deep POV word choices for settings and make settings more vivid and avoid flat descriptions
- how to use word choice to layer character elements in subtext or fix issues with character likability, including for non-POV characters
- options to transition POV that won’t head-hop
- how to identify and fix out-of-POV issues
- how to get information from non-POV characters across to readers without head hopping
- the importance of varying words used for body language and other descriptors of emotion (avoid too many nods or facial expressions, etc., ignoring other sources of body language)
- how power words add emotional impact, especially at the beginnings and endings of sentences
- how word choice can add humor
- how to identify and fix issues with showing vs. telling
- how identify and eliminate filter words to get deeper POV
- how to strengthen our rhythm for voice
- how to use rhetorical devices to emphasize elements and strengthen voice
- how to emphasize and strengthen emotions with word choices
- how tweaking word choice can affect character motivations
- how intentional word choice can create deep echoes, foreshadowing, etc.
- how word choice can create subtext, symbols, motifs, metaphors, etc.
- how to use contrast for mood or emotion
- how word choice can strengthen and layer theme
Sentence Structure
- how sentence structure affects pacing and our voice
- the four types of sentences (simple, compound, complex, compound-complex) and the grammar and comma rules for each
- the different types of clauses (independent, dependent, relative, noun, adverbial, etc.
- the different types of phrases (noun, prepositional, adjective, adverb, verb, appositive, etc.)
- how to mix sentence structure (subordinate phrases, subject/verb/object, compound sentences, etc.) to avoid sense of repetition or monotone rhythm
- how to ensure our main action (strongest verb) isn’t buried in dependent clause
- how to identify passive voice and when/how to avoid
- how to avoid using “It was…” or “There was…” constructions (which bury the point of the sentence in a telling, passive phrase)
- how to check and fix parallelism errors (compound verbs in different forms, shared prepositions, etc.)
- how some structures can be harder for readers to parse than others (unless we’re careful)
- how fragments can be used for rhythm, voice, emphasis, etc.
Flow of Sentences and Ideas
- how to place paragraph breaks, order sentences, and weave sentences and phrases for smooth flow of ideas and reader attention
- what the main point of a paragraph is and how to move or cut sentences to support that purpose
- how to break paragraphs for clarity of speaker or action (identify who “owns” each paragraph)
- how to break or reorder paragraphs to “un-bury” dialogue from middle of paragraph
- options for attributing dialogue (and how to avoid confusing unattributed dialogue)
- how to identify and fix clunky or confusing sentences (often occur when we’re trying to include too many main ideas in one sentence)
- what we can do to improve clarity of our sentences
- how to mix various sentence lengths for pacing and flow
- how to use transition words to improve flow and clarity
- how to use Motivation-Reaction Units to check cause-and-effect sentence flow
- how to use phrases to provide context and avoid information dumps
- how to balance and mix various elements (narration, action, dialogue, emotion, etc.) to maintain pace and flow
- how to tighten sentences for stronger writing and pacing and to eliminate repetitive or extraneous words or ideas
- how to identify and fix repetitive ideas (reactions, sentence beginnings, sentence structure, character names, etc.) and overwriting
- the difference between dialogue tags vs. action beats
- the pros and cons of tags vs. beats for flow and pacing
- our habits of common missing words (tendency to skip “to, “the,” etc.)
- common extraneous words (“that,” “only,” “just,” “still,” “very,” stand vs. stand up, sit vs. sit down, etc.) and phrases
- how to use rhythm, metaphors, word choice, etc. to strengthen emotional impact
- how to identify and fix poor writing habits
Establishing Consistency and Accuracy
- the difference between fiction and non-fiction style, such as for comma usage, etc. (fiction tends to follow Chicago Manual of Style rules, and non-fiction usually follows AP or APA rules)
- what a style sheet is and what goes into one, such as:
- default style (CMOS vs AP, default dictionary, etc.)
- chapter formatting
- when to use italics (and how to avoid overuse)
- capitalization for unique words
- numerals vs. spelling out numbers
- use of serial commas
- hyphenization and spelling
- spacing around punctuation (em-dashes, ellipses, etc.)
- how to follow a publisher’s style sheet
- how to build and follow our unique style sheet (for self-published authors)
- how to check the accuracy of any researched story details (real-world settings, character jobs or backgrounds, etc.)
*whew* Yes, this post took as long to put together as you’d think (if not longer…ugh). Hopefully with this list, we can get a feel for where we are on the learning curve as far as copy editing skills. And as a bonus, this list might help us know what to look at for self-editing our writing. *smile*
Have you ever created a master list of writing skills? Were you able to come up with a list for copy editing? Can you think of additional skills we should add to this list?
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