Rewrite to Reimagine: A Writer's Secret Weapon for Manuscript Revision

From book idea to publication and beyond.

Happy Saturday! In today’s newsletter you’ll learn:

📚 The unconventional strategy I use to revise a draft

📝 Why you might try it

👉 How to incorporate this strategy into your revisions

I powered through my second draft of my WIP using the methods I described in a previous newsletter. You can read about them here. Now that I’ve made notes on my pages (alongside my book coaches’ intext comments), I’ve returned to my screen and started making changes, considering what my book coach wrote and my own thoughts in my handwritten notes. For me, this is a fairly laborious process, mostly because my handwriting is nearly illegible, but also because I don’t want to miss any of the bigger issue items as I make changes.

Photo by Alisa Anton on Unsplash

Once I’ve completed all of the changes, I’ll let it sit for a bit, but then I’ll do something that is not for the faint of heart. It’s a strategy that you might outright reject, and I wouldn’t blame you for it one bit.

Let me give you some backstory. A few years ago, I was working with my editor to prepare my debut novel, Sisu’s Winter War, for publication. My manuscript was in Word. He was using another program to make intext comments. For awhile, our programs played nicely together. Until they didn’t. I had a little panic attack when I realized the comments weren’t aligning with the text and there was no way to correct it. Meanwhile, my lovely editor had taken a well-deserved holiday at his Northern Ontario camp, out of reach of cell phone towers. I was on my own to figure it out. And, like the trooper I am (or try to be), I worked on the puzzle, determining which comment referred to which section, leaving any mysteries behind for a later conversation.

I knew I couldn’t send my completed manuscript to the publisher in this state. It had been such a messy document, and I worried that I hadn’t caught everything. So, I took three days to retype my entire 100 000 word manuscript from scratch. No cutting and pasting. Just typing and thinking and revising.

Do I recommend retyping your work? Yes, in fact, I do. I do not, however, suggest you do it in three days. My aching shoulders did not appreciate this method in a short time frame.

So why do I recommend this strategy? And why will I do it again with this manuscript?

There’s something about the blank page that can be very intimidating to authors when we’re just working out our stories. It can go in any direction. We have SO many choices. But, once the story is written, and rewritten, and revised again, a blank page can be a bit of freedom we need to push our stories just that much further.

When I’m revising a document on the screen, yes, I will add things, change things, delete whole paragraphs, even, but having the text in front of me makes me feel a little more constrained. I tend to potter about, rearranging things, but not taking any real risks.

Typing a fresh document with my manuscript printed beside me reminds me that I can change ANYTHING in this moment. I’m not constrained to the version I’ve printed or my handwritten notes. I’m more likely to change whole sections, revise the order, or rework sentences because I have to type them out anyway, so why not make them even better?

If you attempt this method, take it from me, you’ll want to give yourself plenty of time. Don’t rush this process. Give it a try with even just one chapter, and see if it opens something unexpected for you. It certainly did for me.

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Here are a few suggestions for your type and revise:

• Let your draft sit for awhile

• Print out your work-in-progress

• Decide how many pages you’ll retype in a sitting

• Take your time considering what changes you want to make

• Allow yourself to make big, bold changes

• Use the read aloud feature to hear what your revisions sound like

• Caveat: Make sure you kept your original draft in case you change your mind!

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📚 Upcoming Offerings:

WOMEN WRITING MENTORSHIP PROGRAM

Embark on a transformative year-long journey and unlock your full storytelling potential. Imagine developing the foundational elements for your novel or memoir, completing a flexible roadmap, and drafting your entire manuscript, or revising your work-in-progress. Picture the satisfaction of achieving your writing goals with unwavering support and encouragement every step of the way. Join a vibrant community of passionate writers who share your aspirations and dreams.

The Women Writing Mentorship includes:

• A weekly 90-minute Zoom call including a check in, writing prompt, craft discussion, and group conversation (Sundays, 6:30-8:00 PM EST)

• Completion of Author Accelerator’s Blueprint for a Book or Blueprint for a Memoir (for those who have not yet completed the Blueprint)

• Completion of an Inside Outline (for fiction) or an Impact Outline (for memoir) for those who need an outline

• A completed draft of your novel or memoir or a full revision of a work-in-progress

• Support and encouragement to reach your individual goals

• Resources to support your individual genres

• Inspirational content & individualized goal setting

• An online portal for conversation with members

• Deadlines and accountability to meet your goals

• Opportunities for peer-feedback

• Craft discussion & mini-lessons; hot seat coaching

• A community of like-minded individuals with similar goals

• Access to a certified book coach

Plus, optional personalized feedback on your pages followed by a 1:1 Zoom call is available for an additional fee.

As a member of the Women Writing Mentorship Program, you’ll also enjoy a complimentary subscription to Women Writing, including the following:

• Weekly inspirational author features

• The Women Writing Podcast

• Book Coach Writes a Book newsletter with writing and process tips

• Access to monthly Substack Live chats

• Plus, the Women Writing Circle: two biweekly 90-minute writing sessions per month (2nd & 4th Mondays of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST)

• AND, a monthly 90-minute accountability session (1st Tuesday of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST)

Are you ready to commit to your project? Is this your year? Reserve your spot by emailing me and I'll add you to the list! We start on May 1, 2025. I'm dedicated to helping you reach your writing goals. Take the leap and make your writing dreams a reality.

If you have any questions, please contact me. And please share with writers who might benefit from this program.

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Rekindle Creativity Women’s Writing Retreat: Spring Getaway

We still have a few spaces left! Join us for a weekend getaway at The Lodge at Pine Cove in beautiful French River, Ontario to reconnect with yourself and your writing, and make connections with a small group of fellow writers. What a wonderful way to celebrate the spring by rekindling your personal creativity and sparking your ideas. Dinah Laprairie and I can’t wait to welcome you.

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Women Writing Circle

• The Women Writing Circle meets on the second and fourth Monday of the month from 6:30-8:00 PM EST.

• These offerings are for paid subscribers ($8 USD/month). You can learn more about the benefits of subscribing here.

Bonus: As a paid subscriber, I’m offering a complimentary 30-minute book coaching call as a thank you. You can take advantage of that call to chat about your book idea, work-in-progress, publishing options, or anything else you’d like to discuss.

Happy writing!