When It’s Time To Move From Peer Feedback To A Professional Edit

Gary Smailes | 5 November 2025

Peer Feedback vs. Professional Editing: Different Tools, Different Outcomes

Peer groups give you the reader’s view. Think clarity, engagement, empathy for characters, and whether genre promises land. A partner circles the paragraph where attention drifted. Another underlines a joke that falls flat. Beta readers clock heat level in romance, clue fairness in mystery, and world rules in fantasy. Quick signals, real-time reactions, and plenty of gut checks.

A short example. Three partners read chapter one of a thriller. Notes include “lost during the alley chase,” “not sure who wants what,” and “voice hooked me.” Those lines point straight to clarity, stakes, and tone. Perfect early diagnostics.

Now the limits. Group advice swings subjective. One person loves the dual timeline. Another begs for a single thread. A third rewrites dialogue in a voice that mirrors personal taste. Notes arrive in fragments. No roadmap. No market context. Plenty of energy, thin cohesion.

A professional editor brings structure and a unified plan. Expect an editorial letter that frames strengths and core problems. Margin comments that anchor feedback to exact lines. A revision sequence that orders tasks from story bones to polish. Guidance that aligns with market norms on word count, trope treatment, and reader expectations in your shelf space.

Levels of Professional Support

• Manuscript assessment. Big-picture read with a clear letter on plot, pacing, character arcs, theme, and market fit. Minimal inline markup. Strong diagnosis for writers who want direction before deeper surgery.
• Developmental edit. Scene order, escalation, goals, conflict, point of view, and thematic throughline. Extensive comments plus a stepwise plan. Think blueprint and schedule.
• Line edit. Voice, rhythm, imagery, and clarity at paragraph and sentence level. Suggestions preserve tone while tightening flow. Expect queries about meaning and intention.
• Copyedit. Grammar, usage, and consistency. A style sheet tracks names, hyphenation, capitalization, numbers, timeline, and invented terms. Clean prose, fewer distractions.
• Proofread. Final pass after layout or a locked DOCX. Typos, spacing, punctuation, headers, page numbers. Quality control before upload or print.

Where Each Shines

Peer feedback shines during exploration and early shaping. Great for questions like:

• Where did attention slip.
• Which line felt false.
• When did stakes feel clear.
• Which image stuck after reading.

Professional editing shines when answers must feed a plan. Examples:

• Two beta rounds finished, yet plot logic still breaks in act two.
• Notes fight each other on tone and genre position.
• Dual timelines, complex magic, or heavy research raise risk without expert guidance.
• Query or publication schedule demands dates, deliverables, and accountability.

A Quick Audit to Guide Next Steps

Grab a notebook or a fresh doc. Twenty minutes. No overthinking.

1. List three improvements driven by peers. Examples, tighter opening, stronger empathy for the lead, clearer genre signal.
2. List three problems still haunting the draft. Examples, sagging middle, weak stakes, uneven voice, timeline slips.
3. Label each problem by level. Developmental, line, or copy.
4. Circle systemic gaps. Repeating structural pain points call for a manuscript assessment or a developmental edit. Mostly sentence-level concerns point to a line edit. A clean story with recurring typos points to a copyedit, followed by a proofread.
5. Note goals and constraints. Query deadline, self‑pub launch window, budget range, and tolerance for revision time.

One more check. Read peer notes from the latest round. If new comments repeat old concerns or fixate on commas while story issues linger, outside expertise will save time and sanity.

A Short Case Study

Kay wrote a romantic suspense with snappy banter and strong chemistry. Peers loved the meet‑cute and flagged confusion during two action beats. After revisions, fresh readers still stumbled in the same places. Advice split on point of view and heat level. Kay booked a manuscript assessment. The letter mapped a clean arc, identified a missing midpoint reversal, and set a pass sequence. Kay followed the plan, then returned for a line edit. Final betas read straight through. Query packet went out on schedule.

The takeaway stays simple. Peer groups reveal reader truth. Professional editors build a bridge from problem to plan. Use both, in the right order, and watch momentum return.

Clear Signals It’s Time to Upgrade

You hear the same notes. You fix them. The draft barely shifts. Time to change tools.

Diminishing returns

Early peer notes feel like a flashlight. Later rounds start to blur. New critiques echo old ones or zoom in on commas while act two still sags.

A quick tell. You have a folder full of “tighten here” and “love this” with no movement on plot logic or motivation. Or you have five edits of chapter one, while chapters ten through twelve scare every reader for the same reason.

Try this mini-test. Open your last three feedback sets. Highlight any repeated phrase. Lost. Confused. Flat. If those words cluster around the same pages, a professional edit will help break the loop.

Conflicting advice

One beta wants first person. Another pushes for distant third. One begs for more snark. Another warns the tone already bites. Friendly readers bring taste and heart, which matters. They do not bring market reference across many books.

A professional editor ties choices to audience and shelf. If you write cozy mystery, the voice floats warmer. If you write noir, the edge sharpens. If you pitch upmarket, theme and interiority rise. You need one tie-breaker with reasons anchored to genre norms and comps, not a vote.

Do this now. List the three hottest disagreements. Next to each, write which audience you aim to serve. If you feel unsure about that audience, you have your signal.

Scope exceeds the group

Some projects outrun volunteer help. Dual timelines chew focus. Epic fantasy needs system rules, political logic, and maps that line up. Memoir raises legal risk and ethical judgment. Narrative nonfiction demands sources, notes, and a spine that carries argument cleanly.

Peers read like readers. A big structure rebuild needs someone trained to sequence beats, manage escalation, and protect theme over 300 pages. Worldbuilding at scale needs continuity tools and a style sheet from day one. Heavy research needs fact checks and source trails. A group night in a cafe will not cover those needs.

Gut check. If you feel lost trying to order scenes. If your world rules change mid-book and you keep patching. If you stopped writing to Google for hours. Bring in an expert.

Stage shift

Different stages ask for different support. Querying agents means a strong synopsis, clean first pages, and a query letter that positions your work with precision. Planning to self-publish means production dates, a formatter on hold, and a live preorder or launch window.

Peers speak to reading experience. An editor will also shape materials that face the industry. Order of beats in a synopsis. First-page friction and hook. Positioning across comp titles. This shift rewards professional pressure early, before you send anything out.

Timeline and accountability

A draft with no deadlines tends to expand. A revision plan with dates shrinks chaos. A professional edit sets milestones and a sequence. Editorial letter delivery. Author review window. Q and A. Next pass.

If you need guardrails, invest in them. Agree to a calendar. Hold yourself to one pass at a time. No tinkering while the editor works. No multitasking across twenty fixes at once. Clear lanes save months.

Try a simple tool. A two-column table. Left column, scenes by number. Right column, the next action for each scene. Cut, move, deepen goal, fix timeline. Fill it in before you book. You will show up ready.

Specialized needs

Some stories require lived experience review. Writing outside your identity on race, disability, faith, or sexuality invites harm if handled without care. A sensitivity reader brings perspective, language, and context you do not hold. Hire someone with direct experience, clear scope, and a written report.

Nonfiction with claims needs fact-checking. Names, dates, quotes, citations. A professional will flag risk and suggest sources. Coaches help if you want process support. Weekly targets. Accountability. Notes on pages as you produce them, not weeks later.

Write a short brief for any specialist. Purpose. Questions. Boundaries. Tone goals. Keep it plain and transparent.

Actionable readiness checklist

Give yourself fifteen minutes. No drama. You need a quick yes or no on each line.

• Three or more beta rounds complete. Fresh readers each time.
• One full self-revision done, not piecemeal tinkering.
• Word count sits within genre range. If not, a plan exists to trim or expand.
• The draft feels stable. No open questions about premise, protagonist goal, or core stakes.
• Notes point to the same weak zones, across readers.
• Disagreements on POV, tone, or positioning slow you down.
• Project scope strains your group. Dual timeline, deep worldbuilding, complex research.
• You face a hard date. Queries going out. Preorder set. Production plan in motion.
• You want a roadmap with steps, not fragments.

If you tick four or more boxes, move to professional support. Not sure which level fits. Start with a manuscript assessment. It gives you diagnosis and a plan, without heavy markup, and it will point you to the next edit with confidence.

One last nudge. Respect what peer readers gave you. They handed over gut truth. Now pair it with professional structure. You will feel the difference in a week. And your pages will show it.

Match the Edit Type to Your Draft

Pick the right level of help and you save money, time, and sanity. Pick the wrong one and you polish sentences while the story wobbles. Use the guide below like a triage desk.

Manuscript assessment

Purpose: diagnosis without heavy markup. You receive an editorial letter with notes on plot, pacing, character arcs, theme, voice, and market fit. Think of it as a map before you start moving walls.

Choose this when:

• You want clarity on what works and what trips readers.
• You feel lost about structure or market position.
• You plan a major revision and want a plan, not line edits.

What you get:

• A letter, often 5 to 15 pages, with issues ranked by impact.
• Questions to test premise and stakes.
• Notes on genre range and comps, so placement on a shelf makes sense.

Quick test:

• Your questions start with “Does the story work,” “Is the goal clear,” “Where does the middle slow.”
• You have not locked scene order yet.

Sample note you might see:

• “Protagonist goal fades after chapter six, which weakens stakes through the midpoint. Set a visible objective for the middle stretch.”
• “Voice leans YA while content skews adult. Pick an age category and adjust diction and on-page content to suit.”

Skip this if you want close sentence work now. An assessment will not tune prose.

Developmental edit

Purpose: rebuild story structure and deepen character work. Expect in-text comments and a step-by-step revision plan. This edit shapes beats, escalation, POV, timeline, and theme.

Choose this when:

• Scenes need reordering.
• Stakes do not rise.
• Motivation reads thin or inconsistent.
• Dual timelines do not braid cleanly.
• World rules drift and you need continuity tools.

What you get:

• Margin comments tied to scenes.
• A roadmap with tasks by act or by thread.
• Optional checklists for timeline, subplots, and world details.

Quick test:

• You move scenes in your head during the shower.
• Betas keep saying “lost” or “confused” in the same chapters.
• You wrote a new ending because the old one had nowhere to land.

Sample developmental fix:

• Tighten act one to seven chapters. Introduce antagonist on page 30. Seed the clue from chapter twelve in chapter three to support payoff.

Avoid line-level polishing until after this pass. Trimming sentences before you cut or move scenes wastes effort.

Line edit

Purpose: refine voice, rhythm, and clarity at paragraph and sentence level. A line edit focuses on flow, imagery, tone, and reader ease. Expect cuts to filler, stronger verbs, cleaner transitions, and varied rhythm.

Choose this when:

• Structure holds firm.
• You want prose with snap and control.
• Readers trip on clunky phrasing, repetition, or muddled beats inside scenes.

What you get:

• Rewrites at sentence level.
• Notes on overused words, filter verbs, and cliché phrasing.
• Suggestions for paragraph breaks and interiority.

Quick test:

• You read aloud and wince.
• You see “was,” “felt,” or “seemed” on every page.
• Dialogue tags repeat. Beats wander.

Before and after:

Before: “She was feeling like the room was kind of closing in, so she started to slowly walk toward the window in order to take a breath.”

After: “The room pressed in. She crossed to the window and drew a breath.”

Save jokes, idiom, and voice choices you love. Use STET where voice trumps smoothness.

Copyedit

Purpose: correctness and consistency. A copyedit addresses grammar, usage, punctuation, and style. It also builds or updates a style sheet, which tracks names, hyphenation, capitalization, numbers, and timeline facts.

Choose this when:

• Story and sentences stand.
• You want clean, consistent pages ready for layout or upload.

What you get:

• Corrections for errors and unclear wording.
• Alignment with a style guide, often Chicago for books.
• A style sheet you or a proofreader will follow.

Quick test:

• Notes look like “who” vs “whom,” “lay” vs “lie,” serial comma, dialogue punctuation.
• Spelling for a place name shifts across chapters.
• Dates in the timeline do not match the weekday.

Example style decisions:

• email, not e-mail.
• health care as open compound.
• Numerals above ninety-nine spelled out in dialogue only.

Do not copyedit while you still plan to replace scenes or restructure chapters.

Proofread

Purpose: final catch before print or upload. A proofread hunts typos, missing words, layout slips, and weird page breaks. Best after layout, or on a locked DOCX if you will publish digital only.

Choose this when:

• You finished all edits.
• Files will not change, aside from typo fixes.

What you get:

• Marked typos, punctuation misses, and spacing errors.
• Flags for widows, orphans, bad breaks, and repeated words across page turns.

Quick test:

• You see “form” where you meant “from.”
• Quotation marks do not match.
• Chapter numbers skip.

A proofread protects your reputation. Do not skip it.

Adjacent services

• Sensitivity reader: authenticity review for lived experience across identity, culture, disability, faith, or sexuality. You receive a report with language notes, context, and harm flags. Hire readers with direct experience and clear terms.
• Query package edit: polish for query letter, synopsis, and opening pages. Focus on hook, comps, positioning, and clarity of stakes. Ideal before agent outreach.
• Book coaching: process and accountability across weeks or months. Regular goals, feedback on pages in progress, and support through blocks.

Diagnose by symptom

Use symptoms to route your draft to the right help.

Structure problems:

• Sagging middle.
• Stakes stall.
• Confusing timeline.
• Subplots vanish.

Pick: developmental edit. If you feel unsure about scope, start with a manuscript assessment for diagnosis.

Voice and flow:

• Flat or inconsistent tone.
• Cluttered sentences.
• Repetition and filter words.

Pick: line edit.

Errors and consistency:

• Grammar slips.
• Style shifts for hyphenation, numbers, or capitalization.
• Timeline and names wobble.

Pick: copyedit.

Final polish:

• Typos.
• Formatting glitches.
• Odd page breaks after layout.

Pick: proofread.

Two quick exercises

1. Five-page test. Print five pages from three spots: opening, midpoint, climax. Mark in three colors: blue for story confusion, green for sentence rough spots, red for errors. The color with most marks points to the edit you need.

2. One-sentence brief. Write one sentence for your main goal before editing. Examples:

   • “I need a plan for restructure and market position.” Go assessment or developmental.
   • “I want prose that reads clean and strong.” Go line edit.
   • “I want error-free pages for production.” Go copyedit or proofread.

Order matters. Structure first, then sentences, then correctness, then final proof. If doubt lingers, start with a manuscript assessment. You will finish with clarity, a sequence, and pages ready for the next step.

Prepare Your Manuscript, Brief, and Budget

Skip this prep and you pay for edits you did not need. Do it well and the edit moves fast, stays focused, and hurts less.

Tighten before you book

Trim the draft yourself first. Editors are not cheap, and you know your scenes better than anyone.

• Scene audit. For each scene, write three lines: Goal, Conflict, Outcome. If a scene lacks one of those, cut or repurpose it.
• Cut the echoes. Repeated beats, doubled reveals, recap dialogue. Keep the strongest instance and move on.
• Check entrances and exits. Start late, leave early. If a scene opens with greetings and closes with logistics, snip them.
• Track POV load. One POV per scene unless the shift serves a clear purpose.
• Reduce word bloat. Target a lean pass. Aim for a 5 to 10 percent cut. Your future self will thank you.

Quick exercise: print a chapter and mark each sentence with G for goal, M for move, or S for stall. If S marks crowd the margins, you have trimming to do.

Build a sharp Editor Brief

An editor will ask questions. Save time by answering them up front on a single page. Think of it as the job spec for your book.

Include:

• Title, genre, and age category.
• Word count and target audience.
• Two or three comp titles from the last five years.
• One-sentence logline with protagonist, goal, obstacle, stakes.
• Where you feel strong.
• Known concerns and specific questions.
• Goals for the edit and your production plan.

Sample one-page Editor Brief:

• Title: The Quiet Field
• Genre and age: Literary thriller, adult
• Word count: 84,000
• Audience: Readers who like Tana French and Attica Locke, slow-burn crime with moral tension
• Comps: The Searcher, Bluebird, Bluebird
• Logline: A disgraced botanist returns to her hometown to settle her father’s estate, then uncovers a land grab tied to a missing boy, and risks her safety to expose it
• Strengths: Atmosphere, sense of place, dialogue
• Concerns: Sagging middle, motive for the final reveal, timeline in the dual past-present thread
• Goals: Clarity on structure and market fit, then a line edit on the next pass
• Plan: Query agents in six months, open to a two-pass engagement
• Notes: Two rounds of beta reads done, feedback consistent on middle third

This brief sets expectations. It also flags where you want pushback.

Deliver clean files and context

Give your editor a tidy package. You get better feedback when they are not fighting formatting.

• File format. DOCX. Double spaced. 12-point serif like Times New Roman or 11-point like Georgia. One-inch margins. Paragraphs indented with Styles, not tabs.
• Structure. Clear chapter headings. Use a single, consistent scene break marker, for example three asterisks on a line. No fancy fonts, no text boxes.
• Track Changes. Off when you send. Name files with version and date, for example QuietField_MS_v6_2025-03-10.docx.
• Back matter. Include a brief note with your questions and the Editor Brief as a PDF.

Create a working style sheet. Your editor will expand it. Start simple.

Style sheet starter:

• Names and forms: Jayden Morales, Jay. Dr. Viola Chen, Dr. Chen after first use.
• Places: Riverside High, East Mill Road, The Grove.
• Capitalization: magic as common noun, The Binding for the ritual’s formal name.
• Hyphenation and compounds: email, health care, high school, six-year-old.
• Numbers: dates as June 12, 2027. Use numerals for technical specs. Spell out one through nine in narrative.
• Spelling: American English, Merriam-Webster.
• Timeline anchors:
  • Monday, June 12, 2027, car crash, 9:40 p.m.
  • Tuesday, June 13, hospital discharge, 11:00 a.m.
  • Friday, June 16, court hearing, 2:00 p.m.

A solid style sheet prevents drift. It also keeps continuity threads from slipping through the cracks.

Plan your timeline

Editing is a relay, not a sprint. Build buffer. Leave air for revisions.

A common sequence:

• Manuscript assessment, 2 to 3 weeks with the editor, then 4 to 8 weeks for your revision.
• Developmental edit, 4 to 8 weeks with the editor, then 6 to 12 weeks for your revision.
• Line edit, 2 to 4 weeks with the editor, then 2 to 3 weeks for your polish.
• Copyedit, 1 to 3 weeks with the editor, then 1 week for queries and fixes.
• Proofread, 1 to 2 weeks after layout or final DOCX.

Add production tasks:

• Formatting and design, 1 to 3 weeks.
• ARC window for reviews, 4 to 8 weeks.
• Query window, ongoing, but prep takes 1 to 2 weeks for query letter and synopsis.

Example plan for an 80,000-word novel:

• Month 1, assessment. Month 2, revise.
• Months 3 to 4, developmental edit. Months 5 to 6, revise.
• Month 7, line edit and polish.
• Month 8, copyedit.
• Month 9, proofread and finalize files.
• Month 10, query or upload, with ARCs in play.

Rushing costs money and quality. Build breathing room.

Budget with eyes open

Know your numbers before you book. Rates vary by editor experience, genre, and scope. Check current ranges on the EFA and CIEP sites, then do the math.

Ways editors price:

• Per word, most common for books.
• Per project, after a sample and scope discussion.
• Hourly, often for assessments or coaching.

Expect:

• A deposit to hold dates, often 25 to 50 percent.
• Clear delivery dates tied to receipt of your files.
• Extra fees for rush, heavy rewrite, or extra rounds.

Example math for 80,000 words, for planning only:

• Manuscript assessment, flat fee, 500 to 2,000, depending on depth and length of the letter.
• Developmental edit at 0.04 per word, 3,200.
• Line edit at 0.03 per word, 2,400.
• Copyedit at 0.02 per word, 1,600.
• Proofread at 0.01 per word, 800.

You do not need every service every time. If structure needs help, put money there first. If structure sings, move funds to line and copy.

Do not forget adjacent costs:

• Sensitivity read, priced by scope and page count.
• Cover design and interior layout.
• ISBNs, distribution fees, ARCs, and ads for a self-pub launch.

Track it all in a simple sheet. Date, vendor, service, rate, deposit, balance, due date.

Lock the contract

Read the agreement before you sign. If something feels fuzzy, ask for a line in writing.

Key items to confirm:

• Scope, pages or word count, and the exact level of edit.
• Deliverables, length of editorial letter, margin comments, style sheet.
• Number of passes, one pass or two, and what triggers a new fee.
• Timeline, start date, delivery date, review window for you, response time for the editor.
• Communication, email, calls, or both, and how often.
• File handling, version control, and backups.
• Confidentiality and credit language.
• Payment schedule, deposit amount, milestones, late fees.
• Kill fee, what you owe if you cancel mid-project.
• Rights, you retain copyright, the editor has permission to reference the work in a private portfolio only if you approve.

Save the signed PDF in your project folder. Label it clearly.

Actionable steps for this week

• Do a 10 percent trim pass on your draft.
• Build your one-page Editor Brief.
• Create a style sheet with names, places, and timeline anchors.
• Set a draft timeline through proofread, with buffers.
• Research two or three editors through EFA or CIEP, then request a small sample edit, 1 to 5 pages. Include your brief and a single question you want answered.

A little prep before you hire pays off twice. Your editor focuses on the work that moves the book forward. You keep control of budget, schedule, and voice.

Find, Vet, and Collaborate with the Right Editor, Then Implement Well

You are about to bring a partner into your book. Choose with care, set the rules, then work the plan.

Where to look

Start with places that vet their members.

• EFA, Editorial Freelancers Association.
• CIEP, Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading.
• ACES, the Society for Editing.
• Reedsy, review profiles with genre filters.
• SCBWI for children’s and YA.
• Genre groups, RWA, HWA, SFWA industry boards, or local chapters.
• Referrals from authors you trust. Check acknowledgments pages in books like yours.

Shortlist editors who work in your category and genre. A brilliant nonfiction editor is not the right fit for your epic fantasy.

How to vet an editor

You want evidence, not vibes.

• Portfolio excerpts. Ask for before and after samples or anonymized passages.
• Testimonials with detail. Specific wins beat generic praise. Look for comments about clarity, structure, and professionalism.
• Training and background. Programs, apprenticeships, in-house experience, house style guides used.
• Specialty. Think romance pacing, SFF worldbuilding, memoir structure, academic citations, or picture book rhythm.
• Sample edit. A short test, 1 to 5 pages, tells you more than a brochure.

Good signs:

• Notes point to causes, not only symptoms. For example, “This scene sags because the goal resets, which stalls stakes.”
• Comments are precise and respectful. You feel smarter, not flattened.
• They ask about your vision, comps, and publishing path.

Red flags:

• Guarantees of agent offers or sales.
• Price is the only selling point.
• Heavy rewrites in their voice without explanation.
• Vague notes like “tighten” with no direction.
• Missed emails during the inquiry phase.

Questions to ask on a call:

• What level of edit do you recommend based on my pages?
• What will I receive, length of editorial letter, style sheet, inline comments?
• How do you handle author voice and STET?
• What is your timeline, start date, and delivery plan?
• How do you define a heavy rewrite and extra fees?

A quick inquiry email that works:

• Hello [Name],
• I have an 82,000 word [genre, age category] titled [Title]. I am looking for a [type of edit] in [month range]. I attached a one-page brief with comps, concerns, and goals. Would you be open to a 3 page sample edit and a quote? Thank you, [Your Name].

Communication fit

Agree on tools and formats before any files move.

• Track Changes in Word or suggest Google Docs. Choose one system.
• Comment style. Margin notes only for assessment, or direct line edits for line and copy.
• Feedback format. Editorial letter plus inline comments is standard for big-picture work.
• File names. Title_MS_v5_2025-02-21.docx. Title_SampleEdit_3pp.docx.
• Response norms. Weekly check-in or email only at milestones. Set expectations now.

House rules to send your editor:

• Please keep comments specific to cause and effect.
• Flag any recurring issue once, then use a shorthand tag.
• If a fix requires new content over 100 words, leave a note, do not draft in my voice.
• Use STET for lines you think should stand, with a brief reason.

Collaboration norms

Treat the edit like a handoff. Let them work without interference.

• Do not revise while they are editing. You break version control and slow the work.
• Keep a single source of truth. Back up to cloud and local. No branching drafts.
• Read the full editorial letter before asking questions. Twice if needed. Then send one organized list.

About STET. It means leave it as is. Use it to protect voice or intention. Example:

• Editor change: “He ain’t going” to “He is not going.”
• Your reply: STET for dialect in this character’s dialogue. House style applies elsewhere.

Ask for clarity, not line-by-line debate. A quick call after your first pass through the letter often resolves the thorniest points.

Implement feedback without losing your mind

You need a system. Here is one that works.

1. Triage the notes.

   • Developmental, structure, plot, timeline, character arcs.
   • Line, voice, rhythm, imagery, clarity at paragraph and sentence level.
   • Continuity, names, ages, distances, timelines, style choices.

2. Build a change log.

   • Scene number, location, summary, issues, actions, status.
   • Example entry:
     • 17, Marina, “Confrontation at the pier.” Issue, motive thin. Action, add reveal of brother’s debt in setup scene 12, tweak stakes line in 17, remove joke undercutting tension. Status, planned.

3. Revise in passes.

   • Pass 1, structural fixes by scene order and beats.
   • Pass 2, character and motivation threads.
   • Pass 3, line and clarity polish.
   • Pass 4, continuity and style sheet sweep.

4. Use a scene map.

   • One line per scene. Goal, conflict, outcome. Color code by POV. You will spot missing steps fast.

5. Set micro deadlines.

   • Two chapters per weekday. One longer block on Saturday. Rest Sunday. Adjust to your life and stick to it.

A small exercise for overloaded notes. Pick one recurring issue, for example weak stakes. Write a rule for it, for example, “Every scene must raise risk or cost.” Run the manuscript with only that lens. Then move to the next rule.

Validate the new draft

Big changes need outside eyes before you lock prose.

• Targeted beta read. Give three readers a short brief. Ask only about the changed areas.
• Sensitivity read when your book touches lived experiences outside your own. Do this before copyedit.
• If the edit reshaped tens of pages, book a quick follow-up check with your editor. A short memo or an hour of coaching often saves a round later.

Once structure holds, move to line and copy. Keep a style sheet updated with every decision. Dates, spellings, hyphenation, treatment of numbers, and any world terms.

A simple workflow that keeps you sane

• Book editor and confirm scope, dates, and deliverables.
• Send clean files and your brief.
• Receive editorial letter. Take a 48 hour cooling read, no replies, no edits.
• Build a scene-by-scene task list and change log.
• Revise in passes, one issue type at a time.
• Run a quick sanity check with a trusted beta on changed sections.
• Line edit, then copyedit with a style sheet in hand.
• Proofread the laid-out file or final DOCX.
• Ship, upload, or query.

Pick an editor who respects your goals. Set clear terms. Do the work in a steady order. That is how you move from a pile of notes to a book you feel proud to send into the world.

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