The End: Telling the Story Well

I’ve got the end down in my latest draft to my current project, and hope to make this my last draft; of course, a few final revisions are needed.

RECAP: In my last post, I proposed that once we write “The End” it’s time to look at the whole thing/the whole manuscript, focusing on the big picture. In my free time this past week (I have a full time job, too)—that’s exactly what I’ve been doing and will be at it another few days or more.

As I do, I’m looking for well-developed scenes which show action and pivotal turning points. I’m looking to get rid of redundancies and to fill in gaps as need. With all that in mind, the story needs to be paced well—not bogging the reader down, but moving them forward; excited for the next part.

Breaking it down, these are key things to look for:

• Paragraphs that are well structured with a beginning idea and a concluding sentence which will transition the reader to the next sentence. 

• Word choice to bring clarity and conciseness.

• Style and tone which conveys one’s personal voice, whether it be casual, formal, persuasive, or emotional. In my autobiographical story, an informal childlike voice is important in the chapter that explores my early childhood. As I age in my story, the formal tone in my voice becomes more heightened.

• Voice should be strong, leaning toward more active voice sentences and fewer passive voice sentences. In a sentence using active voice, the subject of the sentence performs the action expressed in the verb. Active voice involves the reader.

photojenni

Once I’ve read a chapter and it surpasses any fuss, I like to hit the “find all” tool to find and then weed out problem words. There are exceptions to the “rule” to get rid of a “problem word.” If in doubt, read the sentence, and the paragraph the sentence is in, problem word omitted—this usually determines if it stays or goes. 

Clarity with conciseness will move the reader through your chapters. I’ve made a list of my top ten, and you can easily add your favorite problem words.  

1.    began/begin/begun

2.    just

photojenni

3.    knew/know(n)

4.    probably

5.    quite

6.    really

7.    saw/see(n)/seeing

8.    start(ed)/starting

9.    that

10.    very

Some tried and true resources, I find especially helpful, and you may too:

• Active vs. Passive Voice:  Purdue OWL of Purdue University

• Basic editing program, no downloading:  Hemingway App

• Editing a Manuscript (Common Mistakes), 3-minute video.

• How to edit memoirs—a friendly approach to understanding the editing process, 3-minutevideo.

In a soon upcoming blog post, I’ll share about the line editing to follow. Feel free to comment—I’d like to hear about your writing journey.

-Elle-