- Character arcs. Look at the growth of your characters throughout the story. How does each start? What does he/she want? What epiphany do they reach? How do they end up? You may have done this before you started writing, but the arc might have changed as you wrote.
- Structure. Outline what happens in each chapter. Jot down just the gist of each. (If you outline before you write, do this anyway. It’s a good exercise, and often, if you’re like me, the original outline bears no resemblance to the final chapter.) You don’t need more than sentence or two. Think of it as the logline for each chapter. This helps me see the structure of the book. (And if you’re really industrious, you can map items 1 and 3 against this outline.) Then look at:
- Does the order make sense?
- What’s the purpose of each chapter? How does it advance the plot?
- What does each character want in the chapter? (Kurt Vonnegut said that every character had to want something, even if it was just a glass of water.)
- Who narrates? (This is for those of you, like me, who write in multiple POVs.) Is his or hers the best viewpoint to tell this part of the story?
- Do you have any gaps—in terms of plot or character arc or whatever?
There are probably a few other big picture things I look at before diving into the project-specific list, but I can’t think of them at the moment. I’m sure my editor will remind me!
What revisions tips do you guys have?