Why is it a Challenge to Critique Your Book while Editing?

Today's guest post comes from our friends at Regent Editing

“I can't see any flaw in this book!! I revised it three times, would you believe? Is there any problem with this book or the publisher's choice is sour?” The anger and frustration were clearly evident on the raging face of my friend who had completed writing his book in the span of two years and now stalked the doors of the publishing houses. When I met Harry, I stopped wondering why is it tough to find the faults or scrutinize your own work. Here are few of the reasons that I have observed why a writer could not find mistakes in his book:

• Emotional Attachment Won't Let You Find Mistakes in Your Writing
  It is a psychological fact that the writer gets too emotionally attached to its creation, its characters and falls in love with each of the words he wrote. While editing, he only sees the words, language, the imagery only the way he imagined to be instead of actually spotting what he actually wrote.
  
  
• Rejection Straightly Drags You Out of the Favoritism
  Rejection is a devastating blow for the newbie authors who are still juggling in the process of exploring the different dimensions of their personality through experimenting with the writing. Favoritism confines you to only a comfort room where you live madly in love with your writing and book. So, even if the publisher has asked you to make a few changes in your manuscript, you decide to skip that publisher and approach the other instead of giving your manuscript a fresh pair of eyes.

​

• Your Brain Builds Map Which Makes Your Editing Plan Disorganized

During the writing phase, your mind worked on to picture the visuals, characters, plot twists, dialogues and everything which you executed well. So, when you re-read this twice or thrice, your brain automatically recites the same things to you while reading. This makes you skip the flaws, typos, mistakes, or ambiguity either in the language or the concept of the written work. And, then you end up saying “Everything is in place; it's just fine”.
 

• Impostor Syndrome Might Be the Cause Preventing Self-Editing

If you are preventing yourself or others from looking your book manuscript closely, the reason could be your fear what if someone finds out that you do not excel in what you ought to be. And, you keep your book locked up until you show it to the publishers, you are no way ready to face the decision.
 
You would find infinite ways that just don't make it possible for you to edit your book all by yourself. You might not be that perfect in critiquing your work or evaluating things from the other side of the table. Well, you must do that if you wish to get it published and turn it into a best seller this year!

​

• Listen To Your Manuscript With The Other Voice

You can enable the option of Narrator in your Windows PC which would read your manuscript loud to you. Having heard your write-up, you will easily get to know the areas of improvement.

• Choose A Critique Partner Before Going For An Editor

Where many of the authors are hiring professional editors, it would be a good advice if you choose a critique partner over the editor. An editor would only edit and give the manuscript back to you whereas a critique partner would collaboratively work with you providing you with the opportunity to improve your writing.

• Hire A Book Editor For Quality Improvement

If you do not find any critique partner, you can hire any of the professional editors having experience in editing the books regarding language, story, plot, literary devices. A second hand you may call it.