What to do after you finish your first draft

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Let’s talk about how to edit your book, starting with the first draft! Finishing the first draft of your book is both a thrilling and terrifying experience. Turns out, writing was the easy part! Now comes the journey of editing and polishing your manuscript. Luckily for you, I’ve had plenty of experience with novel editing and am here to share my insight! As your loyal Cyborg Queen, I am sharing tips on how to edit your first draft, including why you should take a break from your writing, how to put together a game plan for your book editing process, when to do the first read through of your first draft, and more! So if you’ve been wondering how to self edit your book, you’re overwhelmed by the prospect of editing your own book, or you want to learn more about the basics of self-editing, this video was made for you! Be sure to stick around, too, because in the spirit of giving, I’m including a bonus tip at the end! 🎁
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[@yourmum741]

I'm nowhere NEAR finishing my first draft... but i love Jenna's videos so ill watch anyways 😂

[@ChuckMeIntoHell]

Same!

[@josefinasotes796]

Oh same

[@downtherabbithole8998]

Same lmao 😂

[@Hikari156]

Legit me right now.

[@angieahite2597]

Sameeeeeeeee

[@peterdbaker]

Yeah, I’m frankly sick of my first novel. But it’s gonna get done.

[@eyesfromtheabyss9410]

"The first attempt of anything is always a mess, that's why God made men first", I was just watching the video, very seriously taking mental notes, and I just had to stop and laugh for like 5 minutes straight, right when you think Jenna will give totally serious advise she come up whit the funnies shit, out of nowhere, and for what.

[@ser5528]

jenna with the casual sexism again

[@christinea7092]

I second this. Just had to stop to have a good laugh myself. XD

[@themasterofterriblecgi5498]

I was just about to comment the exact same thing!

[@StimpyRM]

Same!!! Laughed out loud and immediately looked for someone having the same response

[@marjorielopez653]

I'm 80 pages into writing and i still cant fathom how some authors have written dozens of 6 humdred page books edit: I FINISHED MY BOOK AND JUST HAVE ABOUT 200 PAGES

[@surgeorosgo]

Hey congratulations!! I'm still writing my 1st novel. I would love to be a beta reader for you if you want one. I'm trying to meet other novelists and get ideas to help me write mine, so I would be honored to read your book.

[@warshield924]

"The first attempt at anything is always a mess. That's why God made man first." As both a man and an atheist this is the humor I love. Literally laughed out loud.

[@UGNAvalon]

“If you’re watching this video, there’s a good chance you’ve just finished the first draft of your book.” *Me, who hasn’t even started outlining yet:* Nah, I just want to be ready for when that horrific phase inevitably comes.

[@Nickilob2006]

Me who wants to edit my 3rd draft: yeah yeah, totally only first draft

[@yannsiee]

Same

[@kreepykittycreations]

I started editing several novellas I wrote before taking a writing course - they're now 98% red pen 😅😂🤣😂 at first it looked overwhelming, but then I got really happy ☺ despite all 4 novellas having to be completely restructured and rewritten, it made me happy that I'd learned enough to realise how shitty they were 😅😂 Omg, the adverbs and head-hopping!!!! *past me digs hole to hide in* 😁

[@surgeorosgo]

Wow. 4 novels? That's awesome. I'm working on 1 at a time. Lol. I would love to be a beta reader for you if you need/want one. I'd love to read all 4 of them. I'm trying to learn from other writers to become better myself.

[@kreepykittycreations]

@@surgeorosgo I really should work on one at a time 😅 I think you have the right idea! Much less overwhelming 😳 Oh my gosh, that would be amazing, thank you so much for offering! 🥰 Only 1 of them is ready for reading, and it's quite a hard-core horror, though 😶

[@ThePeriwinkleWitch]

Me: /struggling to come up with an outline for a vague story idea/ Jenna: Wanna know how to edit your first draft? Me: Yes. /watches the whole video even though I know I'll have to rewatch it in the future/

[@SkykiUwU]

Same 😂

[@taz2906]

“The first version is always a mess; that’s why God made man first.” 😂😂 sheer perfection

[@theloniousbrown701]

Hahah even though we was all women first in the womb

[@jessjohns7723]

I'm not at this stage yet, but I'm eager! P.S. I was completing a writing excercise, which asked the question: "Which book or author do you find most inspiring, and why?" I wrote: "Jenna Moreci, because she is raw, gives no shits, is an underdog in the writing world who made it big on her own, gives great/honest writing advice, is funny, and she's selfless." 💖

[@lilijennings7316]

Wow, perfect timing! I'm almost done with my first draft! I guess now I have to work on it and not procrastinate!

[@iferawhite7661]

Same here! I expect to be done before Christmas time... It's crazy to imagine that I'm actually gonna get through the first draft after the years I've spent writing things and deleting them all and writing things again.. :o

[@lilijennings7316]

@@iferawhite7661 Wow! I might be in a similar position as you then! I just finished the first draft on Christmas Eve (pretty great Christmas present, if you ask me) and I've been working on it for years!

[@surgeorosgo]

@@lilijennings7316 That is pretty awesome. Congratulations! I'm a writer looking for inspiration from other writers. I would love to be a beta reader for you. Please let me know if that's something you'd be interested in.

[@surgeorosgo]

@@iferawhite7661 That's awesome. Congratulations. I'm looking to become a beta reader for writers in order to help others but to read people's work to get inspiration for my own novels. If you would like, I would love to read your draft. Let me know if you do.

[@christalunn1143]

I'm currently in the "take a break" period after finishing draft one. I'll get there.

[@CW-dl2dd]

Just one chapter away from finishing my rough draft. How is it going?

[@christalunn1143]

@@CW-dl2dd I finished that book, it's with my editor friend. And an entire second book since then :)

[@CW-dl2dd]

@@christalunn1143 Sounds great!

[@HouseOfAlastrian]

Over the years, pantsing has been how I write. I have written some decent stories that way... but the latest attempt was not particularly great. I was getting frustrated trying to edit it because it seemed impossible to make something decent out of it. So I took a step back and decided that I'm going to rewrite the whole thing. This time, doing what I have never done before... plot outline! So... I get to rewrite the first draft all over again... yay? Well hopefully I can produce something I can actually work with this time... but this is the first time I'm not pantsing this... so we'll see. And then I'll have this advice here to keep in mind.

[@dariakey5318]

Just wanna cheer you up in you attempt! I do in everytime after writing the first draft. Not really because the 1st draft is shit, but because the 1st draft for me is learning what story I should have written but didn't. My normal way of working is creating an outline AFTER the 1st draft, and what goes after this is the 2nd draft for me. Maybe you's better call yours the 2nd, too. It's not that discouraging imho.

[@HouseOfAlastrian]

@@dariakey5318 Thanks for the kind words. Also... pantsing for the first draft then plotting for the second while taking to heart the problems from the pantsing attempt. Sounds like an approach worth trying.

[@ghostfacedude93]

ugh...the first draft IS the outline. come on man.

[@samuelpientznauer4104]

all i do is just stare at my drafts waiting it to turn into a physic version of my best seller

[@faithmacgregor340]

I just finished Nano for the first time! Sadly I am not quite done as it epic length but I look forward to editing! Thank you Jenna!

[@pringlebatch]

Same here! Hope your remaining first draft stage goes well xx

[@Inpwmdwa]

I finished my first draft, but im happy that it is somewhat readable in regards to story and plot. Working on the second book now already ready to get to the third

[@NEszti-cw5qc]

You must be a mind reader, Jenna because this video was exactly what I needed.

[@FoxywriterVT]

I always hope beyond hope that this will be the novel that my editor says is great and needs few changes. Then when I get the truth, I sigh really deeply, take a week off to process, and then jump hard into the edits. I am glad to hear that I'm already doing most of these in my own editing, though I like the idea of trying to use colour coding again. I attempted to do it with my first novel and... well, my first novel was unsalvagable, so I didn't try it again. That was over ten years ago though and I've since published. Its probably worth relooking at again to see if it will work for me now. Thanks.

[@Evangelin99]

I love Jenna's channel, so I felt compelled to give her book a read. English is not my first language, and sometimes I struggle to understand some things. So, I thought I'd see if I could find the Spanish translation online. Turns out there's no Spanish version yet, which is a bummer. I ended up deciding to buy the book anyway and just keep an English dictionary close by. But I found an outstanding amount of bad reviews. I'm shocked at the number of people saying she promised more than she delivered with the book. Her advice is so good and specific. A lot of people commented about that, but they also said she failed to follow her own advice. I'd like to see a video about this. Maybe not by Jenna herself, but it'd be great to see what and where those discrepancies regarding her advice are.

[@snakes_shadow3539]

Hey, Jenna? Because of you, I'm ending up a third type of newbie author- fully aware that my first draft will suck, but bound and determined that it will be good someday. I really have to thank you- I started out as someone who went over every single thing a hundred times over before I put a sentence down. It had to be perfect the first time. But now, I've got notes to myself on the pages of my first draft saying things like "It's just a first draft. Stop waffling and get it down." And "Phrasing sucks, fix it in edit." And it's because of you. Thank you.

[@expertionis794]

I'll have to come back to this video. y'know. when I finish the book.

[@jessicakelley1932]

I'm definitely in the I feel like my writing is garbage category. Thanks for the encouragement 💕

[@BornAgainCatholic]

I was always told writing a first draft was the hardest part and here I was all proud of myself. Not anymore! Gee thanks Jenna!

[@babywitches1750]

These videos always come at the best time! Would you recommend listening(I downloaded edit out loud thanks to you) to your first draft along with reading through it? I'm a stay at home mom and sitting down to read is... Scarce. Plus I remember you saying hearing it out loud helps you catch more mistakes

[@supernatural7690]

I printed out a hard copy . Totally different experience editing a paper book and not a screen.

[@supernatural7690]

@@ravenstower really helps to have a tangible result of your work. I'm not tech savvy so trawling back and forwards through the lap top is a pain . Marker pens and post it notes really helped kept finding errors like a character would pick up a 38 revolver and twenty pages later shoot a 9mm auto. Lot or errors like that

[@Garrison_the_Barbarian]

Jenna, I agree wholeheartedly with you when you say that resting is necessary after that much work. I usually do all of my resting after I received my ass-load of critiques. I recently made so many embarrassing mistakes with my WIP that I swore I would take a LONG vacation from working on it afterwards. Turns out I only needed two weeks before I eventually created a problem/solution chart, which included developmental issues that needed solving, characters that needed profiles, and topics that needed further research. I’ve got a LOT of work ahead of me, but at least now I know what the fuck I need to do.

[@theunstablewoki6022]

“Take a break” Its 5AM and theres 4 cups on my table, I think I needed to hear that

[@trafomft]

I'm so F***ing excited!!!!! I hit the 50,000 word mark in my first draft. That's less than half of my book, but it still feels good lol

[@gabfthvf]

This is so timely! I started my second draft a few weeks ago but had no idea if I was doing it right. Thank you Jenna!

[@surgeorosgo]

Congratulations. I'm looking to become a beta reader for other writers in order to help others but also to read people's work to get inspiration for my own novels. If you would like, I would love to read your draft. Let me know if you do.

[@gabfthvf]

@@surgeorosgo That's so sweet thank you so much! I'll keep you in kind when I'm looking for Beta readers :)

[@surgeorosgo]

@@gabfthvf Thank you.

[@calebd.5005]

I'm only half way through my draft, but this question of "what do I do once I finish?" Has been on my mind for weeks. So this was timely!

[@PerciVerance]

Ditto, I’m in the same place 😂🤣😂

[@AnimalLover101195]

I needed to hear this! Thanks Jenna!!!!

[@Kabluey2011]

"That's why God created man first" -a sick burn of perfection. I love your videos

[@vantablack7939]

I needed this so much, thank you!

[@michaelsean9530]

Thank you for being fucking awesome, Jenna!

[@venomspider6598]

Literally in this spot for the past month or so this is quite timely. Thanks 😊

[@christianb.lapointe1584]

I finished my first draft in the middle of octobre. And i live a lot of think you explain in this video. Thank you, Love your channel.

[@28Return]

Hey all, just wanted to drop a comment to commend Jenna for The Savior’s Champion, I was going through a time of not reading a lot, but couldn’t put it down after I started, it was a serious page turner and now I’m impatiently waiting for the second one in the mail. I’ve been watching this content for ages and hadn’t bought her book but now I am hooked. I’ve read a lot over the years but this makes my top 3. Recommend you all give it a go! Goodness!

[@bhsprinkle]

Familiarity does blind people to mistakes sometimes, I agree. I think that taking a one moth away to come back with fresh eyes is great. Great idea Jenna. Making a game plan is also a great idea. Yeah, mashed potato brain is real. I need to improve my game plan.

[@SquadraCorse]

What great timing! I just finished my first draft, and was wondering what to do next.

[@NyssasOrbit]

I think I disagree with how long to take a break from your draft. Though I haven't gotten to the point of finishing my first draft, I still have periods where I need breaks from writing because my brain just needs time away from it for a while. I think 2 weeks is sufficient for people who may find themselves drifting from it after a longer period of time, but I think a full month is the ideal wait time. No matter how soon someone has finished chapter one, they need to give their brain a little vacation from the project before jumping back in again. imo, I don't know if they could catch their mistakes as easily if the story as a whole is too fresh on their mind.

[@aftoncrain2042]

When I was 11, I started a novel on the bus on a whim. Long story short, I gave up on it and then four years later decided to write the second half. I’m 16 now and I finished it last night. Is it awful? Absolutely. All I really care is that I completed something for once. I will say though, today felt strangely empty; I haven’t had an easy day in about a year.

[@Yak1312]

Very helpful Jenna, thank you!

[@Themi.]

Ah yes, I just started the outlining and worlbuilding process for my novel and plan to start the first draft in January. Perfect time to watch this video!

[@admiral_red_shirt]

Jenna's videos always make me want to drop what I'm doing and head straight for my laptop. I get inspiration and motivation every time. Thanks.

[@doctorwhofans2830]

Thank you so much for the video, Jenna! I just finished my first draft last night (wrote a big fat "the end"). I'm so excited to start editing, but kind of nervous to hand it over to my beta readers.. Looking forward to that couple week break! Thank you again!

[@jennifercooper2356]

Thanks for this video ❤️❤️❤️

[@andeeharry]

4.18: Last year I wanted to publish, the urge disappeared lucky, so I left my story alone, went back there and ended up re-writing it, because of lack of spaces....glad I didn;t

[@aggietrombonist]

Wonderful advice as always!

[@storyphile4518]

Revising for the first time so revisiting this. Thank you as always ❤

[@michellemiller9348]

Thank you SO much for making this video!!! I have written a couple of manuscripts in the past and always get stuck on what to do after the first draft. I felt stupid because I was like, just edit it, it's simple. But I always got so overwhelmed and didn't know what to look for. There are TONS of videos and blogs and courses on writing your first draft but then not many resources for what to do after. So thank you x100000 because this helped me SO much!!! ❤

[@awesomesoxx8776]

Thank you so much for the video, Jenna! I personally have a severe problem with wanting the first draft to be as perfect as possible. (I think it stems never editing work in school and still doing well.) Having a professional writer be so open about the writing process makes the daunting task of retraining my brain to be okay with an imperfect draft feel much easier to accomplish. Saving this video to rewatch in case I start being too critical of a first draft again. Thank you again! ~ From a writing hobbyist 💛

[@londonsgame623]

I'm so happy I watched this video, I finished my first draft a few days ago, dived into editing, and was overwhelming myself with all the things that needed fixing. I began to stress out from everything to the grammatical errors, and some major plot changes, and I was spiraling. Nice to know I was doing it all wrong, will for sure be taking a break from it and coming back with a game plan to tackle it one at a time. I really want to say thank you for taking the time to make these videos, between this one and like four others it's nice to get your (sometimes) brutal honesty on what needs doing and to hear when I'm being a dumbass about things lol.

[@brunchbaetrenta]

Jenna THANK YOU. I have had my first draft completed for some time now and have been so unable to figure out what the hell to do because I was only focused on the super fun and comfortable parts 😅😅😂

[@jaymigooden691]

Two chapters away from finishing my first draft. Thank you!!!

[@fallbladew967]

Definitely saving this for later.

[@Azrael_Biswas]

I just finished my first draft and have began editing, thank god this video came in time!

[@incandescentbri4437]

Hey Jenna! Thanks for the helpful video. I've been a fan of yours for a hot minute now but I was wondering if you could make a video about your personal writing insecurities. I know you allude to them sometimes but you seem like such a talented writer from start to finish and I'd love to hear about your personal struggles and weaknesses in your writing process. I think it would help me feel like you're more relatable to the average newbie writer. Thanks so much for all of your hard work for our entertainment. Love you!

[@irinarakovicprivatepractice]

Great video!

[@ashlingcashling2474]

8:47 This is literally me and my best friend Emili, she's my CP and you perfectly described us

[@sandraw.2010]

Hi Jenna, I'm using novelpad and I love it,

[@herddragon9215]

one thing i learned when i was editing my first draft, I did not know how to spell the word white. im on my second draft now, so i need to fix stylistic issues. but i'll keep this advice in mind as i edit other works, and make my second draft edit. (after second draft edits ill give it to the people who wanted to read and edit it) thank you for the video.

[@fireinateacup89]

JENNA I just ordered "The Savior's Champion" on Audible with my free trial! So excited to start listening tonight!!

[@elizalagonia1049]

I also do a post draft outline while I'm rereading my rough draft. I outline, but some things may have changed or left out because they weren't working or repeated. Normally it involves: scene word count, characters in scene, what they do, purpose of scene and make a note of if it needs a full rewrite, cleanup, or possibly cut or combined with another scene.

[@megankirrmann6624]

From the same genre...... finding editors, proofreaders, beta readers.....plan ahead.....your right....and....YOU ROCK!!!

[@eragon7666]

For the last step i believe i am both types :D I mean i am 100 % sure my story is amazing but i am also 100% insecure about how i will manage to write it :D I mean most of the time i think that whatever i write down is a complete BS. But yes, I did notice how my writing improved ( with a lot) comparng the first chapterswith the latests ^.^ Great video as always! Thank you for being there for us newbies!

[@JulianGreystoke]

Not a Jenna video with a quick jab at pantsers. I'd love to compare my first drafts to a plotter and see how different they really are.

[@miquesbookvlogs372]

I literally just finished the first draft of my book today…. And this came out. ITS A SIGN!!!!

[@kenzakettani3982]

Uhhgg Jenna, I love your videos.

[@pegachey7728]

I'm starting my first draft...... But yeah, I'ma watch this now, cuz Jenna.

[@c.c.milton]

I remember the first time I finished my first draft. Was an exciting time.. now on my 2nd book my brain tells me to go eff myself cause now it’s time to edit. Taking a break really helps.

[@tonimele8453]

I finished the first draft a week ago and have been lost in a well what the f do i do now attitude. Thank you so much for the video.

[@supernatural7690]

Many thanks for this i knew that I would have major problems with edit do I wrote mistakes into the structure of the story. The deliberate mistakes I hope will bury or set the tone for the ones I made by error. I wrote to keep my head straight during lockdown never meant anyone to read it but it's now being professionally edited and published. But the truth is I would rather set my hair on fire than edit a book again. So this content is really helpful to me as I nearvthe end of the follow ups first draught

[@godswriter777productions2]

My own book is actually almost done! It may be out fairly soon

[@harleybates4905]

8:53 You described my best friend and I XD She's the world-builder and I'm the character builder

[@WindStrike334]

Did Nanowrimo 3 years ago, pulled it off, and between burnout and not achieving what I originally planned, I hated it. But, I recently dusted it off and decided "yeah, it's got problems, but I don't hate it, let's see how to fix this up". I assumed second draft was next, but past that, I wasn't sure, so seeing this video pop up in subscriptions was a timely, pleasant surprise!

[@Ayyavazi13]

This is remarkably similar to my own process, except I take 3-6 months off and do a single draft per type of edit. Glad to see I'm in good company.

[@wbstaple8387]

Until a developmental self-edit is done I don't even consider it a first draft. Getting scenes on paper is just part of the process for me, and during that developmental pass you will probably add/delete/move/rewrite scenes anyway, so may as well just consider it part of the initial process. Besides I like to write on paper pads with note cards taped to the wall for tracking, then do the edits as I type the story into the computer. Love the feel of pen on paper.

[@celesteobando8129]

I'm a screenwriter but this is definitely gonna help 😅

[@eck0_kc348]

I’m not sure if this would help, but you could read chapters in steps. Like comparing chapter 1 and 3. Not literally with the scenes going on, but with the writing itself if there’s any repetition, missed scenes, etc.

[@fynnkailenjamesdonahue6794]

Me watching this even tho I just finished Chapter one 😢 of my book

[@tejaswinisureshkrishnan4228]

I have no idea when I'll finish but I know that it is going to be a big pile of nonsense so this helps so much!

[@andeeharry]

9.26: One of my characters died in my story, but since she is popular with the fans, I went back with edits to save her and now the stories have to change with it, luckily not by much, but, it has helped to develop the characters stronger.

[@AynneMorison]

Yo, Jenna, I got Both Books - calm down 😗

[@joshuamurphy9902]

FINISHED the first draft? Jenna is so cute sometimes. 😆 I finished the first act of the first draft though... so that's something. Characters are beginning to jump off the page and offer insight into who they are now (2 characters have done this in 2 days now, pretty exciting and possibly a sign of a mental health issue). Anyway you know those lights that dot the inside of tunnels? Well, I don't see the light at the end of the tunnel yet, but I think I see one of those lights...

[@andeeharry]

you always 'draft' it so well.

[@kinga9148]

I'm almost done with my first draft, it's a mess, but I'm surprised to even reach this stage. There are massive issues I'll need to fix later, but for now I'll just write what's left of the story and worry about the issues later.

[@melindakurti8086]

I wish this video was made in August 😅 It was great help though, thanks Jenna 🙏❤️

[@deehippiemistakes5307]

Just started my first draft just finished my outline

[@theotherchad2286]

Me still haven't halfway through: Smiling while crying

[@KelseyHubley]

Me watching this even though I'm no where near done my first draft 😅

[@anastasiaugwu1005]

Novel pad seems pretty cool♥

[@vedadalsette1453]

That music playing in the background is horror movie creepy.

[@kravmagaCDK]

I haven't even got pass the first 2 minutes of this video and I like her already :)

[@jaquaylenforrest7956]

I’m a come back when I finish lol. 5 and a half chapters to go

[@emilymgemily]

not me cryin in the club over this last tip 😂😂

[@VenomQuill]

I love this little metaphore for first drafts. A first draft is like a raw slab of meat just chopped off the carcass. Doesn't look good, does it? Its weird and graphic and you absolutely would not want to set this on the dinner table. Edits and critiques and the game plan are like the knives and spices. It will take a while, but if you just keep carving and marinating and seasoning, eventually you'll have a godly steak just thirty minutes of fire away from its full potential. Know this: it won't be perfect. Not everyone will like it. Some people like steak done rare or well done, with plenty of fat or as little as possible, and some people are vegetarians or vegans. But the important part is that you made it, you like it, and did everything you could. Hey, next time you carve yourself a steak, you'll know more about garlic levels and fire control. Getting advice from fellow chefs, like Jenna, will help you immensely.

[@stacybrown7863]

I didn't do nano this year, but I've done it in the past, and have a first draft that I've attempted to edit. I'd left it so long between the writing and the editing that I'd forgotten most of it, and then got stuck in an endless loop of editing the first couple of chapters. God help me If I ever write a full novel lol

[@gamewrites]

Hi jenna ! 👋

[@ktoszy5229]

this video comes in perfect handy because I'm just two chapters away from finishing my first draft

[@A_Wee_spook]

Uw! Yes!

[@MattyParker]

I'm still a while away from finishing my first draft, but I wrote your self-editing steps down for future reference. I imagine it will be a huge pain in my ass as I've made some pretty big changes to the story since I started, so the developmental edits are going to be big