Your Next Draft
Alice helps authors of YA novels craft un-put-down-able stories with proven editing strategies and infectious love for the editing process. Get one expert editing tip in your inbox every week.
What da Vinci, Michelangelo, and you have in common
Hi Reader, Last week, my editor friend Kim and I took an impromptu trip to Italy. (Because when a friend of a friend offers you free round-trip tickets in exchange for escorting kittens from Venice to the US, you say absolutely, yes please.) We spent a day in Milan (not my favorite) and a couple days each in Florence and Cinque Terre (loved them both and hated to leave). Of course, we visited all the classic sites: the Duomo (in both Milan and Florence); Michelangelo’s David; the Uffizi...
Your progressive complication revision guide (cheat sheet included)
Hi Reader, Your inciting incident hooks your readers and promises them a story they’ll love. And then comes the middle. The messy middle. The quiet doldrums of your story, where plot momentum goes to die. Where your characters wander, your conflict blurs, and you start to wonder if any of it is working. So what do you do? Add some “stuff that happens” and hope it holds your readers’ interest? Toss in a random subplot? Describe your character’s breakfast in extreme detail? Nope. This is the...
Yes, I’m cutting whole chapters. You too?
Hi Reader, I’m working on a new guide to revising a novel. In it, I’m sharing a method to revise your novel and solve your story’s biggest challenges without getting stuck in line editing purgatory. Creating the guide seemed so simple and straightforward when I began. But as it turns out, this is a major creative process. I’m several drafts in, and I can tell you it doesn’t feel simple anymore! I’m going through all the same challenges you go through when you revise a novel. I’m making big...
How to write a first chapter readers actually care about
Hi Reader, Your first chapter has a monumental task: to make potential readers care about your book right away and hook them to keep reading. Every sentence is a chance to earn your reader’s attention—or lose their fragile, baby-fresh interest before your story even begins. And that’s assuming that your book makes it to the bookstore shelves. If you’re traditionally publishing, the first chapter’s burdened with even more responsibility. It’s your first impression with agents and editors, who...
Your inciting incident revision guide (cheat sheet included)
Hi Reader, A great inciting incident does a lot of heavy lifting. → It hooks your readers, pulling them into the story. → And it sets up everything to come, laying the foundation for a brilliant climax your readers will love. The beginning matters. Which means there’s a lot of pressure to get it right. But what does right actually mean? How do you start a story well? That’s what I’m tackling in today’s brand-new episode of Your Next Draft. I’m going beyond the definition of the inciting...
How to create (or destroy) tension in your readers
Hi Reader, This weekend, I finished watching season one of Andor. I know, I know, I’m way behind. Friends have been telling me how good this show is for years, and I only just now got around to it. But holy cow. They weren’t wrong. Andor is freaking phenomenal storytelling. My favorite episode was episode 10 (iykyk). I literally applauded at the TV screen when I finished it. No wonder that episode earned a Hugo nomination for best dramatic presentation and an Emmy nomination for outstanding...
What if you do everything right and the book launch still goes wrong?
Hi Reader, What happens after you edit your book? What happens after you’ve bared the story of your heart, crafted it into an excellent novel, and presented it to the world? What happens when you get traditionally published, when you receive awards and accolades, and when it looks like you’ve won the author career lottery? Last month, I brought author A.S. King on the podcast to share how she revises award-winning novels—complex, intense, surrealist, mind-bending stories meant to challenge...
Think you need a line editor? Try this first
Hi Reader, Do you need to hire a line editor? After all, you want to write an excellent novel. You know that great writing takes shape in revision, and you don’t want to skimp on any layers of editing. Nor do you want to overestimate your writing skills and leave your book littered with clunky sentences that a wordsmithing line editor could polish into shining brilliance. On the other hand, you also don’t want to mess up your editing process or your manuscript by getting the editing phases...
How surrealist pantser A.S. King revises award-winning novels
Hi Reader, Have you ever read a book and thought, Holy cow, this is amazing. How did this author DO this? Or, maybe you’ve read a book and thought, Wow, I wish I could write (or in my case, edit) a book like this, but this is incredible and it might be beyond me? Well, that’s how I feel when I read an A.S. King novel. She’s an impressively decorated author of novels for middle grade, teens, and adults. She’s the only author to win the Printz award for young adult literature twice—and that’s...
Sneak peek: an award-winning author's revision process
Hi Reader, “To me, revision is the sport. It's the impact. It's the reason we're writers. I mean, the first draft is great. You can't revise anything without it, right? But the revision is the sport for me.” That’s a quote from A.S. King. She’s the award-winning author of Pick the Lock and other surrealist novels for middle graders, teens, and adults. After publishing more than a dozen books—and writing nearly thirty—she’s honed her revision process to a fine art. And next week, she’s sharing...
The editor life: 5 days behind the scenes with Alice
Hi Reader, Ever wondered what an editor actually does all day? What it looks like to spend all day supporting writers in their stories? Or what your editor’s doing in all that time when they’re not sharing their feedback with you? If those questions pique your curiosity, you’re in luck. In today’s brand-new episode of Your Next Draft, I’m pulling back the curtain to share a week in my life as a developmental editor and book coach. You’ll get a behind-the-scenes look at what I do with writers...
Alice helps authors of YA novels craft un-put-down-able stories with proven editing strategies and infectious love for the editing process. Get one expert editing tip in your inbox every week.