(we highly recommend reading Vol. 1 first, if you haven't already, as it provides an overview of what this series is all about)
So your manuscript (MS) is written and you've accepted the fact that it's not done.
You're not going to buy any agent directories because, by the time you're REALLY DONE, next year's edition may be out.
You're not even going to buy cool letterhead because, by the time you're REALLY DONE, you may have a different address.
Buy some note cards – not the 3 x 5" but the bigger ones.
1) Go through your MS and summarize each chapter on a note card – one or two sentences, max. You may have done this already at some point in the writing process, which is great. DO IT AGAIN.
2) Review the chapters by posting the note cards on a wall/bulletin board or simply by flipping through them in order. Create a checklist – either on paper or in your head – of the following questions:
a. Does this make sense? I.e., is the plot logical and without major flaws? (for example, your story is about an orphan whose parents were both murdered – and it concludes with the protagonist and her mom sipping cocoa and sharing tearful memories of dad – that's a RED FLAG.)
b. Are all these chapters necessary? Can you get from One to Three without Two? Eight to Ten without Nine? You get the idea. The key word here being "necessary," meaning something that ADVANCES THE STORY or otherwise provides ESSENTIAL BACKGROUND INFORMATION to the reader.
c. Are all these characters necessary? Come on, really? That horticulturist you spun off into five chapters yet who doesn't DO ANYTHING except exchange vaguely prophetic chitchat with your main character?
d. Is there, heaven forbid, anything MISSING here? Might a reader get confused by your sudden leap from Victorian England to modern day Nebraska? If so, take some blank note cards and summarize the chapters you envision closing these gaps (here comes the brilliant part) IN A DIFFERENT COLOR PEN! All right, that's enough for today. Put those note cards away and go have yourself a drink. Or seven.
The more you forget about your First Draft at this point – all the better.
IN THE NEXT QUIKTIP:
Coming to grips with how much your First Draft sucks, and how to make it better without killing yourself in the process.