Hey there and happy holidays to all. Well, I am nearing the end of writing the first draft of my novel. Then comes the part that I hate the most. Editing and revising. By the time I am done I will have practically rewritten the whole book. But how many times must one rewrite a novel?

Some Authors do it two, three times or more. I guess you should do it until you the author is satisfied with it and feel that there are no more changes to be made. Of course, when a publishing deal goes through, they will have their own editors to pick the book apart and cut what they think should be cut. Even the parts you worked extremely hard on and cried over because it moved you just that much to write it. Doing rewrites can ultimately slow down the process of getting your book published but it is necessary if you just aren’t satisfied with what you’ve written. I personally don’t feel that it is necessary to keep rewriting and rewriting until it’s perfect. There is no such thing as perfection. Someone, I don’t care who it is, a reviewer, an editor, an agent, the publisher or the reader; will always find something that they don’t like about your story. Even some of the best authors in the world have critics. Do you really think that everyone enjoys every book that Stephen King has written?

Ultimately it is up to you how many times you feel you need to do a rewrite. It may help with the story and it may not. The readers will be the judge and decide if they should shell out money for your book that will most definitely have a flaw here and there. One rewrite is my limit because it is too time consuming to prepare a novel for a professional editor and publisher. They are going to rip it apart anyway no matter how many times I rewrite it so why put myself through so much misery? Writing a well thought out and compelling story is the number one reason anyone would want to buy you’re book. Until next time…