A common writer’s complaint in recent years is that editors no longer edit. That’s by no means true, but it is true that many editors are not able to devote the time to improving a manuscript that they once could. Today, many editors are more like marketers, concentrating first on acquiring books that will make money.

For this reason, editors often tell me they’re looking for manuscripts that are “ready to go.” And there are enough writers out there who know how to self-edit and polish their manuscripts that these editors are getting what they want.

Are you one of these writers who know how to be their own editors? You’d better be, or your chances of selling your novel are markedly decreased. In case you need some pointers, here are the most important points to watch for as you make your manuscript “ready to go.”

1. Does time track correctly in your story? Make a table showing when sections take place. Have you given characters enough time to get from one place to another? It’s a common problem.
2. Use adverbs sparingly. Delete unnecessary ones, and certainly delete strings of them.
3. Delete unnecessary details. Not: He opened the cupboard, took out a can of beans, opened the drawer, took out the can opener, and opened the can of beans. But: He opened a can of beans.
4. Use adjectives sparingly–one at a time, never a string of them, if you must use them at all. Often an adjective is strengthening a weak noun. Choose a more accurate noun.
5. Know that very is one of the weakest of adjectives.  In almost all cases you can strengthen a sentence by removing it.
6. Scrutinize every description. Is it too long? Do we need it at all?
7. Be specific. Not just a dog; a collie or a toy poodle or whatever it is.
8. Spare us the weather reports. If the weather matters, describe it quickly and move on.
9. Focus on details, which add realism like nothing else. Not: The subway station was shabby.  But: Near the edge of the platform, a man with knotted hair held out a Dixie cup to no one in particular.
10. Don’t describe what doesn’t need describing. We all know what certain things look like. Describe an object only if it differs from what we’d expect.
11. Use the five senses when you can, though not all at once.  Characters don’t just see and hear; they feel, smell, and taste, too.
12. Think of walk-on characters (the cab driver, the waiter, the bank teller) as furniture.  They almost never need describing.
13. Describe only what’s essential to what’s happening.  If a character walks down a hallway, we don’t need a description of the wallpaper.
14. Write in the positive. Not: There was no light in the hall. But: The hall was dark.
15. Delete redundancies. Past history. The sky above. Continued on. Hung down.
16. Often you can delete that.  Not: Emily knew that the clinic opened at eight.  But: Emily knew the clinic opened at eight.
17. Clean out qualifiers like a bit, a little, fairly, highly, just, kind of, mostly, pretty, quite, rather, really, slightly, so, somewhat, sort of. Like very, they’re all weakeners, almost always unnecessary.
18. Cut unnecessary articles (a/an, the) for stronger impact. Not: A sadness washed over her.  But: Sadness washed over her.
19. Often you can cut of.  Change students of the college to college students; members of the club to club members.
20. Don’t use the fact that. Not: The fact that Professor Jones was sick made it impossible for Emma to ask him her questions.  But: Because Professor Jones was sick, Emma couldn’t ask him her questions.
21. Cut unnecessary words.  Not: The smile on his face. (Where else would it be?) But: His smile.
22. When describing acts of looking, use gaze rather than eyes to avoid unintentional hilarity.  Not: His eyes traveled around the room. But: His gaze traveled around the room.
23. Cut began to or started to unless you’re describing a character truly starting a task or activity. Not: She began to laugh. But: She laughed.
24. To avoid confusion, refer to each of your characters the same way every time.
25. Have you overused characters’ names? If you’re writing a section containing only a male character and a female character, use the names once at the beginning and then switch to he and she, perhaps using their names occasionally. If your section contains more characters and you must differentiate them using their names, you can still use a character’s name at the beginning of a paragraph about him, then switch to either he or she.
26. Seek and destroy clichés: butter-soft leather, a mighty oak, a trusted servant.
27. To show habitual action, use the past tense rather than would.  Not:  Each morning he would walk to the Y and swim twenty laps.  But:  Each morning he walked to the Y and swam twenty laps.
28. Watch it, which should replace the noun that immediately precedes it. Not: He took an apple from the refrigerator and ate it. (Ouch.) But: He rummaged in the refrigerator, found an apple, and ate it.
29. Don’t use the weakeners appeared to or seemed to. Not: The road appeared to waver in the intense heat.  But:  The road wavered in the intense heat.
30. Watch for and remove inadvertent rhyme.
31. Watch for misplaced modifiers. Not: She lay on the bed beside him. But: She lay beside him on the bed.
32. Watch for introductory participles that don’t modify the subject of the sentence–an error that slips past most editors. Examples: Leaving the village, the mountains glowed red in the sun.  Opening the closet door, the cat sprang from the shadows.
33. Don’t use hopefully. Not: Hopefully we’ll win the lottery. But: I hope we win the lottery.
34. Watch for Morse Code:  too many dots and dashes in dialogue, favored by beginners. Do you really need so many unfinished sentences trailing off in ellipses? Complete as many of these sentences as you can.
35. Restrict your use of the intrusive exclamation point. Understatement is best. Not: The bull charged straight toward her! But: The bull charged straight toward her.
36. Avoid long, blocklike paragraphs. Break them up whenever possible.
37. Watch your pronouns, which must agree with their antecedents. Never use they or their when you want to refer to either a male or a female. Though many people use this construction, it’s wrong. Not:  Every student knows they can come to me for help.  But:  Every student knows he or she can come to me for help. But this is cumbersome. Often it’s easiest to rewrite the sentence in the plural: Students know they can come to me for help.

Read through your manuscript with these tips in mind. I guarantee you’ll make some improvements that will increase your chances of a sale.