If you’ve been working on a rough draft of your story for a while, and find yourself thinking, This is good, but it’s not quite right — then developmental editing might be your next step.
It’s much like having a close confidante who is looking out for your best interests, has an eagle-eye for your story structure, and tells the truth to make it better.
Developmental editing, also known as structural or substantive editing, zooms out to look at the broad strokes of a narrative. This editing phase is primarily concerned with whether the story as a whole is doing what it set out to do, and keeping the reader genuinely invested from the first page to the last. It’s not focused on improving the flow of awkward sentences, catching small continuity issues, or fixing the grammar. These edits are done by a copy-editor or proofreader.
In this article I’ll look closer at what developmental editing is, the overall process, and how to make the best use of it. Finally, I will give you a Story Weapon to enhance your manuscript.
Developmental editing is the big-picture editing phase that examines story structure, character motivation, pacing, thematic clarity, and emotional payoff before any line-level polish begins. Skipping it is one of the most common reasons technically competent manuscripts fail to resonate — because no amount of sentence-level refinement can compensate for a plot that sags, stakes that don’t register, or a climax the story hasn’t structurally earned.
Development editing: The game changer your book needs
A developmental editor is like an architect. They step back from the story and check all the parts. How is the solidity of this structure? Are there any difficult sections? Are readers going to engage with it or drop off midway through? This type of editing explores the basis of your work including plot, characters, themes, arguments, pacing, and emotional impact before you get lost in the beauty of the prose.
Typically, this kind of editing takes place after your first and second drafts in order to not waste your time on polishing sentences that are likely to be removed from the manuscript. Solving any larger flaws first prevents a lot of other problems in the long run. Many writers feel they can get by without this step, and then wonder why their book doesn’t resonate with readers, even though it sounds good. Developmental editing can help you avoid this heartache.
Different types of editing
- Developmental editing – deals with the big picture content such as structure, overall content, character development, and story impact.
- Line editing – emphasizes the style of your voice and improves sentence flow.
- Copy editing – pays attention to grammar, awkward phrasing, factual accuracy, continuity, and consistency.
- Proofreading – checks for any remaining grammatical or formatting errors.
A copy editor usually won’t be the one to suggest if you need to cut out an entire chapter or drastically rework a character’s arc; that would be a development editor’s duty.
If you try to do the little edits before the big ones, then you’re doing things in the wrong order. It’s like painting the walls before you’ve fixed the pipes and rewired the electricity. You’ll have to do it all over again. It only creates more work and disappointment later down the road.
You’ve been living in your story for a long time, and can’t always see the holes, weak motivations, and muddy passages. A good developmental editor doesn’t just call attention to these issues. They can show you new opportunities to enhance your book, make it more engaging, and increase your chances of capturing the attention of a prospective agent, publisher, and your readers.
Developmental editing for fiction vs. nonfiction
For fiction, developmental editing can help identify gaps in your plot, character development, overall pacing, tension, consistency of the world, and the emotional pay-off. The editor can identify when your protagonist is not sufficiently motivated in the middle of the story, if the stakes aren’t high enough, or if that subplot isn’t helping to drive forward the main plot. They will think about whether the climax is justified and whether there are themes in place that are conveying your message clearly.
Some common areas that often need help include a sagging middle, iffy character actions, or a weak conclusion. Developmental editing has the power to uplift an average novel into one that is professional, engaging, and a book that can’t be put down. It can be particularly useful if you’re writing a fantasy or mystery story. These genres often feature elaborate plots and intricate worlds.
For nonfiction, the emphasis is on the clarity of your main theme, the progression of your chapters, your ability to provide value to your readers and your ability to let your expertise and experiences come through without being dry or repetitive.
Memoirs actually work best when they’re formatted similarly to a novel, and provide an insightful, thought-provoking point of view and heart. Here developmental editing helps transform a collection of memories into a clear connected path following a theme. Your reader will finish the book feeling inspired.
The developmental editing process
Working with a professional
Typically, the developmental editing process begins by reading the entire manuscript to see how the book flows without becoming bogged down in minor details. Analyzing strengths and weaknesses, structure, pacing, and the reader experience come next. You will usually get a detailed write up with editorial feedback that is typically 10-30 pages long filled with constructive, actionable suggestions, and a marked-up manuscript containing specific notes on scenes, chapters, sections, etc. Then you can review their feedback, institute a second round for improvements if needed, and modify based on their input and feedback.
The best feedback is truly objective. It’s a great help that many authors take advantage of when they get too lost in the weeds.
Self-editing
If you can’t afford to hire a professional editor right now, there are still several steps you can take.
It can help to put the manuscript away for a while and come back with fresh eyes. When you’re ready, it’s time to ask yourself the difficult questions.
- Can I give a one-sentence description of my main story or argument?
- Are the story beats clearly tracking and lead to a compelling transformation?
- Are all the chapters working to advance the central theme?
- Is there anything that is hard to follow, missing, or that lacks energy?
- Is the conclusion fulfilling?
Another great asset at this stage is having beta readers from your target market. They’ll approach the book like your readers would with the huge benefit of getting objective feedback on your story before you’ve spent a lot of resources getting it published only for it to flop.
An additional effective method is reverse outlining. Here you would look closely at each chapter, write down a brief outline of the story beats, and check whether it flows cohesively. You can use this structure guide as a place to start.
Your story weapon: The reader mirror technique
The reader mirror is actually quite simple to use, yet very powerful.
As you revise your chapters, stop and check, “If I were the reader, how do I feel about this chapter now?” Then write one short paragraph describing how you feel about the story.
Basically, you are imagining yourself as your ideal reader. This process helps expose dull sections or pacing issues. For nonfiction, it indicates where your advice is being too abstract and not impactful enough. With a strong story structure and compelling characters, readers will come back to your story again and again.
It’s time to start asking questions! Think about your manuscript as a whole, either on your own in the rewrite process or with professionals. As a result, your writing will be stronger and your story will be more powerful. Developmental editing is about making your story as dynamic and compelling as possible, so that the whole can become greater than the sum of its parts.
Every manuscript reaches a stage where fresh eyes can reveal opportunities that are difficult to see on your own. If you’re ready to strengthen your story’s structure, pacing, and emotional impact, consider working with our in-house editors for professional developmental feedback tailored to your manuscript.
