First I go through and read my first draft
(which, btw, is a terrible thing to make an author do) and make a
little outline of what happened in each chapter, marking
what the major problems were along the way. Once I've gone through and fixed those
problems, I'll read through again, crossing my fingers that it'll be
better. Only once I've finished the major problems (inconsistencies,
any plot holes, strange character motives/reactions/developments,
etc) will I go through more carefully and fix awkward things like
dialogue or description or whatever. After that's fixed, I'll read
through once more, polishing (i.e. Is that really the word I want there? etc.).
Obviously, the three phases I just laid out there take more than one try each. For example, the novel that I'm currently editing (or was - I'm taking a break from it so I can look at it with fresh eyes again) received a pass where I fixed a bunch of inconsistencies in primarily changing character motives. But at the end of that pass, I realized I wanted to change a certain character's motive again, so that required another pass at it.
As I edit, I often find other things that need to be fixed or changed, even after I've outlined the major problems I knew to begin with. That's why I find editing to be rather torturous - even though you're fixing it, you keep finding parts that need more repair. Eventually you get to a point where it all seems like it's falling apart, even though you've been editing like mad. That's when I stop, let it sit for a while (a week, a month, whatever), and come back to it later. I'll read through it once to get back in the story, and go on with editing.
Now that you know how I edit - how do you edit? Does it differ from what I do? I also know that some people love editing, and prefer it to writing the first draft. That's not me, so I wonder why? If you're one of those people, enlighten me please?
