Revising a book is usually the editor’s job. But there are times when a ghost writer is asked to look over certain materials and modify them, to meet the publisher’s liking. In this case, you must be very careful about how you go about the process, since you don’t want to go too far off from the original author’s intentions. Depending on the length of the write up, revising will usually take as short as a week to as long as a couple of months, in order to get accomplished. To survive and be efficient at it, here are some guidelines you can use in the process.

Scan through the whole thing first. This should give you a good perspective on where to start, how to revise the write up, and how much effort should actually go into it. If you find grammatical or spelling errors along the way, change it immediately, to minimize the work you need to do.

Break down the elements. It is essential that you know how to alter each part of the story correctly, so that there are no discrepancies and loopholes. Although where you start and how you start is subject to one’s preference, it certainly helps that you make an outline of what you’d like to incorporate or take out in each of the story’s elements – the setting, theme, characters, conflict, climax, and resolution. That way, you don’t get confused.

Establish a schedule. This should keep you on track and productive. You can’t afford to slack around when revising a book, because they usually have a stricter deadline. On top of that, the momentum you build up allows you to make more cohesive adjustments. Don’t forget to squeeze in ten minute breaks in between every chapter or every two hours, so you could stretch and tend to your physiological needs. It’s not healthy to face the computer the whole day.

Keep your work organized. Take it one page and one chapter at a time, until you get to the end. Make proper labels, so that you don’t accidently lose your work. Always have a revision guide accessible, so you can check right away if you are going about the modification the right way.

Finally, reread the end product. It’s always best if you are able to proofread your work at least three times, before you submit it as a final copy. You never know what mistakes you could have done or overlooked while revising a book. Studying the whole output should also give you more ideas on how you can improve the story, and not just the structure. And above all, it will help you rest at night, knowing that you’ve done all that you can.

In addition to the given tips, you should always put yourself in the target reader’s shoes, and consider whether or not they would find the write up interesting to read. If you have any opinions, show it to the main editor and get them approved. The whole point of revising a book is to make them saleable; not just better. So, never hesitate to empathize with the public when doing this task.

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