{"id":206619,"date":"2023-02-14T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-02-14T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.draft2digital.com\/blog\/?p=206619"},"modified":"2023-02-13T16:20:40","modified_gmt":"2023-02-13T22:20:40","slug":"how-to-do-your-own-structural-edit-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/draft2digital.com\/blog\/how-to-do-your-own-structural-edit-part-2\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Do Your Own Structural Edit (Part 2)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you missed Part 1 of this series about doing your own structural edit<\/a>, go back and read that post first\u2014it introduces core concepts and lays the foundation for this one.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With your skeleton blurb clear in your mind and the knowledge that you have a complete narrative to work with, it\u2019s time to identify your story arc scenes and check the pacing of your story.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 3: Analyze your story arc scenes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The easiest way to compare your scenes to a narrative structure is to write a one-sentence description of the action that takes place in each scene. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter 1: <\/em>Protagonist, a widower, watches movie footage of his wife, including scenes toward the end of her life<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter 2:<\/em> Intruders kill the protagonist\u2019s puppy, given to him by his now-deceased wife to keep him company after her death<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter 3: <\/em>Protagonist digs out long-buried weapons, remnants of a former life, and leaves his home in search of revenge<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, identify the five(ish) scenes that hit the key plot points described in Part 1 when we discussed the narrative arc. You want these plot points to be distributed nicely throughout your story for consistent pacing. If too much action occurs too quickly, the pacing may be too fast for readers to develop a connection<\/a> with your characters. If plot points are too far apart, the pacing will be slow and readers may lose interest before the action picks up again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You don\u2019t have to delete scenes during this process, although you might. Refer back to your skeleton blurb as a guide. If a scene doesn\u2019t further the story or the reader\u2019s understanding of the main character, you may have to put it on the chopping block. (Don\u2019t delete it, though! You never know what you might use these \u201cclippings\u201d for.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Analyze whether your story arc scenes are in the right place, moving the action forward at the right times. If the answer is no, move things around and make revisions that improve the story\u2019s flow. Put yourself in your readers\u2019 shoes. Are there parts that simply move too fast or too slow? Parts where the action feels forced rather than organic? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In general, a traditional narrative arc has beats that look like this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n