Revise a chapter in four focused passes
Check story function and causality before polishing viewpoint, language, and the final export.
Pass one: identify what changes
Before editing sentences, write down the situation at the start and end of the chapter. What does the character gain, lose, or decide? If the only result is that the reader learns background information, consider introducing that information alongside a present conflict. Explanation can be useful, but it should help the reader understand something that matters now.
Mark the goal, obstacle, and outcome of each scene. A scene without an immediate goal may be a deliberate pause. A whole chapter without one may lack direction. Cut to serve the intended pace rather than automatically removing every quiet moment.
Pass two: check cause, time, and viewpoint
List events in the order they occur, then compare that list with the order of narration. A flashback changes the sequence of telling, but an effect still needs a cause. Check travel time, injuries, object locations, and what each character knows, especially after introducing new events during revision.
For viewpoint, ask whether the viewpoint character could see, hear, or reasonably infer each statement. In a limited viewpoint, another person’s private thought needs to become observable behavior or appear after a clearly marked change of perspective.
Pass three: make the language serve the scene
Read dialogue aloud and mark lines in which a character exists mainly to explain the author’s research. Let characters choose what to reveal or hide according to their own goals. Distinct voices do not all need a catchphrase. Remove explanations that repeat what an action has already demonstrated.
Vary sentence length according to what the reader needs. An urgent scene does not require every sentence to be short, and a quiet scene does not need a pile of adjectives. Establish clear actions, subjects, and spatial relationships before polishing style. Structural changes can make detailed line editing unnecessary, so leave that work until the chapter is stable.
Pass four: preserve a version and verify delivery
Save a dated copy before a substantial revision. Check chapter titles, numbering, paragraph breaks, quotation marks, and names. Reopen the exported file and check its ending and chapter order. A successful save message in a browser is not a substitute for an independent backup.
When using AI, separate diagnosis from rewriting. First ask for locations, reasons, and likely effects of problems; then choose the passages to change. Do not overwrite the only copy of a manuscript with a generated rewrite before reviewing it. Facts, quotations, and rights to source material still require the author’s own verification.