What Is a Developmental Edit?

A developmental edit focuses on big-picture elements like pacing, development, and characterization. It’s the most in-depth stage of editing and the typical first step to ensuring your novel resonates with readers.

Where Does a Developmental Edit Fit in the Process?

Once your novel is complete, it’s time to begin the self-editing process. This will help you correct mistakes like major plot holes that you’d notice upon a second read. It’s important to self-edit as much as you can, as this will save you time and money in the long run. When you feel like you’ve exhausted what you can do on your own, it’s time to find a professional editor.

Developmental editing comes before the other stages in the editing process (line editing, copy editing, and proofreading), which are geared toward mechanics and style. There’s no need to focus on small errors like typos in this stage because your draft will change substantially. If you cut or incorporate whole new scenes, for example, then you’ll have new content to edit anyway.

You can hire beta readers before or after a developmental edit, though the former can be helpful if you’re looking to cut costs. They’re great for identifying how your story lands with readers and pointing out what works and what doesn’t.

However, beta readers aren’t a replacement for a developmental editor. Their feedback is valuable but often more general, while a developmental editor provides expert, actionable insights.

While a developmental edit is the most extensive, there are some lower-cost alternatives. Some editors offer manuscript evaluations, which don’t include the in-text edits and comments and are more like a critique letter covering key areas of improvement. Coaching sessions (like a “live” developmental edit) are an option as well.

What Does a Developmental Edit Cover? What Are Some Common Mistakes?

A developmental edit provides an in-depth examination of a novel’s strengths and weaknesses, though what it covers largely depends on what the novel needs. Some of the key areas I address include but are not limited to dialogue and internal dialogue, characterization, structure and pacing, showing vs telling, foreshadowing, perspective and POV, and flashbacks.

For genres like nonfiction and poetry, this will look a bit different. A poetry developmental edit would also address line breaks, rhythm, and form.

Often, I find many first drafts have similar problems, such as the absence of visual imagery. If your narrative is focused on concepts alone, or it feels like your characters are speaking in an empty room, the reader won’t feel grounded.

A developmental edit will help you incorporate sensory details of the setting and of body language to bring scenes to life. Details of the setting will lend immense insight into your narrator (what they feel and fear, what they notice). Meanwhile, people’s body language will reveal how your characters are saying what they’re saying, how they feel, and how they relate.

Unnatural dialogue is another major issue. If your characters speak in antiquated ways or simply say what’s happening, you could lose the reader. A developmental edit will help you refine your dialogue to ensure it operates on multiple levels and does something to reveal character dynamics and who your characters are.

Summarizing is another common issue. Instead of telling the reader a character feels disappointed, a developmental edit will help you show this in their actions, body language, and dialogue. I’d ensure the reader is always firmly planted in the narrator’s head, with a strong sense of place, in a dialogue-driven scene.

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These are just a few of the elements a developmental edit can address. It’s a crucial step and will help you gain immense insight into your novel, then develop it into a compelling narrative that readers enjoy.

Let me know if you’d like to see what Cypress Editorial can do for your novel.