What Is Developmental Editing? Explained by an Editor

Iris Marsh
30 aug 2024
12 minuten om te lezen

Bijgewerkt op: 18 uur geleden

Table of Contents

What developmental editing actually is
- An example: Fixing setting
Developmental editing for fiction vs. nonfiction
When does developmental editing happen?
How to do developmental editing step by step
How long does developmental editing take?
Do you need a developmental editor?
An editorial assessment or developmental editing?
Create a strong story readers will devour

When you’re writing your first book, it can feel like you’ve stepped into a world with its own secret language. And nowhere does that confusion hit harder than when someone mentions “developmental editing.”

You wrote a whole draft—shouldn't that mean the hard part is over?

Not quite. But that’s a good thing!

No first draft is perfect, and it doesn’t need to be. Editing is where your story stretches, deepens, and turns into the book you meant to write.

So if you’ve just finished a draft and are wondering what kind of editing it needs first, this guide is for you.

Your first stop on the editing journey is developmental editing. It’s the type of book editing that focuses on the big picture stuff, like structure, plot, pacing, and character arcs.

We’re nowhere near caring about grammar or spelling or whether “glaring” was the right word choice or if “staring” fits better.

Your developmental edit is all about building a solid foundation so you can layer on the rest of your story.

To me, it’s one of the most fun parts. But then again, I am an editor, so I suppose it makes sense I enjoy this side of writing.

A developmental edit is like solving an intricate puzzle; you want to make sure everything is placed in the correct place to reveal the final picture. I’ve guided dozens of writers through this stage, and it transforms their story every time.

So today, we’re breaking down what developmental editing is, how it fits into the editing process, what actually happens during this stage, and how to know whether you need a developmental editor.

Developmental editing explained by an editor

What Developmental Editing Actually Is

At its heart, developmental editing looks at your story as a whole. It’s the zoomed-out lens that helps you see:

The genre: what kind of story is this? (You can take the plot type test on The Write Practice to figure out your genre!)
Story structure: are the building blocks of plot in place? (Read the Elements of Plot guide for some basics on story structure.)
Characters: are your characters fleshed out? Do they have goals and a character arc?
Theme: what’s the underlying message of your book?
Point of view: is your chosen POV the most effective?
Expected plot points: does your story deliver the moments your genre promises?
Setting: is the world grounded and sensory-rich?
Plot holes & subplots: are there any plot holes? Do the subplots support the main narrative?
Pacing: Do the readers have a space to breathe? Or does it stall?

One of the most common mistakes in early manuscripts is that the story starts too soon. Most writers, especially early in their career, will start the story setting up the protagonist’s ordinary life and introducing the characters and the world.

I’ve certainly done this before in my own drafts, and have worked with enough authors who did the same.

I once worked with an author who’s first two chapters were all about exposition: of the characters, their world, and all the magical history that brought them to their current situation.

All interesting, but not something that would hook a reader to your story.

Don’t get me wrong: it’s good to introduce the protagonist’s status quo. However, there often isn’t any tension in those scenes and usually contains a lot of background info the reader doesn’t need nor care for.

After we worked together, she started the story on her original chapter 3, and now their story instantly starts with tension, foreshadowing, and action.

An Example: Fixing Setting

A lot of early drafts don’t focus too much on setting. And if they do, it’s usually somewhat generic and told.

So let’s say, in one of your earlier scenes, you have this setting description:

She marched through the forest on the narrow path winding through the trees. It always creeped her out. After an hour, she’d reached the village on the other side.

This makes me question two things:

If nothing happens in that forest, and the village is the important bit, then why do we include it?
Can we add more specificity to that forest?

Let’s say you want to keep in that forest because it’s important on her way home, and you want to foreshadow something happening then.

In that case, add a more vivid and atmospheric description. You might end up with something like:

She marched through the forest, her eyes trimmed on the narrow path winding through the trees. The sun was near the horizon, bathing everything in a golden glow. It was supposed to be beautiful, but all she could think about was how it would be dark soon. She needed to hurry. After an hour, the trees finally broke apart, and the first buildings of the little village rose before her. She let out a breath, only now noticing the chirp of the birds and the lovely scent of pine.

Is it perfect? Probably not. But this is not the time where you spend ages perfecting your sentences and getting the words just right.

You’ve narrowed down the feeling you want the reader to get from this forest, and this small paragraph is now serving a function. That’s what you want to accomplish during your developmental edit.

This isn’t the place to fix sentences; you're shaping the experience.

Developmental Editing for Fiction vs. Nonfiction

Both forms use developmental editing, but the focus shifts.

In fiction, developmental editing emphasizes things like:

character arcs
POV effectiveness
emotional resonance
escalation
genre tropes and expectations
scene sequencing.

You’re guiding both the character and the reader on a transformational journey.

In nonfiction, developmental editing focuses more on:

logic
structure
clarity
reader progression
retaining momentum across chapters.

But here’s a secret I learned working with nonfiction authors: we can view the reader as the character going through the journey.

If you use that approach, it becomes clearer how you should organize your content.

Both types of editing share a similar goal: creating a coherent, meaningful reading experience. Fiction just uses more character emotion and worldbuilding to get there.

Nonfiction also has genre conventions, just different ones.

When Does Developmental Editing Happen?

Right after you finish your first draft.

This is your moment to step back, take a breath, and look at the story with fresh eyes.

Developmental editing comes before:

line editing
copyediting
proofreading.

And it’s also not a step you want to skip.

It’s like when you’re baking a cake. Your first draft is chucking in all the ingredients and baking the cake.

You can certainly take it out and start decorating to make it look pretty.

But if you don’t taste it and consider whether you might need to change the recipe… you could end up with a really pretty but inedible cake.

Once you start revising sentences, it becomes harder to make big changes without unraveling all that work.

Developmental Editing vs. Line Editing

At first instance, you’d think developmental editing has nothing in common with line editing. However, that’s not quite the case.

Yes, developmental editing focuses on structural elements, plot elements, pacing, character arcs, and so on. A lot of overarching global story issues.

However, developmental editing also happens at the scene level. And this is where you’ll also revise sentences, move paragraphs, delete sections and rewrite them, and so on.

Like line editing, developmental editing will revise sentences to ensure they follow a logical flow of events, that settings are evocative, and that characters are consistent and someone readers can connect with.

The major difference is that developmental editing can mean adding content or removing it.

A line editor will rarely remove large sections of text (if that happens, it’s usually to repurpose it), nor will they add content.

They might query the author that a scene could perhaps use a bit of a variation in the senses, but it won’t be their focus.

It’s happened more than once that an author comes to me for a line & copyedit, when what they really need is a developmental edit. They need to add more substance to their scenes before they focus on their wording.

Developmental Editing vs. Copyediting

The distinction between a developmental edit and a copyedit is easier to make.

Developmental editing = big-picture story structure.

Copyediting = mechanical and language issues (grammar, punctuation, usage, consistency, accuracy).

Developmental Editing vs. Substantive Editing

This is where definitions get messy.

Different organizations (CIEP, EFA, CMoS) define “developmental” and “substantive” editing slightly differently. Some consider them separate; others lump them together.

According to the CIEP, a substantive rewrite is “a thorough revision of text that goes beyond surface-level changes to address fundamental issues in content, style or structure.” There’s often rewriting involved, adding new material or removing existing content.

A developmental edit aims to help the author “develop and refine a story.”

CMoS defines developmental editing as directly shaping “the content of a work, the way material should be presented…” And they state it may involve total rewriting or reorganization of a work.

Substantive editing, to them, “deals with the organization and presentation of existing content.” This also involves rewriting, but mostly of word choice, sentence ambiguity, and sections. But that it “should not be confused with developmental editing, a more drastic process.”

Finally, the EFA actually lumps them together, as they state developmental editors can also be called substantive editors. They deal with “content, organization, and genre considerations.”

These differences in definition is one of the reasons you should always be clear with your editor about what you expect.

Of course, when you do your own developmental editing, the distinction won’t matter as much.

This is how I see it:

Developmental editing looks at global story issues and gives you an editorial letter with actionable feedback. They might also leave comments in the manuscript and add some in-line revisions.
Substantive editing does deeper in-line revisions: rearranging paragraphs, adding or cutting content, clarifying word choices, and querying the author for changes. While you might get some overview of the structure and global issues, it wouldn’t be as elaborate as with a developmental edit.

So when I think of a developmental editing service, I think of a combination between the two: a balance of high-level overview feedback that’s actionable and in-line revisions with added paragraphs, revised sentences, and improved organization as examples to the author (and the necessary queries, of course).

How to Do Developmental Editing Step by Step

Every writer develops their own process. But here’s a path that I use that you can adapt:

Start with the global structure, determining the bones of the plot, character arcs, genre tropes, POV, and theme.
Make necessary fixes. This may include rewriting or rearranging scenes.
Evaluate your cast. Check whether your side characters work and evaluate subplots. Strengthen or cut as needed.
Dive into your scenes. For each scene, examine:
- scene structure
- scene purpose
- character goals
- value shift
- conflict
- worldbuilding/setting details
- any important plot points.
Revise scene by scene. Sometimes this means a complete rewrite when I come up with something that might make the arc or sequence more interesting.
Seek feedback. After revisions, I give the story to beta readers for feedback. You can also use critique partners or order a manuscript critique for professional feedback.

If you’re just starting out, getting a manuscript critique can be a good step if you feel stuck.

I’m also a fan of Fictionary, which is a webapp that guides you through the developmental editing process. It’s super helpful, follows a clear path, and they have a bunch of videos to help you with each step. It makes self-editing a whole lot easier.

No matter what process you start with, you’ll end up with one that fits you.

If you’d like some step-by-step guidance, you can check out my playlist on YouTube that walks you through the steps from a first draft to a finished one.

How Long Does Developmental Editing Take?

Let’s do some math!

Overall, an editor revises on average 1250 to 2500 words per hour for a fiction novel. If you have a standard 80k-word novel, that means between 64 to 32 hours of work.

You will likely be slower, especially at the start. In fact, I’d double that 64 hours to 128.

As a general guide, this is a rough time frame (for an average 80k novel):

1 month reading through the story and analyzing your global structure, arcs, and so on, then making adjustments.
½ month reviewing side characters and subplots.
1.5 months revising scenes.

If possible, try to keep developmental editing within a time frame of 3 months, or about 40 hours of work per month.

Still, give yourself the space you need. Developmental editing is deep work. For my most recent WIP, the developmental editing stage took me 4.5 months (for a 120k novel) before I could send it off to a sensitivity reader.

Do You Need a Developmental Editor?

Maybe. Maybe not.

Here’s a quick guide. You likely do need an editor if:

you’re a new author
you’re unsure why the story “isn’t working”
beta readers can’t pinpoint the issue
your plot, pacing, or character arcs feel fuzzy
you’re overwhelmed by the revision.

But it’s possible a developmental is outside of your budget. In that case, see if you can get a manuscript evaluation instead. You get high-level feedback without the in-line edits.

Even experienced authors often benefit from a developmental edit—it helps deepen themes, strengthen character arcs, and refine story structure.

Not sure if you have the budget for a developmental editor? I have an article right here that’ll tell you what to expect and what you can do instead to save some of your budget (like get a manuscript critique instead).

An Editorial Assessment or Developmental Editing?

Most editors will offer a developmental edit and a manuscript critique (or editorial assessment). The assessment is often called a “light” version of a developmental edit.

Essentially, with a manuscript critique you’ll often get:

a high-level overview of what’s working
big-picture issues and other areas that need work.
either suggestions for fixing issues or only pointing them out.

You won’t get:

in-line comments
scene-level revisions
detailed restructuring notes.

A critique is wonderful if you’re confident in fixing any issues on your own or working within a budget.

It can also be a good starting point for revisions, especially if you’re a beginning author. After I wrote my first publishable novel, a manuscript assessment made all the difference for me. It made me rethink things in my story, and I ended up rewriting entire scenes and sequences.

While I didn’t choose to continue with a developmental edit after that, you definitely could if you have the budget. Usually, you’ll get a discount on the developmental edit since they already know your story.

Create a Strong Story Readers Will Devour

A developmental edit is all about laying the right foundation for your story to thrive.

You make sure you have all the ingredients just right to make the most delicious cake. Then all you need is add the right toppings to make it look as appealing as it tastes.

If you want to strengthen your developmental skills, try:

Books on story structure. Some favorites of mine are The Write Structure by Joe Bunting, The Story Grid by Shawn Coyne, Save the Cat! By Jessica Brody, and Superstructure by James Scott Bell. There are a lot more, but these are a good place to start.
Books on character craft. Some good ones are The Fire in Fiction by Donald Maass (also has good advice on other aspects of writing) and Creating Character Arcs by K. M. Weiland.
Genre research. Pick up books in the genre you want to write in. Don’t know which one that is? Then that’s definitely something you need to figure out first. If you want a marketable book, you need to know where it fits within that market.
Analyze what you love. What makes the characters compelling. What do you like about them? What don’t you like? What do these characters have in common across books?
Notice genre tropes. See if you can find other commonalities between those books. Readers love familiar beats, delivered in fresh ways. For some inspiration, check the Trope Thesaurus by Jennifer Hilt.