It is not easy to be critical about your own work. It is like a parent staring at their first newborn — the baby’s perfect! How could anything be wrong?

You may feel defensive (I did my best!), or self-pity (everyone else’s writing seems to be working!), or even alienated (no one understands me!!). You may feel like there are too many voices in your head (and in real life) telling you that you could/should change your draft in a million ways.

First and foremost, let’s acknowledge this: a novel is a massive enterprise — so many words, chapters, characters, dialogues, strands, plot twists…how can you possibly retain any control over the macro if it changes form and shape often? Maybe that is why many good novels die on the editing table…

Before you begin editing your draft, here are a few tips to get into the right frame of mind:

Assume a teacher’s mindset.

The most constructive way to edit is to think of yourself as a teacher rather than a parent — to have some distance, to have other things going on, to be invested in the student’s future without having a stake in it.

Think of your reader.

The most important relationship a writer needs to form is with their reader — it is that instant connection with your book that will hook them in, want to turn the pages, finish it, re-read it, recommend it. It doesn’t matter who your reader is, what age, gender, ethnicity, background, etc. What matters is that when they read your novel, they’re able to inhabit the world, engage with the story, and know the characters as though they were real.

You are NOT your novel.

You are its creator, but the novel is a thing of its own, and it will be out in the world making its own relationships — people will be impressed by it, love it, support it, cheer for it. But it will not make everyone happy, and that’s alright. Remember, none of it is personal.

Some more introspection.

To get into the right frame of mind for the big edit, try answering the questions below:

• Why am I writing this story?
• Can I describe the novel in one strapline? Try it!
• Can I summarise the novel in one paragraph? Try it!
• What was my vision for the novel when I first wrote it? Is that still the case?
• Honestly, what do I think of the current draft?
• What is unique about it that I haven’t seen done anywhere else?
• Is it truly, wholly mine?
• Am I the best person to tell this story?
• Am I ready to tell this story, given this is my only chance?
• Am I ready to put in the work to tell the story in a way that meets my idea of ‘good’?
• Am I comfortable with this story and this novel existing in the world forever?

Once you’ve finished, spend some time reflecting on the emotions this may have triggered within you, and what you have taken from the experience.

Santanu Bhattacharya is the author of two novels, One Small Voice and Deviants, and several works of short fiction. 

One Small Voice was an Observer Best Debut Novel for 2023, and was shortlisted for the Author’s Club Best First Novel Award and the Gordon Bowker Volcano Prize. Deviants won the Rainbow Award and BLF-Atta Galata Prize 2025, and was longlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize. Santanu is the recipient of the Desmond Elliott Prize Residency, the Mo Siewcharran Prize, the Life Writing Prize, and a London Writers’ Award.

He grew up in India, and now lives in London.