During revision mode, I find it helps me keep focused on weeding out the bad elements of my writing if I review various articles or notes I’ve taken on how to revise and improve the prose. This way, the thoughts are current, and I’m more likely to spot when I’ve used cliches, or added a bunch of weasel words to the prose, or just need to cut down a long paragraph into one or two sentences (if not altogether). I also enjoy discovering how other authors attack their work and the techniques they use to snip away all the fat and gristle.
For instance, Sherwood Smith (author of an impressive collection of science fiction and fantasy tales) lists various things she looks for when revising in this article: Sweating the small stuff
Her section on cliche verbs was a good reminder for me. In the search for original word images, or ways for characters to express their emotions through action, I often stick weird verbs into otherwise familiar sentences. For instance: His sad smile cracked his joyful expression in half.
Or, Fear skittered across the fine lines of his face.
Things like that. Not terrible to have, and sometimes they can make an emotion more striking, but too many of those phrases can make the reading awkward or confusing. It can come down to a lot of subtleties and fine-tuning. Line-by-line revision isn’t fun, and often I ask myself whether it really matters if I leave a bunch of “that”s, “was”s, or “like”s strewn through the story? Can’t I let a conversation dump some info so the reader understands what’s going on better? In the end, these tiny issues can really strengthen or weaken a manuscript, I believe, and keeping your eyes keen for them will always benefit your writing.
The devil is in the details. Go exorcise him.
I see that smile.