Your Next Draft
Supporting fiction writers doing the hard work of revising unputdownable novels. The novel editing process is the creative crucible where you discover the story you truly want to tell—and it can present some of the most challenging moments on your writing journey.
Developmental editor and book coach Alice Sudlow will be your companion through the mess and magic of revision. You’ll get inspired by interviews with authors, editors, and coaches sharing their revision processes; gain practical tips from Alice’s editing practice; and hear what real revision truly requires as Alice workshops scenes-in-progress with writers.
It’s all a quest to discover: How do you figure out what your story is truly about? How do you determine what form that story should take? And once you do, how do you shape the hundreds of thousands of words you've written into the story’s most refined and powerful form?
If you’ve written a draft—or three—but are still searching for your story’s untapped potential, this is the podcast for you. Together, let’s dig into the difficult and delightful work of editing your next draft.
Your Next Draft
Latest Episodes
Are You Chasing the Wrong Olympic Gold?
This skater didn't win an Olympic medal, and I'm obsessed with him.I watched Cha Jun-Hwan’s figure skating routine last week in the Olympic men’s short program competition. I never finished watching that competition—I was busy rewinding ...
How Will You Know When Your Novel Is Done?
When will you be truly satisfied with your novel? How will you know when you’ve succeeded?How will you know when you’re done?Will it be when you LOVE your book? When you stop cringing as you read it? When you can’t think of a sing...
6 Reasons to Love Editing (From People Who Actually Do)
What if editing isn’t drudgery, but the most delightful part of your writing process?So you’re revising yet another draft. You’re hoping against hope that this draft will be your final draft. Which, coincidentally, is a...
What Makes a Story Excellent? (And How to Know When You've Reached It)
Is story excellence something you "know when you see it"—or can it actually be measured?Is excellence defined by hitting bestseller lists? Filling seats at every book tour stop? Being selected for “Best Books of 2025” lists?Is exc...
What to Do When Feedback Gets You Stuck
If you get feedback that grinds you to a halt, there's a problem. But YOU are not the problem—the feedback is.Recently, a writer came to me with feedback she was struggling to implement. She’d written a draft of her story, but she knew i...
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