Can editing ACTUALLY make a story better? // Let's fix these amateur writing mistakes @NicoleWilbur

Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago

Let's deep dive into edits! I break down how I've edited my novel to fix all the writing mistakes I made in my first draft. I breakdown Act 1 beat by beat, highlight every amateur story mistake I made, and show how the book changed from draft one to draft four.

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I'm Nicole Wilbur and I'm a writer and "story nerd", which basically means I love analyzing books, movies, and shows to understand how and why they work. I make videos about becoming a better writer, editing books, and writing resources. If this sounds good to you, hit the subscribe button! :)

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$Beyond Save the Cat Writes a Novel | 5 problems with the beat sheet Save the Cat by Blake Snyder and Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody are useful frameworks, but not the be-all-end-all. To write a great story today, you need more than a beat sheet. These are 5 problems (or holes) in Save the Cat. Subscribe to my newsletter for updates on my upcoming resource....this week was a story structure analysis of Project Hail Mary: https://nicolewilbur.substack.com/publish/post/193466353r=1odtbd&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true 00:00 Intro 01:45 #1 10% is too late 06:00 #2 Midpoints as revelation 09:30 #3 Dont state the theme! 11:15 #4 Crises are the crux 14:00 #5 Fractal design Alternative Resources 1. https://www.jessicabrody.com/2020/07/four-catalyst-quick-fixes-for-save-the-cat/ (Save the Cat Writes a YA Novel mentions this content) 2. Into the Woods by John Yorke 3. https://youtu.be/lGi7IhH6aoA 4. https://storygrid.com/story-crisis/ 5. Into the Woods (again) and https://mythcreants.com/blog/your-plot-is-a-fractal/ Im Nicole Wilbur, an author, writing mentor, and adrenaline-chaser. I write about young adults breaking the rules, falling in love, and becoming versions of themselves they never expected. Pursuing traditional publishing and sharing the highs & lows! 🎥 V I D E O S F O R Y O U 🎥 My querying journey: https://youtu.be/vtH9ukSEMB4 How I got my Literary Agent: https://youtu.be/6AnfipxUACc How I think about story structure: https://youtu.be/lGi7IhH6aoA Should you take that writing course? https://youtu.be/jmpo7-Bg9rU ✍️ M Y A U T H O R N E W S L E T T E R ✍️ Say yes to a party in your inbox: https://nicolewilbur.substack.com/ 💬 L E T S C O N N E C T 💬 Website | https://www.nicolewilbur.com/ Pinterest | https://pin.it/3jx8lbC #savethecat #writinganovel #writertube$

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