Okay, so I’m slowly but surely working on the novel revision. But since I’m a logical person, I decided to use a tool to help me keep track of everything going on with this project: spreadsheets!

I use spreadsheets a lot in the day job but I also find them useful in the novel revision process as well. It helps me keep track of things and also lets me start to see trends and help me figure out stuff.

So this weekend, I created a spreadsheet template that I plan to use for all three parts of my novel. This month, I’m working on the first part, but this spreadsheet will be used throughout the whole process.

Right now, I have eight columns. I’m still not really sure about the chapter breaks right now, so I’m just using the individual scenes.

Here’s the breakdown of the following columns:

Chapter #: Right now this column is a placeholder until I get a better grip on the scene assignments. But later, I will assign chapters and then can sort this column for the sequential storyline.

Scene #: This just identifies the scene to help me keep track of it. I usually just number it in the order I wrote it but in the end, the scene could be in any chapter.

Scene Details: A brief synopsis of the scene. The main goal, the obstacles, and the result.

Scene Type: I try to categorize my scenes by type. I’ll probably write about scene types in a separate blog post, but basically I assign the following: Action, Dramatic, Epiphany, Summary, or Contemplative. This helps me see at a glance the type of scenes I have.

Word Count: The word count of a scene. The bigger the word count, the more important the scene. Helps me figure out the major turning points and also lets me know I should pay special attention to verify if it should be a major scene.

Characters: The characters that are involved in the scene. I only include characters that are physically in the scene.

Characters mentioned: This is where I put any characters who are mentioned but who are not in the physical scene. Lets me know if my character introductions make sense and how much time it takes for the character to physically show up in the novel.

Location: This is where I put the location of the scene. It helps me see trends. Are the scene locations always in the same places? Sort of lets me know if I should diversify my locations.

Timeline: This is very important because it gives me an idea of how time passes in the novel and also alerts me of any discrepancies.

Revision Notes: This is just a placeholder of anything that I need to think about or change for the scene. Usually this is good for revision because I may be revising another scene and I need to drop a quick note or either I need to do some kind of setup for a future scene.

So I finished up my spreadsheet for Act 1 and now at a glance, I can look at all 25 of my scenes and see any holes or discrepancies. I see already I have issues with my timeline and I’ve already made a few notes on how other scenes impact past or future scenes. So, at least it gives me a better idea on how to tackle these things in one place.

I used a spreadsheet with my previous novel and it helped a lot during the revision process.