Why Do Top Writers Use Writing Checklists?

K. M. Allan’s latest book, Writing And Editing Checklists, answers why top writers use writing checklists—hundreds of actionable improvement tips and reminders.

By: Grant P. Ferguson

Last Updated: June 6, 2025

Writing and Editing Checklists Is Your Mentor

Imagine a top writer sitting next to you while writing and editing your latest manuscript.

You wouldn’t dare hit the publish button until you applied their wisdom to your writing. That’s what Allan’s book on writing and editing will do for your content. The wisdom distilled in the 50+ checklists will improve your writing, helping you eliminate nuisances that cause the audience to stop reading and leave negative reviews.

Checklists you can use before, during, and after you write.

A Lean and Effective Format

As your ever-present mentor, Writing and Editing Checklists reinforce the chief insights.

For example:

Definitions:

Allan defines each topic, highlighting the problems before giving the solutions.

Deep POV is writing in a way that eliminates distance between the reader and your characters.

Examples:

The book offers easy-to-understand examples.

Without Deep POV: Josh saw Grace in that area, it wasn’t hard to miss her. She was simply an older version of Sarah, in the same tall, lean frame and with the same long, straight blond hair.

With Deep POV: Grace was in that area and was hard to miss. She was an older version of Sarah, with the same tall, lean frame and long, straight blond hair.

Tips:

The author provides actionable insights from her years of writing.

The best way to tackle Deep POV is to watch your filter words. These are the words most likely to create distance.

Checklists:

The book summarizes topics with a checklist of the key points and tips.

Using the Kindle version (my favorite!) of Writing and Editing Checklists, jump to a topic and put that wisdom to work.

Get Your Copy of Writing and Editing Checklists

K. M. Allan writes with an economy of words, but that only makes the use of her insights more effective.

Writing and Editing Checklists support the Trellis Method’s 12-step approach to writing, and I highly recommend the pairing.

Here are retailers where you can purchase the book.

Paperback:

Amazon (US)

Amazon.co.uk (UK)

Amazon.ca (Canada)

Barnes & Noble (US)

Angus & Robertson (AU)

Booktopia (AU)

Amazon.com.au (AU)

Ebook:

1–Apple Books (US)

2–Apple Books (AU)

3-Apple Books (UK)

4-Apple Books (Canada)

1-Amazon (US)

2-Amazon.com.au (AU)

3-Amazon.co.uk (UK)

4-Amazon.ca (Canada)

Barnes & Noble (US)

1–Kobo (US)

2–Kobo (AU)

3-Kobo (UK)

4-Kobo (Canada)

Bonus:

When you buy K. M. Allan’s Writing and Editing Checklist, she graciously provides in the Afterword an offer for a free book, Authoring Checklists, her tips and tricks for being a modern writer. Excellent!

About the Author

K. M. Allan

K.M. Allan is an identical twin, but not the evil one. She started her career penning beauty articles for a hairstyling website and now powers herself with chocolate and green tea while she writes novels and blogs about writing.

Her debut series, Blackbirch—a 4-book modern urban fantasy about dark secrets and magical abilities is a hit with readers, receiving multiple 4 and 5-star reviews, and each appearing in the top 5 on Amazon’s Hot New Release bestseller list upon release.

When not writing, she likes to read, binge-watch too much TV, spend time with family, and take more photos than she will ever humanly need.

Visit her website, www.kmallan.com, to discover the mysteries of the universe. Or at the very least, some good writing tips.

What tools do you use to write and edit your fiction?

The Trellis Method’s Edit Drafts Workbook

The Trellis Method’s Get Feedback Workbook

The Trellis Method’s Finalize Content Workbook

15 responses to “Why Do Top Writers Use Writing Checklists?”

Michelle

Thanks for sharing this very helpful resource! It sounds like there’s a lot of great checklists to help with everything writers need to remember.
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  Thanks for stopping by, Michelle. So practical and easy to use. Excellent go to reference.
wordsfromanneli

The example of a checklist shows that most of us do need reminders, checklists, crutches, whatever you want to call it. The main goal is to improve our writing. Nobody can remember everything and, especially for that second round of self-editing, it’s a good guide to follow. I’m sure there are many other great tips in the book but this one alone is worth it.
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  You nailed it, Anneli, and as noted to Jacqui, I keep my list within view using the Scrivener app. However, I’d emphasize that most of my checking and adding reader-expected details takes place after drafting a scene. K.M. Allan’s book does a marvelous job of helping writers before, during, and after writing.
  1. wordsfromanneli
    
    I think that is why many writers don’t know when to stop rewriting. Each round we find another thing to check for, so having a lot of things taken care of in the first draft would be a big help.
    1. Grant at Tame Your Book
      
      Absolutely! I view each scene as a mini story. If we want readers to continue with the next one, we have to give them reasons to keep reading. It’s like stringing pearls on a necklace — size, fit, and style matter. The checklists show us how to inspect for what’s expected. Sounds simple, but it’s a lot of work and a tool like Allan’s book helps.
      1. wordsfromanneli
        
        Exactly!
Priscilla Bettis

Thanks for the helpful book rec, Grant!
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  I love books that break complex problems into simple yet elegant solutions, Priscilla, and Writing and Editing Checklists is one of those.
Jacqui Murray

I do love checklists. I will give this a peek.
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  In the right-hand column of my Scrivener app, I keep a running list of responses to my Custom Metadata prompts (e.g., each of the “Senses” shown in scene). Allan’s book was almost a perfect match for each of those data points for each scene. To show what I’m talking about, here’s a post that gives an example of the items writers can track on a scene-by-scene basis. https://tameyourbook.com/self-edit-your-novel-part-1c/
K.M. Allan

What a great write-up/review. I’m honoured to be a part of your wonderful blog, Grant. Thank you so much. I have a soft-spot for the ebook version too. The internal links make it so easy to move around the checklists 😊.
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  Glad to recommend your book, Kate, and I believe it’s the best set of tools for cross-checking all the details that readers find so important. I’ll be using it with my books, too!
  
  The only complaint I have is you’re forcing me to update the Trellis Method’s workbook for Step 8, Edit Drafts, and encouraging writers to purchase your book BEFORE they refine their stories. Excellent!
Smorgasbord – Variety is the Spice of Life.

Very comprehensive and helpful… thanks for sharing Grant.
1. Grant at Tame Your Book
  
  You’re welcome, Sally, and for writers, I think her book is an absolute bargain.