Is my manuscript ready for publication?

If you're asking this question, the answer is no. Most of the writers I meet and work with think their manuscripts are farther along in the writing process than I do. The chart below illustrates the steps in the writing process, from idea to publication. If you think you have a good draft, I probably think you have a rough draft. In my experience, writers get stuck in the rough-draft stage because they haven’t yet learned how to revise effectively.