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This week: Sweat the Small Stuff! Edited by: fyn  
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Sometimes I can spend as long revising a manuscript as I spent writing it in the first place.~~Margaret Haddix
Characters are incredibly important, but I tend to build them around the plot during the outline stage. However, once I'm writing the manuscript, the characters I'm writing dictate how the plot unfolds.~~Aimee Carter
Everyone needs an editor.~~Tim Foote
The difference between the right word and the nearly right word is the same as the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.~~ Mark Twain
The first draft of anything is shit.~~ Ernest Hemingway
Rereading reveals rubbish and redundance.~~ Duane Alan Hahn
Rewriting ripens what you’ve written.~~Duane Alan Hahn
The wastebasket is a writer’s best friend.~~ Isaac Bashevis Singer
I try to leave out the parts that people skip.~~ Elmore Leonard |
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As a publisher, one of my most important tasks is to read manuscripts of authors who want their book published. I read all of every manuscript: the excellent, the 'has good bones but where's the muscle?' and the 'Seriously messed up'. I am looking for the 'ready to go' and the ones with potential. What I see most often is the manuscript where the author finished writing a draft --1st, 2nd, or 3rd, and who thinks it is finished. Too often, a writer finishes their FIRST run through and considers the writing done. It. Is. Not.
When manuscripts come my way with errors beyond a casual proof, it is a very telling statement. Errors like the ubiquitous 'its' vs 'it's' or folks who do not know how to punctuate dialog are, unfortunately, the norm. Consider the following.
"I need to go to the store," He said!
"Why. Its poring. Your going to get wet." She responded?
If these, in your private world where no one can see you, look correct, PLEASE run out and buy The Elements of Style by Strunk and White. Best quick reference for basic grammar and punctuation. EVER!
These types of mistakes are the stuff of which an editor's nightmares are made of because they are time consuming and tedious to correct. If one wants to become a writer, one needs to learn HOW to write! It won't matter how great the story line is if the nuts and bolts of the writing are corroded in rust. I tell authors to go back and read every single word. I tell them to rely on their brains and not spell checkers that can't tell the difference between pore and pour.
Editors primarily exist to check that tenses are not switching every other sentence, that the writing is consistent in point of view, to find plot-holes and to be sure there aren't dangling characters, unnecessary side-tracks and pointless divergences. They also check grammar and correct comma, semicolon and colon use. Too often, editors spend their time doing what the writer should have already done: the writer's job!
The revision of a manuscript takes time, effort, bleary eyes, hair-pulling and countless cups of coffee. It should be done several weeks after a writer types the last word. Read your book start to finish and take notes:don't make changes yet! Then the author needs to switch hats, personalities and eyes to go over, ruthlessly, what they have written. Trust me. It will not be perfect. There will be issues. Parts will not work as well as the author originally thought they did.
You will find you've repeated certain words WAAAAAY too often. Or that you tend to start paragraphs the same way. Or that you didn't go back and read the last several pages when you started writing after a day or so break and repeated or left out important information because you didn't really stop where you thought you had. Or that you changed tenses mid paragraph. Suggestion for when you are writing original manuscript. Stop at the end of a chapter, not in the middle of one!
Do not think you will revise the book in one sitting. Or even ten! When you think you've gone over the book sufficiently, start over looking for the typos, the tense changes, the incorrect punctuation and any and all other errors. Again.
Don't be in a rush. Don't try to hurry the process. When you think you are done, put it away for a month, then go back and read it again. You will still find problems! Repeat the process. Hopefully by this time you will have found the majority of your errors.
"I always mess up my commas."
"I can write the story, but the words mess me up."
"I never did understand how to do dialog."
Might I suggest learning?
Writing is a craft. It takes work. Hard work. Sure, the editors can fix that stuff, but, and think about this, it is YOUR book, not theirs. They don't exist to rewrite your book. That, my fellow writers, is your job!
My novel has been 'done' since April. It has been revised, edited, revised, fixed, played with and left to molder for a bit. I just went back and reread it. OMG! The little, stupid, dumb 'stuff' I found. Typos. (Really? Still?) No one is perfect. But I am so very glad I went over it again. Things like 'though' that should have been 'thought'. A 'rode' that should have been 'road' and one sentence that went no where at all and needed deleting. And that is just in the first section of the book! These are the things you find. A character's eyes changing color, name spellings changing, ages getting mixed up, sibling names changing. One character using the 'voice' of another. Little things, (or not) but very important things!
Whether you are getting a piece ready for publication or simply to post it here at WdC, these steps are important and reflect back upon you--the care and work you put into your craft. Is it polished or just written and posted? If it is still a draft, consider letting reader know that fact. If it is 'finished', be sure it is!
Recently, I did a review of a piece. It had something like 40+ reviews, averaged out at 4.5 stars. It was riddled with errors. It's instead of its. A wrong 'there.' Typos -'recieve' instead of the correct spelling. Same with thier vs their. I mentioned these typos specifically , made other suggestions as well and was lambasted because the piece "was finished, indeed had won an award!" I 'obviously' had "no clue what I was talking about." I didn't respond back as there was no point. There will, I suppose, always be writers and then there will be Writers. We all make mistakes. Personally, I don't care how many reviews I've received, I love it when someone with that fresh pair of eyes finds something that should be fixed! Something that never should have snuck by. Sometimes, I'd swear there are cyber-copy-gremlins sneaking around changing a word here or a letter there just to be nasty! (At least, it would be nice to be able to blame those cyber-sneaks for messing up my perfectly written piece! But nope, all on me! *grin* More, to my way of thinking, a review pointing out errors is an opportunity to a) fix mistakes and b) learn something!
Future imperfect? Not a clue. I still struggle with passive tenses. Split infinitives and I have an ongoing battle. As I have said: writing is a craft. One in which we, as writers, must continually hone, refine and practice!
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These folks are looking for constructive reviews!
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Elfin Dragon-finally published  I like this newsletter today. It reminds me of when my ex and I were writing stories together. We'd each have our own character but bring them into a particular story. It was very enlightening for me. I found I wrote a bit more seriously and he with more bravado and, well fun. When we got together it made for some pretty good stories and I grew to see the difference between two characters in a story. And how to write better.
Anthology Announcement:
Emails to those authors whose pieces have been accepted for the anthology will go out this week.
Pre-ordering info for the 2014 Anthology (soft and hard cover versions) is available at:
http://wynwidynpressbooks.storenvy.com/products
Remember: Profits will go to Random Acts of Kindness and The Angel Army
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For Authors: October 22, 2014 Issue [#6619]
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