Rob Bignell's Blog, page 280

Substantive edit needed early in writing process

A type of editing you can have done early in the writing process is substantive editing.

This generally includes:
��� Correcting spelling, capitalization, punctuation and obvious grammar errors
��� Improving readability of text
��� Identifying clarity and organizational issues
��� Identifying accuracy issues
��� Identifying consistency issues
��� Recommending sections to add, reduce or delete

A substantive edit generally is needed after the writer has taken the manuscript through at least one draft. That is, the manuscript is ���completed��� with no missing parts. A substantive editor may find that additional parts need to be written, but before the edit begins, at least in the writer���s mind, the manuscript is ���complete.���

Editors vary on their approach to substantive editing. Many will rewrite whole sections, and generally the more expensive the editor, the more likely that will occur. Other editors (including myself) believe in the integrity of the manuscript and tend to merely recommend that parts be rewritten, added or subtracted. Such editors take on more of a mentoring role as the writer makes such changes.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Minneapolis, Minnesota, or a small town like Nothing, Arizona, I can provide that second eye.

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Copy editing intended for book near completion

One type of editing you can have done is copy editing.

This generally includes:
��� Correcting spelling, capitalization, punctuation and obvious grammar errors
��� Ensuring the text is clear and understandable (which may involve minor rewriting)
��� Checking for potential copyright violations
��� Cross-checking for consistent use of references and sources

While copy editing includes elements of proofreading (correcting spelling, capitalization, punctuation and obvious grammar errors), the latter also can focus on formatting issues. At the copy editing stage, your manuscript is still getting in shape to be formatted, so checking such items as the table of contents would be premature.

The manuscript that needs a copy editing usually is fairly far along in the drafting stage, though, as major issues such as organization and maintaining a consistent voice have been worked out.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Minneapolis, Minnesota, or a small town like Nothing, Arizona, I can provide that second eye.

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Proofreading most basic ��� and final ��� kind of edit

The most basic type of editing you can have done is proofreading.

A proofreading generally includes the correcting of:
��� Spelling errors
��� Capitalization errors
��� Punctuation errors
��� Obvious grammar errors (such as missing words)
��� Inconsistent use of fonts and styles in chapter/subchapter titles, headers and footers
��� Inconsistent use or errors in margins and line spacing
��� Page numbering issues
��� Tables of contents and index accuracy

In many ways, proofreading is like copy editing. The main difference is that copy editing is a more sweeping review and can involve a minor rewriting of lines. At the proofreading stage, the author simply needs a reader to look for typos in the text and errors in the formatting.

While the above listed corrections generally are made on each draft you write, a proofreading without any other level of editing usually is done only to a formatted manuscript before it goes to the printer.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Tampa, Florida, or a small town like Deadhorse, Alaska, I can provide that second eye.

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Different levels, kinds of editing exist

The importance of an editor can���t be understated for self-publishing authors. A human editor can use years of experience and expertise to point out parts of a text that won���t make sense to reader, to pick up on nuances, and to mentor you in the craft of writing. A software program at best can point out typos, capitalization errors, and a few misused punctuation marks.

Not all edits done by an editor are equal, though. Depending on your ability as a writer and the number of drafts you���ve taken a manuscript through, you will require a different type of edit. Knowing the four general kinds of edits can help you better determine and then communicate to an editor the type of service you need.

There generally are four basic type of edits:
��� Developmental editing ��� This involves working with the writer to take a book concept from start to finish.
��� Substantive editing ��� The focus is identifying and offering solutions to problems in a manuscript that the author has just ���completed.���
��� Copy editing ��� The editor���s lens tightens on spelling, capitalization, punctuation, grammar and craftsmanship issues that remain after the manuscript has gone through several drafts.
��� Proofreading ��� Typos in the text and formatting errors are identified in a copy of the manuscript about to go to the printer.

Traditionally, a manuscript would go through at least each of these edits once. Often copy editing and proofreading would occur several times on a manuscript, sometimes even done by different editors.

That���s an expensive route for those self-publishing books. Most self-published authors can do the developmental and substantive editing themselves with the help of fellow writers or colleagues. They definitely need copy editing and then a proofreading of their formatted book by an outside source, though. And if a beginning writer, having a substantive edit done until you become more skilled is a good idea.

During the days ahead, we���ll look more in depth at each these different types of editing.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. I can provide that second eye.

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How to create suspense in your story

Conflict ��� the competition a character faces as attempting to achieve a goal ��� always is the core of a story. But a good story is more than just a fight between a hero and a villain or an inner monologue in which one struggles what to do. Good storytelling involves suspense, that tension in which the reader is uncertain how the conflict will be resolved.

One good way to create suspense is to hold back information. Rather than fill the text with exposition and backstory, instead keep the reader wondering how problems will be settled.

For example, have a character pose a question ��� and then don���t answer it:

���Why the long face? What���s bothering you, kiddo?���

She folded her arms, looked away. ���Nothing. Nothing���s wrong.���

Of course, something is wrong. Suspense is created because there is a dynamic between the two characters; one wants to know the answer to a question yet the other doesn���t want to provide that answer.

Another option is to withhold details as characters interact with objects. So, don���t write:

He slipped a hand into a coat pocket, fingered the detonator.

But instead write:

He slipped a hand into a coat pocket, pressed the tip of his thumb against a sharp point in anticipation.

In the revision, the reader is left wondering what is in the coat pocket. Later in the story, reveal that it is a detonator. Further, only use this technique if the object actually plays a key role in the plot.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like San Antonio, Texas, or a small town like Toad Suck, Arkansas, I can provide that second eye.

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Five Great Quotations about Passion for Writing

���You don���t write because you want to say something. You write because you���ve got to say something.��� ��� F. Scott Fitzgerald

���I learned that you should feel when writing, not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten - happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another.��� - Brenda Ueland

���Writing isn't generally a lucrative source of income; only a few, exceptional writers reach the income levels associated with the best-sellers. Rather, most of us write because we can make a modest living, or even supplement our day jobs, doing something about which we feel passionately. Even at the worst of times, when nothing goes right, when the prose is clumsy and the ideas feel stale, at least we're doing something that we genuinely love. There's no other reason to work this hard, except that love.��� - Melissa Scott

���Yes, it's hard to write, but it's harder not to.��� - Carl Van Doren

���The desire to write grows with writing.��� - Desiderius Erasmus

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Detroit, Michigan, or a small town like Carefree, Arizona, I can provide that second eye.

 

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Writing Inspiration: Research your topic

Is there a part of your story that involves something you���ve never experienced? A stagecoach robbery? A firefight during war? A refugee camp? Read a book about the topic, using the research to inform your writing.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Detroit, Michigan, or a small town like Carefree, Arizona, I can provide that second eye.

 

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What exactly is an ���author platform���?

One of the most heard phrases mentioned when marketing a self-published book is author platform. Despite how commonly it���s heard, there���s a lot of confusion about what exactly is an author platform.

At its most basic, an author platform is a system you create to ensure that your book sells.

Of course, self-publishing gurus encourage different systems, believing some work better than others. And different systems are needed based on the kind of book you write; after all, some of what works to promote a nonfiction book may not work for a novel.

A system, by definition, consists of several parts and steps. Likewise, an author platform also has separate parts and steps.

Perhaps the most element of the author platform is an online presence ��� such as a website or a blog ��� that serves as a base to promote your books. This site usually tells a little about you the author, a bunch about your books, and includes links to where the books can be purchased.

Another common element of author platforms is social media, which most often includes Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest or Tumblr or Instagram, and possibly others. Because potential readers obtain information about books in different ways, usually an author should use at least three of these social media sites.

A third working part of an author platform often is non-social media outreach efforts, such as sending press releases to the media, writing articles for publications (both paper and electronic), book signings, public presentations, advertising, and so on.

In theory, the system works like this: You publish a book. A web page (at an online vendor, your website, or your blog) exists for people to purchase your book. Social media is utilized to point people who don���t know about you or your books to that web page where they can purchase the titles. Non-social media outreach efforts achieve the same purpose as social media but often have the added benefit of allowing the potential reader to directly purchase the book from you (such as at a book signing).

Which social media and non-social media outreach efforts work best for you depend upon a number of complex factors. Foremost among them is the type of book you write. A nonfiction book about the history of a specific locale is more likely to garner media attention than a novel, so a press release is a sound strategy in one case but not the other. Another factor is the quality of your outreach effort. A poorly written tweet, for example, won���t net you a sale. A third factor is the amount of effort you put into it. A sound strategy that is well-planned and executed can net you a surprising number of sales, whereas a half-hearted effort just wastes your time.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Tampa, Florida, or a small town like Deadhorse, Alaska, I can provide that second eye.

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Editing client publishes first treasure hunt thriller

A recent editing client of mine from New Zealand has published his first book. Benjamin Kuttner���s ���The Orlov Diamond��� tells the story of student Jonathan Lloyd, who discovers his lecturer, Simon Ladbrook, was once a legendary treasure hunter. Ladbrook introduces Lloyd to the Discovery & Exploration Club, a secret stock exchange open only to billionaires and men of action who mount expeditions to uncover lost treasures. Helped by a beautiful Russian translator, both men follow clues into secret tunnels deep beneath the Kremlin in an effort to find the stolen Orlov diamond. The hunt leads them on a deadly game of cat and mouse through the wilds of the Caucusus Montains and down the canals of St Petersburg. The book is available for purchase online.

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from a big city like Austin, Texas, or a small town like Bald Knob, Arkansas, I can provide that second eye.

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Write around them: resting my case on lay vs. lie

There appear to be a set of language rules that to most people simply sound wrong when you use the right word. Who and whom is chief among them, as few people, despite the efforts of their seventh grade language arts teacher, know when to use which one. Lay and lie and their various forms are another pair of such words.

For the record, lay/laid/laying means to set down (I laid my exhausted child in her bed.). It always requires an object or something that can be set down. Lie/lain/lying and the past tense lay means to recline, as in I had lain on the beach for several hours. It can���t take an object.

The use of the archaic-sounding lain and the confusing use of lay as a past tense version of lie demonstrates that, as is the case with all languages, the rules speakers and writers use regarding these words are evolving. Indeed, most people will tell you that lay down is correct (All I want to do at the end of the day is lay down.) when it technically isn���t.

Because using lay/lie correctly often sounds wrong and because there are grammar police out there who will flag you for not using the words correctly, the simple solution for authors is to write around the problem.

Simply put, use set or place rather than lay/laid/laying and recline for lie/lain/lying. Or even better, as set, place and recline are dull verbs, why not rewrite the sentence so that more exciting action occurs in it?

Need an editor? Having your book, business document or academic paper proofread or edited before submitting it can prove invaluable. In an economic climate where you face heavy competition, your writing needs a second eye to give you the edge. Whether you come from an urban area like California's Inland Empire or a rural area like Loving County, Texas, I can provide that second eye.

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