Jessica Russell's Blog - Posts Tagged "proofread"
Breathe
There is an amazing number of posts everywhere you look concerning all sorts of "critical" do's and don'ts that will supposedly make or break a new author. Here is the actual truth: SOME things literally only matter to editors. I have nothing against editors, they're doing their job. However, the Oxford comma, opening a chapter with weather, using "smiling" words or sneaking in a split infinitive are not things that any reader anywhere, to the best of my knowledge, has EVER cared about. Proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation are important. Beyond that, there's no reason to drive yourself crazy with all kinds of nitpicky nonsense because you're convinced that the "experts" will find flaws in your writing. All books need editing and proofreading, but ultimately, you are not selling your book to editors, you're selling it to READERS. And readers don't care about the Oxford comma. Readers care whether or not the darn story is any good. Focus on weaving a good tale and when it comes to whether or not to use a semicolon, take a nice deep breath, flip a coin, and keep writing. :)
Don't ask for Favors
As writers, we naturally want people to read what we wrote. And it’s perfectly normal to begin with friends and family. But never go to someone and say “I need a favor, can you read this and give me your HONEST opinion?” Never give into the urge to say “I need you to critique this for me.” Etc. etc. The reason is because it’s not fair to the person you’re asking to read it and it’s not fair to you.
You are obviously proud of your work and you want people to have a good reaction to it. This is why you shouldn’t set yourself up for hurt feelings by using the “favor” method, because you’re essentially telling them to find flaws in your book. People will do what you tell them to in cases like this… they’ll read it with a critical eye and find flaws. Let’s face it, that’s NOT what you want. You went through all that already with the proofreader and the editor, and hopefully found all the flaws. What you REALLY want is for your friend/relative to read the darn book and enjoy it! So don’t ask them to read it in the frame of mind of “let’s find out what’s wrong with this book.” They’ll do exactly that, and you’ll be left deflated.
Secondly, it’s not fair to the READER, which might come as a surprise to you. Here’s why: if you tell someone to read something critically, they’re not reading it the way they would any other book… just to enjoy it. Instead, they’re reading it to find flaws. And find flaws they will. So their reading experience will be so-so. In fact, they will find flaws that aren’t even THERE, because that’s what you told them to do. This is a lose-lose for both the writer and the person doing the “favor.”
So be confident in your work and your skills and if there’s someone near and dear to your heart who you really want to read your book, just give it to him or her and say “this is my new book, would you like a copy to read?.” You will soon know if the person took it just to be polite. Three months go by and the person still hasn’t read it yet? Safe to say he or she is not interested. If the person reads it, the reaction may be to love it or hate it, but at least it will have been read with an open mind instead of from the standpoint of finding something wrong with. I know it’s hard to resist that urge to ask someone to “do you a favor,” but never demean your work that way. If you need an editor, hire one. Don’t pass off a book to a friend or relative under the guise of needing them to critique it. Just hand it to the person with confidence and let the rest take care of itself.
You are obviously proud of your work and you want people to have a good reaction to it. This is why you shouldn’t set yourself up for hurt feelings by using the “favor” method, because you’re essentially telling them to find flaws in your book. People will do what you tell them to in cases like this… they’ll read it with a critical eye and find flaws. Let’s face it, that’s NOT what you want. You went through all that already with the proofreader and the editor, and hopefully found all the flaws. What you REALLY want is for your friend/relative to read the darn book and enjoy it! So don’t ask them to read it in the frame of mind of “let’s find out what’s wrong with this book.” They’ll do exactly that, and you’ll be left deflated.
Secondly, it’s not fair to the READER, which might come as a surprise to you. Here’s why: if you tell someone to read something critically, they’re not reading it the way they would any other book… just to enjoy it. Instead, they’re reading it to find flaws. And find flaws they will. So their reading experience will be so-so. In fact, they will find flaws that aren’t even THERE, because that’s what you told them to do. This is a lose-lose for both the writer and the person doing the “favor.”
So be confident in your work and your skills and if there’s someone near and dear to your heart who you really want to read your book, just give it to him or her and say “this is my new book, would you like a copy to read?.” You will soon know if the person took it just to be polite. Three months go by and the person still hasn’t read it yet? Safe to say he or she is not interested. If the person reads it, the reaction may be to love it or hate it, but at least it will have been read with an open mind instead of from the standpoint of finding something wrong with. I know it’s hard to resist that urge to ask someone to “do you a favor,” but never demean your work that way. If you need an editor, hire one. Don’t pass off a book to a friend or relative under the guise of needing them to critique it. Just hand it to the person with confidence and let the rest take care of itself.
