Elina’s Comments (group member since Jan 24, 2017)

Elina’s comments from the Navigating Indieworld Discussing All Things Indie group.

Hi, guys!

Would you please read my blurb and tell me if it needs fixing? I've read it a million times and with every read, it looks more awful.... I don't know anymore what I should do with it. Is it too long? Is it interesting? Blah!

YA fantasy is the genre and the title is The Gate Run.

"Shri Moongale stares at the tower Spike every day. It rises high above the city of Ironflare, casting its intimidating shadow over the people. For Shri, it’s a mark of power, slavery, and fear, and yet her heart desires to reach it more than anything.

The city of Ironflare is divided into five rings, separated by massive iron walls, impossible to cross. The outmost ring, known as the Stall, is where Shri lives. She is a captive, a slave, like everyone else she knows, trapped inside the small, filthy, and poor section of the city.

But Shri has a dream – she wants to become a Senatai, a drawer of magic. All the Senatai are trained in the Spike and even if she could get there, it’s impossible for her to pay for the training. Finally, Shri has no other choice but to enter the deadly game the Senatai organize – The Gate Run. If she survives it, she will become a Senatai. If she will live through its horrors and learn to do magic, she can save her loved ones and they can finally be free."

Any thoughts or ideas? :)

Eldon wrote: "Sorry to hear that Elina :( Had you tried a sample of their work beforehand?"

I did get a sample edit but it was only 500 words so there was not much to learn from it.

Angel wrote: "Sorry, Elina! I hope you recover from this."
Thnaks Angel, I will! I got some refund from her and she was very professional with my complaints. I have another editor in mind and I didn't lose a lot of money. I think I'll be ok. AND this has been a learning experience!!

Chrys wrote: "Was that the person who advertised on Goodreads?"

I'm not sure, I think she is at Goodreads also.

R.L. wrote: "Omg I'm so sorry that happened to you! Man I wish we had a database we can store for people to avoid. Had a similar experience myself."

Thanks, that would be nice. No one else would have to fall for it. She wasn't a bad person, but maybe ignorant.

I hired a bad editor. Goddamit!!!

She sold me proper editing. Copy editing and line editing... and I got proofreading with some light copy edits. The line edits are just missing from the file.

She says that if you want to be pampered and praised with every line, that's not line editing. OMG!! No, I don't want any pampering, I want my editor to EDIT and fix my MS!

I'm so pissed off right now!!! I may be new at this but I'm not stupid! And I chose the more experienced one! Never again will I put old age and "experience" over youth and professionalism.

Luckily, I didn't pay it all up front. But it's a waste of time AND money.

GGNNNHHHHH!!!!

Erica wrote: "Yea Elina! Congrats!"

Thank you, Erica! :)

Prakash wrote: "Congrats Elina!"

Thanks Prakash!

Carole wrote: "Great news, Elina."

It's so exciting and I'm all bouncy and restless and can't concentrate on anything else. :D

Alex wrote: "Elina wrote: "I don't know if this belongs here, but I'm so excited and happy! I discovered the perfect person to do the cover for my book. It was a bargain and it's a really nice cover. :)

Tonig..."

thank you!

I don't know if this belongs here, but I'm so excited and happy! I discovered the perfect person to do the cover for my book. It was a bargain and it's a really nice cover. :)

Tonight I'll send my MS to my editor.
First time ever! I can't believe I actually did it - I finished the MS.

I'm excited!!!!

Alex, that's amazing! Congrats!

Amy wrote: "You're probably ready then. If you've got independent people saying they liked it, regardless of how vague they are then they liked it. Nothing in life is perfect-that includes my first two books, ..."

I think I'm too much of a perfectionist... LOL. I don't know if I'll ever be satisfied with my work.

I love that you are so brave and determined and positive with your work! That's so inspiring! It's not about the cash (though it would be nice to get something out of it all) but about actually achieving something.

Alex wrote: "I used Carole, Amy, and Jessica from this lovely group as my betas for my last book and couldn't have been more happy with the results.
Yes, they liked the book and said so, but they also had good ..."

That's exactly what good betas do. :) I did, however, get C.L. from this group to do me developmental editing and she was great. :)

Amy wrote: "I'm definitely no older than 21. (Liar) If the beta readers were favourable-first were they independent betas or friends? Friends and family are ok for beta readers but no use if they're just going..."

Not friends or family! Totally outsiders from my personal life. Some gave me good feedback but some were kind of vague with their feedback: "I liked it. Keep up the good work." (Oh, great, thanks. That helps.)
I could use more betas but good ones are hard to find.

Amy wrote: "All the time. Part of me knows I'm good enough. Even really good at it. Part of me knows I'm not. You can always pull a book and republish if you decide you're not happy with it. In the end it's a ..."

It is a leap of faith! And I'm terrified. But I know that if I wanna be a writer, I have to put myself out there, in front of everyone and be ready to get humiliated. Or not. They say you gotta suck so you can become good. But still.... it's tough to step out from the comfort zone!
I've had some beta readers and they liked my work. I'm also struggling if it's worth to invest the money I've intended on its editing. If the book is bad, should I put my money on it? I think putting money on editing IS an investment, but how risky is it.... you know. All this just rumbles in my head and I've got no idea what I'm doing. :O

Carole wrote: "All my life. I used to go to business meetings and think I was dressing in my mother's clothing and they would figure it out that I was still a child and didn't belong. That lasted long into my fif..."

Ha-ha! I haven't grown up either. It's funny how you see your face aging but your mind is still the same as it was when you were 17. But it's nice to know I'm not alone. :D How did you overcome it? Or did it just vanish some day?

How do I know my book is ready? I've edited it for months now and every time I read it, there's something to fix! I start to question my choices and plot and characters.... And when I do changes, are they going to make it better or worse? I've got no idea what I'm doing!

Do you ever get the feeling that you're just acting and wonder that when will everyone else notice that you aren't an actual writer after all? They would be like "Ha! You're just pretending! That's not a real book!"

Oh yeah... it's that kind of day.

Carole wrote: "I have used both expensive, inexpensive and the best kind, free. They all miss stuff- Use the one you feel will give your book the attention where it needs it the most- invest in Grammerly- It caug..."

That's a good point too. Even editors are humans. :) I'm a bit doubtful in investing on Grammarly, when I could use that money also to an editor... but maybe I'll buy it someday. :)

Aislinn wrote: "I went with a cheap but "ok" editor for my second book and it was a disaster. They were awful. I'd pay the extra money and get someone you were really confident in."

That's horrible and one of my worst fears. I don't want to use my money AND waste the time to someone who can't do proper work. But on the other hand, I think that everyone must start somewhere. Even editors have to do their first edits.

R.L. wrote: "I'd def ask for references from the cheaper person just in case. You only get one first impression."

That's very true! The first impression is critical. :)

Hi everyone!

It's been a while since I've commented here, sorry! I've been quite busy and a bit overwhelmed with my daytime job, kids, the manuscript... you know. :)

But now I don't know what to do. I've got two editors that have given me offers. One has just started her editing business and appears to be very enthusiastic and as far as I can tell, her sample edit was ok. Then I have another, more experienced one but also more expensive.
And I can't decide.
I'm short of money (like everyone) so the cheaper and less experienced one kind of attracts me, but this is my first book and I can't have poor reviews if I want to sell.

Do you have any thoughts or have you been in the same situation? What did you do?

Yelp! :D

I have a YA fantasy book that needs special care.

It's ready – or as good as I can make it. I would love if you'd like to look at it. Tell me where the story isn't working, are the characters lacking something, are there some huge plotholes or what parts need to be tossed away...

The whole thing is 100k. I'll send you some email and you can check it out if it's something you'd be interested in. :)

Elina wrote: "Hi,

I like it, Mike! It looks like your own and personal. :)

Would you all like to check out my site too? :p

I have nothing published yet and the book is still in progress... very much so. Lot..."

Thanks for the tips, Mike! :) And thanks for the wishes, editing is hard but I hope it'll be worth it!

Hi,

I like it, Mike! It looks like your own and personal. :)

Would you all like to check out my site too? :p

I have nothing published yet and the book is still in progress... very much so. Lots of editing to do. But at least I have a website if nothing else.

Does it need something more? Is something missing? :)

I used wix.com, soooo much fun! It's super easy compared to wordpress and you'll get much more stuff with the free plan. I have to get the domain, though. Soon. I promise. (just look at that url...)

And the book cover isn't final, just something I played with.
But I would like to hear your comments. :)

https://elinavaletales.wixsite.com/au...

Elina wrote: "Elina wrote: "Hi!

I'm self-editing my first YA fantasy novel, and though I have one very good beta reader, I would really like to hear some other comments and thoughts about it too.
Would someone..."

Hi, L.E.

I'll send you a message. :)