Don't make others pay

By Jenny Hilborne
Author: mysteries & thrillers

I'm in editing mode. This means numerous rounds of slashing and cutting from my manuscript and deleting offenders (never realized I had (oops) such a fondness for the use of had and was until now). I'm in fine company. A good friend of mine, and a good author, too, recently found and discarded 156 exclamation marks from his manuscript. The cleaning doesn't end with me. Once I'm done, it's off to the professional editor.

Hours upon hours in the editing cave makes me tired, hungry, and often irritable. The weekend cool down we were promised arrived, and it dropped from 100 degrees to about 99. My editing cave faces south, where it always feels like 115. Twelve or more hours spent sweating and poring over a manuscript for every offense I can find makes me feel like a school nurse ferreting for nits, and dragging them out kicking and screaming. It's a long process.

My relaxation after hard days like this is usually a book. Unfortunately, I can't switch my inner editor off, which tends to spoil my reading. Editing has turned me into a critical audience. A bad plot with good writing is one thing - irritating - but not a death sentence for the author...meaning, I'll give said author another go. However, I can't say the same for authors churning out a good plot with bad writing.

An aspiring author recently asked me what he/she could do if unable to afford a professional editor. Well, quite frankly, it depends on how serious you are about your writing. If you're serious, find the money and pay for a good editor, and don't go cheap. Find a good one, preferably a recommendation. An abundance of author forums can help with that. Jodie Renner, who doles out tons of free editing advice, is one editor I've recommended to more than one new author.

A few other ideas: join a critique group to get the work as tight as possible prior to editing, or try a kickstarter campaign, though without some kind of "fame" kickstarter might be a tough sell. If you have skills of your own, you could use the old barter system. Free cover design for a free edit. If not, then trusted beta readers can help, as long as you're not using friends who will tell you only what you want to hear. If you choose to self-edit, get a good book on how to do it properly. And read your work until you can't stand it.

If you're not sick of your own manuscript by the time you're done editing....then maybe you haven't read through it enough times. Whether you publish yourself or publish traditionally, don't skip over the importance of a good editor. If you bypass it, you're not the only one who has to pay.

Here are some links to articles that provide clear, concrete advice for revising, editing, and polishing your own novel, courtesy of Jodie Renner. Implementing these tips will also save you a lot of money on editing costs!

REVISE FOR SUCCESS - A Stress-Free, Concrete Plan of Action for Revising, Editing, and Polishing Your Novel http://jodierennerediting.blogspot.ca/2013/08/revise-for-success-stress-free-concrete.html

Revising, Editing, & Polishing Your Novel: http://jodierennerediting.blogspot.ca/2013/07/revising-editing-and-polishing-your.html

How to Save a Bundle on Editing Costs - http://crimefictioncollective.blogspot.ca/2012/11/how-to-save-bundle-on-editing-costs.html

How to Slash Your Word Count by 20-40% …and tighten up your story without losing any of the good stuff! http://jodierennerediting.blogspot.com/2013/08/how-to-slash-your-word-count-by-20-40.html

Writing Naked

by C.J. West
Ever dream you’re standing in front of your locker back in high school then look down and discover you forgot your pants?

How about the one where the college semester is almost over and you haven’t been to class for two months? When I have this dream, I can’t remember which classes I am registered for or where they convene. It’s very distressing to be lost and afraid.

When I was a new writer I had these dreams all the time. There is something scary about opening yourself and your work up to criticism. In today’s world of anonymous feedback on Facebook, Amazon, and via email, it is so easy for someone to tell us how awful our work is. That makes it risky to send our work out into the world, or even to get it down on the page.

I remember being in the “first novel” group on Yahoo for years. So many of us looked at the blank screen and sat there. It might have been fear that kept our word count so low or it might have been uncertainty about how to put a novel together. Back then I would have killed to have an established author show me his writing process.

That’s what I’m going to do this year. Starting in August, I’m going to write and release my novel Two Bags Full as it is written. Not a polished draft, but my first draft the way I normally write a first draft. Each day, I’ll chat with readers about the story and characters. We’ll talk about what is happening at a time when the story is still changing. I think this is a unique experience to talk with the author about a book while it is still being written.

Readers will get to see the evolution of the book from draft to draft. To hear my plans for each draft from beginning to end and to see the tools I use to keep track of my work. As we go along we’ll remove the mystique so many people have about writing a novel and share the story in a way readers of the finished book never experience.

The discussion will be held in a private group funded by this Kickstarter project. If you would like to take part in the experience you need to register right away. No one will be admitted once the project begins.

The great thing about Kickstarter is that this project won’t begin unless we reach the funding goal, which means there will be about 1,000 people taking part in the project. With that many people coming along, there will be a good group to talk to anytime you want to discuss what is happening

I hope you’ll join me.

When the project is done and you go back to writing, you might feel like you’re naked, but at least you’ll know you’re not alone.

C.J. West is the author of eight suspense novels, one of which was optioned for film. A former computer systems consultant and blog talk radio host, C.J. has been writing novels since 1999. Find him at www.22wb.com or on Facebook.