Kees2Create Words

When First Draft Resembles a Crime Scene

I am a pantser and always will be. No matter how many plotting tools I’ve tried to use over the years, I remain a stubborn pantser. My characters run around like free range chooks creating havoc in the paddock, and I follow them around picking up the eggs and cleaning up after them. It’s what they do. No amount of training has changed a darn thing. Add to that a mind like an internet browser trying to run a thousand open tabs on a dial up connection (remember that Gen-X?) Hence why my first drafts resemble a messy crime scene full of red herrings and false information.

After ditching a plotting program that was never going to work for me, I came across AutoCrit. Tab number 567 in my mind shouted, “Hallelujah!” while my bank account sighed and said, “Here we go, another fancy program to sit and gather dust on the drive.”

Excited, I uploaded Messy First Draft A into the program and waited. Colourful dots bounced around the screen for a while before spitting out a full, chapter by chapter analysis. My chooks scattered as they ran for cover under threat of being organised like ducks. I found myself with a clear synopsis, conflict, character list, world building, possible contradiction events, a timeline analysis, foreshadowing events, plot thread tracking, and a genre analysis. Chapter by chapter, I had myself a post-mortem plot, the ideal tool for a pantser edit.

AutoCrit is not intended to be used for a final edit before you hit the publish button. I still highly recommend a human editor for that. What it does do is help you work through your first draft and keep track of the storyline while making changes. It’s not perfect, by any means, especially the possible contradiction events it throws out, but it highlights possible flaws for you to go back and polish.

Let’s look at that analysis for a moment:

The synopsis (speaks for itself really) summarises events, characterisations and settings.
Conflict – tells me if I have enough conflict to drive the story forward
Characters – a great way to remember who popped in at what point. Also helps you remember how to spell their names and track their growth as a character. 😉
World Building – I like this one. It highlights the general geography, flora and fauna, resources, culture and conflicts to help build settings. It tells me things like: “The main resource mentioned in the chapter is food, with Bridey preparing soup for Thom’s lunch and planning to give leftover bread with Vegemite to their children. Additionally, there is a reference to whiskey being consumed by Thom” OR “There are indications of economic struggles on the farm due to drought and other challenges”.
Possible Contradiction Events – highlights those red herrings and plot fails to revisit. Like I said, not exactly accurate but it does make you go back and check that you have expresssed the intent clearly.
Time Line Analysis – another one I love because time is not my friend. This analysis itemises each plot trigger in the chapter and confirms (or denies) that you have your ducks in a row. The chooks hate it.
Foreshadowing Events – another pat on the back for the pantser when it confirms that the author has indeed written actions and descriptions that set up expectations for future events that may unfold as the narrative progresses.
Plot Thread Tracking – does what it says. Helps you keep track of the plot.
Genre Analysis – another great feature at the end of each chapter in the report so you stay in your genre. At the moment, I’m writing a contemporary rural fiction drama / thriller / suspense with romantic elements. AutoCrit tells me: the chapter delves into the emotional turmoil and challenges faced by the characters in a realistic and relatable setting, focusing on themes of grief, family dynamics, and resilience. The narrative style captures the complexities of human relationships and personal struggles in a modern-day rural community context. (Thank you, AutoCrit! Mission accomplished.)

The analysis report is just one of the many useful features of this program, so do go and check it out. I like that it tells me about pacing, dialogue, strong writing and readability. I love that it highlights overused or repeated words and tells me how many I should cut to meet (or exceed) the industry standard. The best feature of all? I can edit in AutoCrit and then run another analysis as many times as I like before sending it off to my human editor.

To sum it up: I write in Scrivener, analyse and edit in AutoCrit, and upload parts of the analysis to Plottr to create a library to track a series and the characters. All three of my writing investments working together for pantser me. What works for you?

Disclaimer: This blog is an honest opinion of the software. I was not requested to review or promote any of the products mentioned.

Speed Date an Editor

There is nothing I love more than helping writers shape their stories to be the best they can be. I have learned so much from all the editors I’ve had over the years, and I want to pass that knowledge on to the authors I work with. But finding the right editor for your books is a bit like speed dating. You’ve got to keep looking until you find one you like. The editor you choose should be in it for the long haul, just like a new life partner, and you need to get along with each other.

Editing requires patience, flexibility, and a willingness to learn, both from the author and the editor. Sometimes that willingness also needs to include understanding, especially when your editor suggests rewrites – BIG ones! As authors we see our work from a different point of view to the editor’s. We’re too close to see all the flaws, the plot holes or the pacing issues. The editor is coming in off the cold face. They have no emotional involvement from a writing perspective but, as a seasoned reader, they can quickly spot the things that the writer’s eyes may have overlooked.

I mentioned the dreaded rewrites. They happen more often in the early stages of newbie and emerging authorship, but sometimes even the most seasoned authors can find themselves in a plot knot that requires some cutting and pasting. The willingness to take an editor’s advice on a rewrite is the key to a good working relationship. I’m not saying you have to blindly accept their advice (it’s your story!), just seriously consider it. Look at the explanation of why they’re recommending the changes and ask yourself if the story will be better or worse for making them.

The first thing I do before taking on an editing project is read a sample of the author’s work to get a feel for their writing voice. Voice is a good indicator of the level of editing that might be required, and if I will be comfortable editing their work. Then I challenge their willingness to learn from the editing process with my speed dating questions, because learning is growing, and to be successful, we need to grow.

Speed Date Me:

What inspired you to write a novel?
Is this your first fiction novel?
Do you know which genre it fits to?
What is the final wordcount you’re aiming for?
When do you expect it to be ready for editing?
Do you plan to do a self-edit or a peer critique of the first draft?
Are you planning to self-publish or submit to a traditional publisher?
What are your expectations for working with an editor?
Which of these types of edits are you looking for:
1. Substantive editing/developmental editing – suggesting and making changes to content and organization ensuring clear, coherent delivery. With fiction this means looking at plot, characters, setting, pacing, and point of view.
2. Copyediting – fixing errors with grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation; suggesting changes to sentence structure and word choice, ensuring your language is clear, fluid, and pleasurable to read; and ensuring consistency.
3. Proofreading – fixing remaining errors with grammar, usage, spelling, and punctuation; fixing formatting errors; and commenting on any awkward phrasing (this service comes after editing).
What are you expecting to pay for an editor based on the options above?
Do you believe that editing is part of your learning journey as an author?
How open are you to considering a complete rewrite of your manuscript if required?

“If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it.”
– Elmore Leonard (1925-2013)

Diffuse with Doterra – Essential Oils for Concentration:

Peppermint for alertness and energy, Rosemary for memory, and Lavender for calm and brain fog.

All that Glitters

Turn negative feedback into writing gold

In this final instalment on how to get the best out of negative feedback, I’m going to give you some tips on where to find great feedback from your peer group. For seasoned authors, this is probably old news, but for the newbies out there who might be wondering where to begin, here are a few places to start:

Enter competitions

These are a great way to get feedback but do be aware that some judges may be quite harsh on you. Most will offer you genuine, constructive feedback, others might offer very little in the way of comment but scores can also tell a story.

Join a critique group

I can vouch that if it wasn’t for my lovely critique partners, my writing would not have grown and developed the way it has. Their feedback has been invaluable over the years. I was also very lucky to have an internationally acclaimed author-mentor who has written over 100 books. Her nurturing, generosity, and willingness to share her experiences in the publishing world, as well as her knowledge, helped make me the writer I am today.

Attend workshops and conferences

RWA conferences were gold for me as a newbie/emerging writer. I learned so much from the workshops and by simply chatting to other writers. These are people who have experienced the ups and downs of writing, and who understand you in a way a non-writer can’t. Conferences are also a great way to find new friends. I attended my first conference in 2013 and am still friends with people I met there today. We’ve written a series together, brainstormed together, and been there for each other when the going gets tough.

Find a good editor

This is one I can’t stress enough. It’s not an easy task, but find one you connect with, one who understands you and your writing style. Having your high school English teacher or a friend who is good with grammar and punctuation read it, is not enough. A qualified editor has training, an understanding of the reader market, experience within the publishing industry, and knows the difference a good plot and sound structure can make to a book.

Analyse feedback

Be objective with your work, analyse the feedback, pick it apart, find the good stuff, throw away the bad, and make the changes that will add the polish to your manuscript.

Apply the 2-in-3 Rule

A guideline I use in my critique group is that if 2 out 3 pick up on the same thing in their feedback, I have a real problem, and I need to investigate it.

Don’t take it personally

Okay, it is personal. It hurts and it de-motivates. Get that emotion out of the way first. Let the feedback rest and simmer until your mind is ready to accept that you can read it objectively and make the necessary changes.

Keep an open mind

If you don’t open your mind, you’ll never receive all those wonderful ideas that could turn your book into a reader’s favourite. That very comment you might dismiss in anger, could be the missing piece that brings your story together.

And that’s a wrap, my friends. If you have any questions at all, please don’t hesitate to reach out via my contact page. I’d love to hear from you.

Contact me today

Breaking Bad

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Cracking the code on negative feedback

In this blog, I’m going to show you how to crack the code on negative feedback. It’s not hard, there are no equations or algorithms involved. All it takes is a little common sense and an open mind. Ask yourself these questions after reading any feedback:

Is the feedback helpful? In a review of Whispers at Wongan Creek, a reviewer commented: “Somehow this read a bit too much like mills and boons to me; just couldn’t get absorbed into the story and abandoned it.“ Was this helpful to me as the writer? Yes! It tells me that a) the reader recognised it as a romance, b) I nailed it genre-wise, c) this reader is not my target market. The book was listed as a rural romance in the romance category, so I’m not sure what this reader was expecting.
Has more than one reader said the same thing? This can apply to critique partners, editors, reviewers or competition judges. The rule of thumb I use is that if 2 out of 3 readers say the same thing, I need to consider an edit. In Montana Daughter, a few readers picked up repetition in the story. “There were parts of the romance that seemed a little forced and contrived, maybe even too cheesy that messed with the chemistry for me. I felt like I read certain explanations more than once which didn’t help ingratiate the characters to me as a couple.” After the four rounds of edits and the complete rewrite this book went through, I was mortified to find that the reviewer was right, and that is a good lesson in why you should have a fresh set of eyes on your final draft.
Can I take the risk? Editors aren’t always right, but what you need to figure out is if it’s worth the risk not to take their advice. Even if you disagree with their comments, remain the professional. In this example where the protagonist is looking to rent the antagonist’s studio apartment, he says: “That’s no problem. I’ll take you down to the barn and you can choose furniture for the studio. Then I’ll see if Mason is free to help me move it across .” My editor came back with the comment: “The women are right there. Why don’t they help do it? Gendered. It’s a cultural conversation in play and some readers these days might be more inclined to question the gender stereotyping.” Could I take the risk, ignore the feedback and lose a reader? Or would it be more sensible to swallow my pride and simply reword it?
Is this reader my target market? “Not for me… Couldn’t be bothered with it. Far too overly dramatic about nothing for my taste – read about 40 pages and quit it.” This review of Home to Bindarra Creek says it all. Can I do anything with this feedback? Yes, it tells me there is nothing wrong with the book, the plot, or the writing. This book was simply not the kind of book the reader was looking to read.

Once upon a time I knew an emerging author whose lead characters would throw themselves willy-nilly into danger. While trying to create proactive characters, the author overlooked their strengths and highlighted their weaknesses instead. This unconsciously became a common thread in the books and, unfortunately, this reviewer had a good point:

“The lead character frustrated the ever loving heck out of me. I started off liking her, I really, really did. I thought she was cute, if rather naive and somewhat innocent, and then she got annoying. She turned into one of those typical heroines in horror movies where you tell them “do not go into the haunted house alone”, so what does she do? She goes into the haunted house alone, repeatedly, and then needs to be rescued, repeatedly, and puts the investigation the guys are there for in jeopardy, repeatedly. It’s like she was a perfectly sensible girl, and then the hero comes along, and BAM! suddenly all her brains leak out of her head. In her own way, she thinks she is helping but instead she makes a big muddle of things and then not only does she not help the investigation, she goes off and gets herself in a situation where she is the one who needs rescuing and all efforts end up being focused on that instead. Sheesh, she drove me bananas. I even vented my frustrations on Goodreads.”

Not exactly the kind of review you want, right? And you absolutely don’t want a reader venting their frustrations on social media or book blogs. But this is a good review to learn from. Perfect timing, strong characterisation, good plot structure – these are the key to an engaging read. There is a place for action, a spot for humour, and always room for a cuddle or two in a book. The important thing is to know where they belong and that the timing for delivery fits. Fortunately, the author took the feedback onboard and made the changes. Because they were so close to their plot, they couldn’t see the weakness in the lead character’s behaviour. The second edition of the book produced much more rounded, sensible, proactive and loveable characters.

Next Up: Turn Negative feedback into writing gold

Don’t Feed the Trolls!

I know it’s tempting…

It’s tempting to respond to negative feedback. An email to that dreadful competition judge, a response to the social media trolls, a reply to a review on Goodreads, a blistering response to the editor’s comments on a manuscript. I’m not going to lie … I have responded once or twice, but I too have to remind myself that for every action there is a reaction. And once you get that stone rolling and it begins to gather moss, there is no stopping that snowball from growing (pardon the mixed metaphors, but you get the picture, right?)

Trolls are attention seekers. They will only stay when they are being fed or given attention. Engagement encourages them, and then they’ll descend on you like a swarm of angry wasps and perpetuate your pain. The same goes for that competition judge who gave you a low score. Perhaps their response stems from inside themselves, from some inner frustration that prevents them from writing and submitting an entry. You never know what’s happening in that person’s life at that point in time. Some people are just plain nasty, and you’ll never change that. Sometimes reviewers aren’t even real reviewers, they might be someone wanting to draw attention to their own new release or a fan from someone’s street team looking to put their favourite author in the spotlight instead.
Respond graciously if you must, but bear in mind that it’s not about you, it’s about them. ‘Like’ their review. It shows you are paying attention and taking feedback onboard, even though it may not be constructive criticism.

A fabulous 5-star review of Shadows over Wongan Creek resulted in a touchy discussion of the cover. I thought carefully about my response:

Reader YYY: Great review XXX. That cover though….seriously??? They are getting worse! He looks like a giant cowboy towering over the countryside.

Reader XYZ: Oh YYY your comment had me laughing, but you’re so right 😊 Great review, XXX!

Reader ZZZ: I do agree with you YYY – I wish they’d move past the guys and girls in hats and put them into perspective!!

Reviewer XXX: I don’t take a lot of notice, except when they’re really good! And I don’t let them stop me reading the inside 😉

ME: Thanks for the lovely review. I’m so pleased you enjoyed Fen and Kieran’s story. Ladies, I’m sorry the cover disappointed you 😥 While I understand the whole balance and perspective of a cover, the one thing that struck me when I first saw it was that the cover artists nailed the scarred hero perfectly. I hope you will see past the cover to the message between the pages. Happy reading.

My favourite negative review ever came from this Netgalley reviewer on Goodreads. I made her ‘dropped’ shelf. Go me!

Shelves: dropped
Review:
There was definitely a darker element to this series that dealt with suicide, depression, abuse, and death. Normally elements like [this] would instantaneous [sic] draw me in but this series was just missing that “it” factor to really win me over. I felt like it was more than a chore to finish this and that’s something no reader should feel. My motivation shriveled down to finish this chapter after chapter and I decided it was probably best I dropped this before it was too late. I will notate [sic] I would definitely consider picking this back [up] in the future to see what the outcome was.

My first clue? Cue the flashing banners. Who does it draw attention to? The reviewer or the book?

My next clue was the writing scrawled across the top of the GIF – “Oh the shenanigans, stay frosty my friends”. My interpretation (or maybe my dose of chocolate) was that the review graphics screamed ‘look at me, look at what a clever girl I am’. It’s designed to attract other readers’ attention and distract them from the 4 & 5 star reviews. Her review is an opinion piece, not constructive feedback. The fact that she got more than half way before dropping the book and the 3 stars she gave it means she actually liked most of it but couldn’t spoil her ‘frosty’ reputation by admitting it. All her reviews, bar a couple, are the same.

Another clue – the writing. The reviewer is clearly a reader not another writer which is good. That’s not to say that she doesn’t have dreams of writing her own book one day. She certainly put effort into her review. The good thing is that it’s a reader’s review. I don’t care that she dropped the book halfway through, what’s important is that she’s said she may pick it up again to see what happens. I haven’t completely lost her attention but, at the same time, maybe this reader just isn’t my target market.

So what could I take away from this review? What made this reader feel like she was dragging herself through mud to get to the end? Could I have done anything differently? These were the clues I looked for when I went back and read the manuscript again.

Now, to work! Here is an exercise to help you recognise areas of improvement for your own writing:

Think about a book you’ve read recently but haven’t enjoyed:

What didn’t you like about it?
Was the plot unclear, mixed up, too complicated, not complicated enough?
Were the characters drawn well, did they jump off the page?
Were you engaged from Chapter 1?
At which point did you stop reading?
What do you think the author could have done to make it better?

Write a quick review – one paragraph, a few lines and then write a review of one of your own works to think about what you could have done differently and if it’s an improvement or not.

And finally, why you should read reviews:

Learn not to make the same mistakes,
Reviews are a portal to what readers are looking for,
Reviews will help you define your own target market.

Up Next: Breaking bad, making good

Armour Up!

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Don on Your Emotional Armour

Stock up on chocolate, coffee, wine and concrete. To embark on this journey you’ll need all the armour you can find. And don’t forget the Kleenex, because it’s also okay to cry.

Have you ever been told to ‘take the emotion out’ of a situation (at work, at home, in an argument etc.)? Ignore that advice. It’s human to react emotionally. We are emotional beings. Emotions are a creative’s gold. How else could we win over a reader’s heart and keep them reading? It’s also okay to be emotional about negative feedback. This is your book baby after all.

But how do we deal with the battering of emotions that come from a negative review or feedback? I’ve given you the physical tools, now let’s deal with mental support.

Cry and Stamp your feet: Get the emotion out of the way. Throw a tantrum, kick a box (but please don’t kick the cat or dog!) Have a good cry if you need to, that’s why I gave you Kleenex. Whatever you do, resist taking your emotions to social media. Bagging a reviewer publicly may only cause more harm. I know … it’s hard. The temptation is huge, but all that will do is wake up the trolls. Have some chocolate instead. The important thing is that you allow yourself to feel first so that you can move on to the next step which is to see the feedback more clearly.

Put aside your ego: Put aside your writerly ego for a moment. Feedback is not about you as a person, and it doesn’t mean you’re a bad writer. Feedback is how the reader (be it an editor, a competition judge, critique partner or reviewer) has perceived the story. Let the feedback rest for as long as it takes to get over it, then come back and analyse it logically when the emotion is spent.

Phone a Friend: Let’s say you’ve entered a competition, and the feedback you’ve received (while hopefully constructive!) isn’t quite what you were expecting. Critique partners and beta readers are gold in this situation, and I would advise on using them before you submit anything to a publisher or competition entry, or consider self-publishing. Have someone you trust (who can see things objectively) read over your manuscript, review or entry feedback. Often they’ll see the things you can’t because you’re too close to your story.

Understand that you can’t please everyone: Your style won’t suit every reader. And not all feedback will be gospel. Editors, judges, critique partners aren’t always right. The trick is to know when they are. The important thing is to identify the helpful points out of that negative feedback and turn them into a positive development for your craft.

Remember readers aren’t all necessarily writers: They may not have the same gift for words that writers do, and often they don’t think about how they’re phrasing their feedback. They react emotionally to the story. The author is an unknown entity, a name on the cover. They may not recognise or think about the fact that behind that book is a human being who has spent months/years bleeding their life blood onto the page. They don’t know you. Don’t take it personally.

Never forget who you are. The rest of the world will not. Wear it like armour and it can never be used to hurt you.
George R.R. Martin

Next Up: Don’t Feed the trolls!

The Great Feedback Debate

Should I read reviews of my books?

To look or not to look? That is the opening of a great debate among authors since the rise of internet reviews. Ask any writer and you’ll receive mixed responses. Some say do, some say don’t, but today I’m going to ask you to make up your own mind. In this series, Getting the Best from Negative Feedback, I am going to guide you through getting the best out of reader feedback.

Before we start though, my first piece of advice is to don on your emotional armour. Negativity in any form can be bad for your mental health. Reviews, competition feedback, critique, edits; all these can be hurtful, soul-destroying and passion-killing but they can also be a good learning curve to identify areas in which you can improve your writing, plot or characterisation. Remember, the reader is your target market. They are the reason you’re writing, and you want to win them over to sell your books. In order to win them over, you need to know what they’re looking for and be able to supply it. A good writer never stops learning – from the good and the bad.

Before you embark on this journey of discovery, be sure that you are emotionally and mentally ready. Do whatever it takes to prepare and open your mind to read between the lines and see past the negativity. Try not to absorb any negativity in the feedback, but rather address the facts. Take a walk outside, meditate or go out into the garden with a cuppa for a while and allow the feedback to filter through. Negative feedback can help you grow – if you put emotions aside and study the facts. Not all feedback will be helpful, some might even lead you in the wrong direction, and that’s where the importance of having writing buddies comes in. People who you can trust to tell you the truth without destroying your confidence. Carefully delivered constructive criticism is a great writing aid. How you choose to deal with that constructive criticism is the key.

Writers are like every other artist, which means many of us are plagued with self-doubt. The voice in our head telling us we’re not good enough. For others, the anxiety can grow strong enough to stop them from writing altogether.
Mark Dawson (Self Publishing Formula)

Next up: Don on your armour

I, Writer-not-Robot

The rise of AI is a hot topic right now, so forgive me if I’m telling you something you already know. The news, the web, and social media are all scrambling over themselves to talk about it. But, here’s the thing. If you think AI is something new, you’re fooling yourself. It’s way too late to be up in arms about it now. Bear with me, keyboard warriors, you are currently using a computer and keyboard that replaced the old mechanical typewriter and all the humans that went with it!

In 2035, technophobe Detective Spooner (aka Will Smith) met a murderous robot in the 2004 movie I, Robot. At the time, we all laughed at the ludicrous idea of a robot taking over the world. 20 years later? Well, hello AI! … Surgeons have been using robots in operating theatres for a while now. Way back in 1962, the excitement around space travel spawned decades of sci-fi inspired cartoons and movies. Remember Rosie (or Rosey as she was first known) the robot maid from The Jetsons? I bet a few of you out there have one in your home today, they just don’t look like Rosie. I know I have one. How else would I get the vacuuming and mopping done so I can write instead?

Let’s be honest here, Alexa and Siri have been listening in on our conversations ever since the invention of smart technology. Most of you have smartphones, right? Yep, they replaced the old cradle phone with the dial that used to catch your fingers or cut off the circulation in your hands as you twisted and twirled the cord around them, talking to your friend about the new boy or girl at school. And before that, when you made a call from the old crankhandle phone or farm line, telephonists were employed to sit behind an exchange switchboard and get all tangled up in cords as they allocated lines and transferred calls manually. The introduction of automated exchanges forced them all to go out and find a new career.

Manual Telephone Exchange Enfield. October 1960. Image credit: Science Museum / SSPL

For years, smart technology has been gathering words, voices, information and personal details to grow this beast. How else do you think those Facebook ads magically appear just as you’ve been talking to your bestie about buying that new handbag you saw online? I could go on and name many examples of how AI is slowly replacing humans, but that would be boring. Just remember, every time you use a self-checkout, another human has to go out and find a new job.

Writers, editors, voice-over and cover artists are all staring down the barrel of losing their income as the AI revolution takes hold. But I’m not going to climb on that bandwagon right now. In his article on Substack today, Hamish McKenzie explores why AI is an opportunity for writers of the human kind. I read it, nodded a little, and cried a bit more because we cannot stop this from happening. There are powers out there driving this revolution that are bigger than the humble artists we are. At the risk of offending some readers, we are farting against thunder here. Our tiny voices are nothing but flatulence against the sonic boom of technological advancement. But that doesn’t mean we should give up on the war, we just need to choose our battles.

“A hot new startup that is riding the revolution might call itself Writer, but it will never have the writer’s heart. And that is where the opportunity of the next century is to be found.”
Hamish McKenzie – On News, Substack

Hamish, I couldn’t agree more! AI will grow and have it’s advantages just like all the technology that has made our lives easier, but it can never replace the human behind the story. If we all start writing and editing with AI, the market will become flooded with books and articles that all read the same, sound the same, and look the same. Use it as a tool for your writing, the same way you use your laptop or desktop or even your mobile phone, but it isn’t the final answer to writing and editing a good book. AI can imitate words, but the real heart of the story comes from you, dear human. And only a real editor can help you make a reader feel all the feels that a robot cannot. Besides, we still need humans to fix the robots when they breakdown or go rogue. AI still needs a human programmer to write the program that makes them work. And, as we experienced recently when a software update caused a machine meltdown at a phone and internet company (who shall not be named), crippling the world of communication, even AI has flaws that require a human touch to fix. Humans are not done yet.

Needs Editing

I came across a review on one my books where the reader commented that it needed editing. The author in me laughed and laughed. If only that reader knew how many rounds of edits and proofreads that book had been through before the publisher gave it the tick of approval. The editor in me paused to wonder what the intense rounds of edits and the final proofread had missed. Unfortunately the reviewer didn’t elaborate as to what they’d come across that didn’t meet the standard they’d expected. That would have been helpful to note for future edits.

There is a reason that the editing process is divided into four crucial stages, and (ideally) each stage should be carried out by a different editor. If you’re self-publishing, however, that can become a large investment for a (possibly) small return, especially as an aspiring or emerging author.

The truth is, no matter how many editing passes you put your manuscript through, there is a chance that there will still be errors. Let’s look at a 95% error detection success rate — this means that if an editor picks up 6,000 errors in a manuscript, at least 5% (300 errors) still remain. And that is the reason you should have fresh eyes on your manuscript at each stage of the editing process.

So, what can you do if you can’t afford a different editor for each stage? Here are some tips:

Don’t be in a rush to publish your book. Allow plenty of turnaround time for each level of editing.
Work with a critique partner who will help you polish those dirty drafts of your manuscript with constructive feedback.
If you’re using one editor for the whole process, allow enough time between each stage for the edits to simmer and for the editor to see them with a clear mind and fresh eyes.
Have your trusted beta readers read the book. Readers know what they’re looking for in a story, and they are darn good at picking up plot anomalies.
Once you’re 100% sure you’ve done your best at putting the story together, send it to a proofreader for a final read. At this stage, the only changes that should be made are to punctuation, spelling and grammar. This is the final step and not the time to be making crucial changes to the plot or characters.

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