Today Editing is More Important than Ever

In today’s writing market, just about anyone can become a published author, if they are willing to pay the price. This is a double-edged sword, because although authors are no longer forced to be faced with countless rejections before finally receiving that long awaited acceptance by a publisher, but it also means that you don’t have to actually write well to be published. While I have reviewed many independently published books that are, indeed quality works of literature, I have also reviewed several that have appeared as if the author either hasn’t bothered with the editing process at all, or tried to do the editing themselves and didn’t have the proper skills to do it properly. Nothing ruins a good story as quickly as having to muddle through a poorly written work that is full of grammar and punctuation errors.
Don’t misunderstand me. There are many talented authors out there that publish independently, such as Chris Keys and Tim Baker, whose books I have reviewed here. I did a profile of Tim Baker in my post “Author Tim Baker recommends publishing independently“, because I feel that his books are examples of quality writing. Tim emphasizes the amount of work involved when publishing independently, due to the fact that you do not have the vast resources of a publishing powerhouse at your fingertips. When you choose to publish independently, the preparation for publication, as well as the marketing is all up to the author.
While traditional publishing houses provide editors to help writers make their work the absolute best that it can be, independent authors must spend more of their hard earned money, over and above the publishing costs, to have their work edited. In his article, “The Three Types of Editing: Which Does Your Manuscript Need?”, Yahoo contributor Steve Thompson gives a good definition of the differences between the three types of editing that one might require when preparing a manuscript for publication: basic editing, which is giving the manuscript a proofread, or run through to check for spelling grammar and punctuation errors; line editing, which goes more in depth to check plot structure, syntax, character development and factual errors; and substantive editing, which goes beyond that and involves reworking major pieces of the manuscript . Most editing services offer all of these types of editing for various prices, including my own, Write It Right Editing Services, found at Kaye’s Literary Corner.
If you are trying to get picked up by traditional publishers, you may have feedback from previous rejections to clue you in to what type of editing your manuscript requires, but if you plan to publish independently, it is up to you to determine what type of editing your manuscript needs. Even if you are a proficient speller and have a working knowledge of grammar and punctuation, I caution you against doing even basic editing, which is basically proofreading yourself for one simple reason. An author knows what a sentence or paragraph was meant to say and often, when rereading the work, will see what was meant instead of what is actually there, therefore missing many mistakes that someone else might pick up on. Independent authors owe it to their readers to make their manuscripts the best that they can be. They owe it to themselves, as well, for a book that has been published without the proper preparation shows, and will end up being a book that doesn’t sell. If you are going to spend the money to publish independently, it just makes sense to go the extra mile and have your manuscript professionally edited, so you have a chance of making your investment back on book profits.

Readers Get a Wild Ride in “Backseat to Justice”

Fasten your seatbelt when you pick up Backseat to Justice, by Tim Baker. When a simple surveillance of a cheating husband turns into a murder investigation for private investigator Steve Salem, readers are faced with more twists and turns than a roller coaster ride. As Salem follows the leads, he rattles more than a few cages and finds himself being chased as well as chasing suspects. It’s hard to tell the good guys from the bad guys as Salem finds the clues leading to some surprising conclusion. There’s more to the story than meets the eye, for just when it seems that the murder is solved, his client is kidnapped. The fun has just begun for Salem and his friends, who set up a sting operation to catch the bad guy. Murders, kidnapping, money laundering, and even dog fights will not go unpunished when Steve Salem is dishing out a Backseat to Justice. Readers will be well entertained by this fast moving story. 50% of all profits from this book will be donated to the non-profit organization, “Golden Hugs Rescue, Inc.”, by author Tim Baker, to help find loving homes for orphaned Golden Retrievers.

Readers strike it rich with “Rescue in Poverty Gulch”

Rescue in Poverty Gulch, by Cotopaxi author Nancy Oswald is a delightful trip back to Cripple Creek, Colorado in the 1890’s with eleven year old Ruby Oliver and her loveable, ice cream loving donkey, Maude. All of her life Ruby has traveled with her father, wandering the mountainous Colorado wilderness until they came to Cripple Creek, where they must settle a spell. Ruby is enrolled in school for the first time ever, setting off a chain of events that has Ruby in trouble every time she blinks and has readers chuckling at the precarious situations that she and Maude find themselves in. When real trouble strikes, Ruby proves that she has grown up courage and love that knows no bounds. This is one story that will keep readers, young and old smiling all the way through.

Reading Like a Writer

One of the pieces of advice most often offered by writers and authors to those trying to break into print is that writers must first be readers. Good advice, to be sure. Most of us started out as avid readers, and through books we gained an appreciation for the written word, which is what made us aspire to be writers in the first place.

At some point however, the way that writers read changes and reading for pleasure and entertainment may fade, and we may find ourselves reading more critically. We start noticing writing style, word choice, character development, story lines and plots. It’s not that we no longer derive pleasure from reading a good story, but now we think more about the creative process, and these things just seem to jump out and grab our attention. It may be that the dialog rings so true that we long to emulate it in our own writing, or perhaps an ending is so totally sappy that it spoils an otherwise great story.

This change occurs because when we read like writers, we learn from other authors; both their successes and their mistakes. For example, in Patricia Cornwell’s The Book of the Dead, halfway through the book I found that although the story line was compelling, I wasn’t really invested in the characters. As I continued to read, I found myself analyzing this further. Most of Cornwell’s characters in this series are independently wealthy and act rather pompous. Most people that I know do not possess either of these qualities and so to have a group of them, who seem to take being well off for granted does not ring true for me. The only character that I could really identify with was Marino, who is portrayed an emotionally messed up puppy dog, who has followed Scarpetta around for years harboring feelings for her that he conceals because he knows that she has a thing going with Benton. He seems to always be hurt because she doesn’t look at him as her equal, let alone a prospective lover, which makes him look rather foolish from the third person’s, or reader’s POV. Even though I have read other books in the series and I have some idea of what brought the characters to this point in time in the story, Cornwell was unable to interest me enough to really care about them, because they just didn’t seem realistic to me.

In comparison, the works of Anne Rice such as The Vampire Chronicles series holds characters that stand on their own merit and one doesn’t have to know what came before in the series to be invested in them. Whether Lestat is in the spotlight, where he most likes to be, as the hero or the villain, the reader still cheers him on and cares about what happens next. When the story is over, we want to know more about his exploits and he becomes almost like an old friend. And who could not fall in love with kind and mild mannered Louis, who fights against what he is so desperately, even though he is only featured in the first book. In fact, throughout her entire vampire series, Rice allows you to know many of her characters intimately, and she keeps the readers coming back for more.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out which author I would rather emulate in my own work. Obviously, I want to create characters that are rich rather than shallow. The point here is that these differences are what I notice now when I’m reading. Dialog that doesn’t sound realistic makes me stop and say to myself, “Who says that?”; improper punctuation makes me pause; misspelled or missing words cause me to stumble on the text. These things never seemed to happen when I was just a reader. I’m not complaining though. I could never have become an editor if I didn’t read like a writer.

Playing Catch Up on Amplify

I just realized how badly I have neglected this site. I haven’t posted anything since last month! In an attempt to catch all of you up, I am going to post the links that I should have posted since that time. I hope some of the links will catch your interest and you’ll give them a read.

A Pyschic Reading with Dannion Brinkley:
http://socyberty.com/paranormal/a-psychic-reading-with-dannion-brinkley/

Can Johnson Remain Grounded After Five Consecutive Championships?
http://sportales.com/racing/can-johnson-remain-grounded-after-five-consecutive-championships/

How to Build a Raised Bed Garden with a Treated Wood Frame
http://gomestic.com/home/how-to-build-a-raised-bed-garden-with-a-treated-wood-frame/

Five Things You Should Not Say to a Friend Who is Grieving the Loss of Their Child
http://gomestic.com/family/five-things-you-should-not-say-to-a-friend-who-is-grieving-the-loss-of-their-child/

French Culture and Predictions for the Future Through the Eyes of Voltaire: A Reminder of the Origins of Democracy and its True Meaning
http://socyberty.com/issues/french-culture-and-predictions-of-the-future-through-the-eyes-of-voltaire-a-reminder-of-the-origins-of-democracy-and-its-true-meaning/

A Trip Down Memory Lane to the Days of Saturday Morning Cartoons
http://telewatcher.com/telewatching/an-trip-down-memory-lane-to-the-days-of-saturday-morning-cartoons/

Top Five Pot Luck Dishes on Short Notice
http://telewatcher.com/telewatching/an-trip-down-memory-lane-to-the-days-of-saturday-morning-cartoons/

Will Travis Pastrana Steal the NASCAR Show?
http://sportales.com/motorsports/will-travis-pastrana-steal-the-nascar-show/

Planting a Vegetable Garden Over a Leach Field
http://bizcovering.com/business/planting-a-vegetable-garden-over-a-leach-field/