Half dozen

Prewriting: 6 parts of the writing process that aren’t writing

This article is about the parts of writing a novel that don’t involve writing. It’s not about the business side of being an author. It’s not about book design and production. It’s also not about book marketing or promotion. This article is about the process of getting your story onto the page, and a lot Read more about Prewriting: 6 parts of the writing process that aren’t writing[…]

How many drafts is enough?

Peeling the onion: The simplified revision plan

How many passes are enough to prepare a manuscript for professional editing? If you take away anything from this article, let it be this: No editor wants to work on your first or second draft. It’s not ready for editing. A manuscript isn’t edit-ready until you’ve set it aside for weeks or months to regain Read more about Peeling the onion: The simplified revision plan[…]

Revise your manuscript

Revision: Separating the sheep from the goats (and the writers)

Writing is such a minuscule part of the writing a novel. People who’ve never written anything longer than a school paper have a hard time imagining that pouring all those words onto the page isn’t the major part of the battle, but experienced authors know better. While the writing process hogs the public spotlight, revisions Read more about Revision: Separating the sheep from the goats (and the writers)[…]

Ready for editing

Is your book ready for editing?

Nothing makes an editor sadder than slogging through a manuscript that isn’t ready for editing yet. Let’s not embark upon a journey your manuscript isn’t ready to take. Really. As exciting as it feels to move one step closer to publication, typing “The End” is only the close of the very first step. The majority Read more about Is your book ready for editing?[…]

Writing goals

How to prepare for and revise after your edit

The End. Most authors heave a sigh of relief when they type those two words. Sure, they’ll need to read through everything again, and they’d like to give their manuscript to a few friends to read. But the editor is going to be doing the heavy lifting from here on out, right? The gritty truth is Read more about How to prepare for and revise after your edit[…]