Links to Writing & Marketing Blog Posts

I found this post the other day and since I've been editing, I thought it was very timely. Enjoy. 

HUMAN EYES ON THE MANUSCRIPT

By: Terry Odell

Excerpt: As an edi­tor, it’s impor­tant for me to take every word and place­ment of punc­tu­a­tion seri­ously in an author’s work. I’m a per­fec­tion­ist by nature, so when I’m edit­ing I read for both con­tent and line edit. When I first sit down to read a man­u­script, I deter­mine the point of view the story is writ­ten in, then I look for details on set­ting, char­ac­ter descrip­tion, and a great hook into the story. Next, hav­ing a strong char­ac­ter lead­ing the reader into the story, and hav­ing enough char­ac­ter depth for that reader to empathize with the char­ac­ter. As I’m review­ing a man­u­script, I check for con­sis­tency in the plot and char­ac­ters, cor­rect gram­mar, spelling, and mak­ing sure the author is not push­ing the sus­pen­sion of dis­be­lief with dif­fer­ent ele­ments of the plot or character’s actions.

When it comes to things like repeated words, phrases, or actions, I make a men­tal list. If I see a word too many times in a sec­tion, I’ll make a note to have the writer check the num­ber of times that word is used. Or, alter­na­tively, I’ll make sug­ges­tions for the writer. For instance, using “glanced” or “glared” instead of “looked.” I also check for things like mak­ing sure the cor­rect usage of hyphens ver­sus the em-dash is used, quo­ta­tion marks are fac­ing the cor­rect way, spac­ing is cor­rect between words and sen­tences, etc. Edit­ing can be a chal­lenge, but to me it’s pure joy to be able to help writ­ers bring their sto­ries to life. 

Click here to read the complete article (see #1 below)

~*~

If you missed my writing & marketing tweets and retweets yesterday, here they are again: 

1. Human Eyes on the Manuscript | Terry's Place http://ow.ly/nOLqD  Brittiany Koren of Written Dreams shares her editing process
2. The Other Side of the Story: An Easy Tip for Developing Story Ideas http://ow.ly/nOsAr
3. How to Successfully Self-Publish a Kindle eBook | Michael Hyatt http://ow.ly/nOLii
4. The Rule Book — by Art Holcomb, Part 2 http://ow.ly/nOWeQ Includes link to Rule Book Relationship Chart
5. How to Keep Writing When You're Scared of Failure - DIY MFA : DIY MFA http://ow.ly/nOWw0
6. If You Give a Character a Lie by Author Beth Vogt http://ow.ly/nOWyG
7. Four Things Barnes & Noble Could Do to Stay Competitive http://ow.ly/nOWA7
8. Doug Welch talks “Retired and Writing” http://ow.ly/nOWBQ
9. 5 Traps of the Imagination John Grisham Helped Me See http://ow.ly/nOWF5
10. Notes from Tabor Lane: Links to Writing & Marketing Blog Posts PLUS Information About a Cool Writing Resource http://ow.ly/nP5ZO
11. Indie Author Organizations for Publicity | "CommuniCATE" Resources for Writers http://ow.ly/nPc2k
12. How To Make a Book Cover with Public Domain Images - GalleyCat http://ow.ly/nPc8q
13. As an Author, Is It Worth Being in the Amazon Associates Program? | Lindsay Buroker http://ow.ly/nPca9
14. Why, Why, Why? | Live Write Thrive http://ow.ly/nPcbZ "The best way to get to the heart of a character is to ask "why?"
15. Ether for Authors: Does Publishing Need More Gatekeepers? | Publishing Perspectives http://ow.ly/nPcjP
16. A Knot of Magic: 4 Ways Images Can Inspire Writing http://ow.ly/nPcmQ
17. Nine More Twitter Tips for Writers Confounded by Twitter | The Loneliest Planet by Randy Ross http://ow.ly/nPcoS
18. Should you change your book’s cover? Tips for success | Nail Your Novel http://ow.ly/nPcsM

Happy writing & running, Kathy

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