Editing
How to Edit Your Book
When I contracted my first novella and had to cut 30,000 words off my book, I knew it was going to be hard. In fact, I almost bailed on submitting the anthology to Barbour because I knew that would mean cutting more than half of my story. The pain of deleting my brilliant prose aside,…
Avoid Comma Drama
Punctuation, blech! Yes, I know, but it’s not as bad as grammar—a subject we’ll tackle another time. In my craft blog today, I’ll share a few simple comma guidelines. And I do mean simple! Okay, now that you’re wiping the sweat from your brow, let’s go. Introducing: The Comma That little flip on the page…
Growing Grammar: COMMAndments
People generally approach grammar and liver the same way. They either dive in with gusto or grow pale, start sweating, and look for the nearest exit. Okay, perhaps not the most appealing way to start a column that will feature grammar issues, but food analogies seem to work for me.(Food works for me, but that’s…
The Secrets of a Sentence
There’s a story about George Washington Carver. He asked God to reveal the secrets of the universe, and God was silent. He asked God to reveal the secrets of science and biology, and God was silent. Then he asked God to reveal the secrets of the peanut, and God did. I don’t care about peanuts.…
The Role of the Synopsis When Submitting
Why do I need to cut a synopsis? While I haven’t talked to every editor and agent on the planet, the majority of the ones I’ve spoken to prefer a 2-3 page synopsis. However, every editor is different. One editor will want a one-page synopsis, another will want an extensive chapter-by-chapter synopsis. In my experience,…
Writing Tools Review- How Scrivener Changed My Writing Life
by Ron Estrada While Super G is off galavanting through New York, doing writerly things and hobnobbing with the big muckety mucks on Avenue of the Americas, she has given me the keys to WI. It is always satisfying when my relentless charm and Charlie Brown good looks lure yet another female into trusting me…
Before You Hit Send On Your Manuscript
Nothing is more exciting and unnerving than finishing edits and getting ready to send in a manuscript to an agent or editor. Even if you and your critique partners have gone over your pages several times, doubts still nag. Did I catch every misspelled word and homonym? When I made my last edits did I…
ABCs of the Content Edit
Every step of my journey to publication has been a huge learning experience for me. The revision letter was no different. The content edits for Canyon Walls were pretty extensive. At first, I was disappointed, but now, I realize that it is just another step in making me a better writer. Here are a few of…
A few last tips for cutting a synopsis
Tip#8 to cut a synopsis—cut modifiers Adjectives and adverbs are usually the easiest to cull from a synopsis. Sometimes you don’t even need to change the noun or verb. Other times, a stronger noun or verb is needed. She determines to win without interference from her meddling friends. vs. She determines to win without interference…
Fiction Friday: More tips for cutting a synopsis
Tip#4 to cut a synopsis—relevance Cut absolutely anything that does not have direct impact on the main storyline. Be ruthless. Don’t leave things in because they pertain to a subplot. Don’t go off for too long (more than a few sentences) on a red herring. Don’t include character backstory that doesn’t absolutely need to be…