Developmental editing, content editing, copyediting, proofreading… what do they all mean? And where does self-editing fit into the mix?
What to do when you’ve finished the First Draft
When you type The End on the first draft of your book, celebrate! But also… you are only just beginning.
Should Writers Do Their Own Editing?
Should writers do their own editing? Yes, and no. There are times when we should edit our own work, and times when we need the benefit of someone else’s eyes.
The Unexpected Story: When memoir becomes a different book
In 20+ years as an editor, I’ve seen this phenomenon again and again: a memoir or personal story has turned into a different book by the time the writer is finished. If your memoir is “turning on you”, don’t feel you must cling to your original purpose. You might be surprised where that feisty little book takes you.
Proofreading our own work: Overcoming ‘autocorrect’
I’m always saying how hard it is to proofread our own writing. But there are those situations where we need to do it. How can we increase our accuracy?
In WQ, the magazine of the Queensland Writers Centre, I read an intriguing article about the brain science behind this thorny problem… and some possible solutions!
I tracked down Alison Quigley, author of the article, and she has generously agreed to share it here on my blog…
Editing your book? Print it out!
Yes, we all live in an electronic world these days, untethered by concrete reality, communicating like mad things on various iThingies. Paper is so 2002. But if you want to do a good job of editing your book, you need to print it out. Yes, I’m serious. Print it on actual paper, seize a red […]
