Carolyn is the Editorial Coordinator at Self Publishing, Inc. Having a background in research analysis, she has spent more than twenty years writing, editing, and consulting. While director of editing and quality assurance at the Gallup Organization, Carolyn helped to establish Gallup Press and led its editorial staff in preparing such bestsellers as First, Break All The Rules; Now, Discover Your Strengths; How Full Is Your Bucket?; and Vital Friends.
Recently an author asked me: What should I know when choosing editing for my book manuscript? What a great question! Following are six key factors that affect the quality of a book edit. Identify which style manual should guide the editing and whether the editors have expertise in applying that style. The Chicago Manual of Style is the … [Read more...]
Careful attention to detail and timing goes in to making a wine that people will want to drink or a book that readers will want to read. Self publishers who are too willing to take shortcuts and make compromises in the editorial process tend to produce books that leave a bad aftertaste—if they get read at all. When amateur winemakers learn … [Read more...]
Do you writers seriously think your editor doesn’t know how you really feel about him or her? Oh sure, most of you are polite enough when interacting directly with editors. But I’m not delusional. I know what you’re really thinking when it’s you and your heavily marked-up manuscript that you’ve just received. Many writers who have had … [Read more...]
What We Have Here is a Failure to Launch: Tips for Creating Fiction that Ignites the Imagination A professional editor will seek fundamental elements of good fiction within your manuscript—and where necessary, suggest improvements to develop it so that it will “launch” and flow in a structured storyline to better engage readers. Have you … [Read more...]
You’ve worked through several drafts of your manuscript, and you think you’re ready to have it professionally edited. You have a local friend who does editing, and you know of a local college professor who edited something for another friend recently. You’ve come across several different editing services on the Internet, and you wonder about … [Read more...]
Nonfiction writers are justifiably concerned with how their voice and tone will affect the audience. They want to portray themselves as credible without coming across as a “know-it-all.” They want to seem authoritative on their topic but not “preachy.” While there are several techniques to accomplish this, some strategies may undermine your … [Read more...]
Have you ever considered that your story might be begging to be rewritten from a different point of view? That was the case in a recent manuscript I edited. Here’s what happened. I’ve seen a lot of manuscripts, and few of them move me to tears; but this one did. I attributed much of its appeal to the beautiful simplicity in the writer’s … [Read more...]
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