Editors for Hire (Chantelle Aimee Osman)<\/p>\n

Once you’ve written “the end,” the journey is only half over.\u00a0You must put out the best book you can – if it’s not, you might sell it, but they won’t come back for more.<\/p>\n

A clean, polished manuscript can make all the difference – a copy editor is a must if you’re self-publishing and even if you’re going the traditional route, I recommend having your first 5-6 chapters gone over by a professional.<\/p>\n

How much editing do you need? Most professional authors might get by with only one edit. Some people need 4-5 edits.<\/p>\n

Do a read-only edit yourself before sending it to the editor – catch major errors and over-arching story problems before you send it off for a line edit or line and content edit.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The thing everyone is looking for is your passion on the page. Never write just for a trend. Write what you love to read, what you love to write.<\/p>\n

Know your genre – don’t write a zombie vampire YA mystery with Western overtones.<\/p>\n

The first two and last two chapters of your book are the most important – have a hook at beginning to make them need to turn the page – no backstory.<\/p>\n

$\"WP_Writing_Tools\"$ <\/a><\/p>\n

Style issues<\/strong>:<\/p>\n

\n
awkward phrasing, repeated phrasing<\/li>\n
do not try to have a unique voice – just write your way and the voice will show through<\/li>\n
the tighter, the better – cut unnecessary words<\/li>\n
preaching is a no-no<\/li>\n

watch for changes in tense or POV<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/p>\n
“good dialogue is one of the most difficult and challenges a writer has”<\/p>\n
Dialogue problems<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
fake dialogue – not using contractions, very formal, awkward<\/li>\n
dialogue to obviously advanced the plot “radio drama dialogue”<\/li>\n
forced dialogue – do your research<\/li>\n
too many trendy words date your work<\/li>\n
show, don’t tell<\/li>\n
make sure characters have distinct speech patterns<\/li>\n
Read your dialogue (and everything else) aloud<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Descriptive problems<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
using the protagonist’s senses to relate information is a better way to show instead of description<\/li>\n
avoid general descriptions (beautiful, nice, etc)<\/li>\n
avoid laundry lists<\/li>\n
watch out for repetition – favorite phrases and images, sentence structure – “crutch words”<\/li>\n
combinations of words with the same meaning<\/li>\n
a set of fresh eyes are valuable in catching these things<\/li>\n
adjectives and adverbs – don’t use too many, never more than one together<\/li>\n
cut 10-15% of your words<\/li>\n
watch “to be” – try to avoid if possible (passive sentences)<\/li>\n
no qualifiers like very or really<\/li>\n
cliches (that also includes cliched descriptions and situations)<\/li>\n
wrong word choices (towards instead of toward, affect\/effect, etc)<\/li>\n
watch for sentences with more than two commas – maybe two sentences instead<\/li>\n
now it’s one space after a period<\/li>\n
double check for possessives and plurals<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
“Punctuation is like a throw-pillow.” Doing the job without calling attention to itself<\/p>\n
Errors in character<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
characters must be unique, bring the readers back<\/li>\n
know your characters well, give them clear motivation<\/li>\n
must have goal and clear reason to work toward that goal<\/li>\n
characters must grow<\/li>\n
no stereotypes<\/li>\n
outlandish names – names often paint a better picture than descriptives – you don’t want something that reader must stop reading to figure out how to pronounce it<\/li>\n
misplaced or overly long backstory<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Plots<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
if characters just go along without anything interesting happening, there’s no emotional attachment<\/li>\n
every book should have basic essential question (who\/what\/where\/how\/why) – know what that question is and be able to resolve it in the end<\/li>\n
don’t write about something you don’t know about<\/li>\n
know your genre!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The End<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
almost as important as the beginning – what’s going to sell the second book<\/li>\n
resolution must make reader feel something<\/li>\n
don’t keep readers wondering in a bad way (forgetting a plot point)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Now you’ve just started on your journey of queries, rejections, edits, cover designs, etc.<\/p>\n
$\"WP_Typewriter_Slant\"$ <\/a><\/p>\n
Social Media 101 for\u00a0Creative People<\/strong> (Alison Sky Richards):<\/p>\n
3 Points<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
Website (your store front)<\/li>\n
FaceBook (your billboards)<\/li>\n
Twitter (your conversation)<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
There are around 328 highly utilized social media sites – around 600 total<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
FaceBook<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
Create an author (or book) page<\/li>\n
Create an author voice<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Twitter<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
Be careful who you follow\/allow to follow you – spambots and trolls<\/li>\n
Build dialogue and communication – look for your favorite authors and create communication<\/li>\n
Hashtags #amwriting, #amediting – scroll past photos to get to # feed at bottom of screen<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
Grab your author name on major social media sites – and URL<\/p>\n
Websites<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
\n
Responsive design – allow for different devices<\/li>\n
Visual design – images get 10% more response than text<\/li>\n
Appearance – NO Comic Sans! Need an easy to read font like Verdana or Arial – nothing too trendy or crazy. Use tinted background instead of plain white – easier for most people to read. Red is also very visually attractive, but not fire-engine red<\/li>\n
Have your social media integrated<\/li>\n
Search Engine Optimization – takes a lot of work! Need to get a lot of people to look for a specific phrase and click on the website.<\/li>\n
Constantly re-evaluate your website. Check content for freshness and readability – average reading level is 8th grade – recommended website level 6th. Rebrand website to be most effective.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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