Tag Archives: editing

SISTERS SCRIBES: KITTY WILSON ON STRUCTURAL EDITS

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Hello, it’s lovely to be on Frost again and I thought I’d take the chance to tell you what’s happening in my writing life right now.

It’s been a busy couple of months for The Cornish Village School series. At the time of writing this I’m working through the structural edits on book three, have signed off on the cover for the audio release of book two and received my first copies of the paperbacks for book one.

Structural edits are the first thing that needs to be tackled once you’ve finished and polished the first (second, third, umpteenth) draft and bitten the bullet and sent it off to your editor to see what they think. Because the author tends to be so close to the book, these edits are a vital, objective view of what needs to be tidied up, changed and possibly cut, possibly extended. Chapters may need to be moved or restructured and it usually involves ‘killing your darlings’.

For me, waiting for these is the most terrifying time; I somehow expect them to receive, read and critique my draft within the first fifteen minutes. I fill that quarter of an hour by biting my nails and opening up Indeed.co.uk and looking for jobs. I could definitely be a cast member in the Disney Store (as long as there is no singing required), perhaps that job negotiating exit from the EU would be simpler than any edits I will have to do (this job was advertised during my last panic browse. I considered it). Then I give myself a good talking to about rational behaviour and decide that I could do some housework, change my mind (no need for desperate measures), panic a bit more and start the next book in an attempt to distract myself.

The starting of the next book thing is a jolly good move. It’s my favourite bit of the process – that time where the world is full of possibilities, deadlines are so far away they may as well not exist and you can make anything happen. Once I’d written the first chapter with a vicar (my new hero and I’m already in love with him), a guerrilla yarn-bombing octogenarian and a secret underground dungeon, all was right again in my world. In fact, I was so enthused I almost forgot the dreaded edits. Which were made even more worrisome this time around by the fact that I have a new editor* and I am a little oppositional to change (I still have the screws to my bunkbed that my mother dismantled when I was eight).

When the structural edits did come in I read them, had a mini meltdown and it took a couple of days before I processed the words in front of me – all of which were fair, true and actually very positive. In fact, there was nothing at all that warranted the seismic earthquake of stroppiness I had engaged in but which is, apparently, a natural part of the process, because only after that could I start working my way diligently through her fairly short list of suggestions.

The next phase is the line edits and the proofread, all of which I’m hoping will be completed by the time you are reading this and I should be well on the way to finding romance for my handsome vicar. I enjoy these, or at least I think I do. If you’ve heard screaming bouncing across the British Isles recently then there’s a good chance I was kidding myself. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

All love, Kitty.

*who’s proved to be lovely btw.

 

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BUSINESS OF BOOKS: FIRST, LAST, EVERYTHING – FREELANCE EDITOR J L DEAN

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What was the first publishing business advice you were given?

Be clear and be on time. There’s the myth of the maverick writer who delays and delays only to appear at the eleventh hour with a work of genius. Editors can’t do that. The role of the editor is to make a piece of writing the best piece of writing it can be. That can mean anything from a little judicious rephrasing here and there to hitting the alarm bell when a character inexplicably undergoes a personality change halfway through a novel. Editing is primarily a support role. Yes, it takes a lot of skill and yes, a good reputation will make for an excellent career. However, you’re not the star, the writer is. Editing someone else’s book is not an opportunity to rewrite it in your own writerly image. Respect their style and adapt your approach accordingly.

By being clear, I mean when the writer received their edited manuscript from you, the only queries should be regarding the suggestions you have made. It is fine if they disagree or want to challenge, but you should be concerned if they have to ask you to explain yourself. Again, you’re there for support. Don’t be cryptic, be helpful, encouraging and reassuring.

 

What was the most recent piece of publishing advice you gave or received?

I did a lot of academic proof-editing for German clients when I lived in Bonn. More often than not I’d have to go back to them and ask, “UK or US English?” A lot of the time, they wouldn’t know. I had a young client was writing an article on the Nuremberg trials for publication in England so I contacted the publisher directly and asked for their house style. My advice to him, at the beginning of his academic career, was always to ask the publisher or publication for which he is writing for a copy of their house-style. Most have them and failing to follow it can mean instant rejection or, if you’re lucky, a lot of extra work within a very short space of time. No editor, however brilliant, can save you if you overlook that piece of advice. Make life easier for yourself and make sure you get it right from the start.

 

What is the piece of advice you’d most like to pass on?

Graham Norton asked Michael Morpurgo the same question in an interview a couple of days ago. Michael’s response; “Live an interesting life”. That’s got to be my answer too. It seems to me that, at this point in time, there’s a lot of emphasis on academic qualifications in creative writing. Agents are even starting to ask for that information in submissions. I feel very uneasy about that; I think it’s the wrong route for the publishing industry to take but that’s another article! For me, writing comes from within and it needs to be fed from within.

So my advice would be; don’t rush to be the ingénue novelist who has known nothing but the inside of a university lecture hall. OK, you’ll look good in the publicity photos and the press will adore you for the full fifteen minutes, but what experiences are you drawing on. What are you really giving the reader, and therefore the world? Go out and live your life, meet people and challenge yourself. No matter if you want to write medieval crime thrillers or contemporary romance; stories are about people and people are the key to stories; even in their absence, there’s a story. You won’t learn about people in a classroom. Get out there, but take your notebook.

 

J L Dean is an a freelance editor and historical novelist, recently returned from three years living in Germany, she divides her time between work, law studies and that difficult second novel.

 

TAKE FOUR WRITERS: CELEBRATING, TOURING, SPINNING & FACE-PLANTING

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MARCH UPDATE FROM OUR FOUR WRITERS…

LUCY COLEMAN… CELEBRATING

March 1st began with a roar – the Beast from the East arrived but it just happened to be the day I started writing my fourth novel for Aria Fiction. Thankfully, after last month’s stressful IT problems, my new office set up is now working well.

The arrival of the snow was perfect timing, though, as my new WIP is a Christmas story and it helped set the scene perfectly!

I was also able to take time out to celebrate my first release with Aria. As the reviews begin to roll in this has been a month of counting my blessings. So many wonderful readers and bloggers have shown support for my first book writing as Lucy Coleman, that I have been overwhelmed.

But now my newest cast of characters are calling and I’m in writing heaven again. Have a lovely Easter and I hope to see you here again next month!  

CLAIRE DYER… TOURING

The two weeks after the publication of The Last Day saw myself and my book on tour.

Each day one lovely blogger would host us on their blog, either including a feature by me or a Q&A designed by them and answered by me. And each day I’d eagerly anticipate the tweet that would alert me to the fact that the post was public, click on the link and scroll down the page, my heart in my mouth, until I found their review of the novel.

I can assure you this was a really scary moment because their good opinion means so much. Bloggers are amazing people. They champion writers and novels and promote reading by their enthusiasm and love of all things book-related. Between us, The Dome Press and I were lucky enough to be hosted by 16 bloggers who each brought a unique insight into what The Last Day is about and how it resonated with them. I learned a great deal about my book by reading their reviews and am eternally grateful to them for each and every one.

 

ANGELA PETCH… SPINNING

You know that feeling when you are chasing your tail? It seems like you’re achieving zilch? “…Busy doin’ nothin’ working the whole day through…”? I have lots of plates spinning at the moment.

I’ve established “Write Away in Tuscany” for September 11th to 18th and found a fab tutor to run the morning classes for this course. I’ve scouted for help with covers that need revamping since Endeavour Press went into liquidation. People’s Friend encouraged me to write a serial and I had three more stories accepted. I’m co-writing a ghost book for Littlehampton Festival. I gave a talk to Ferring book club and accepted a bigger talk in Chichester in April. I attended the Southern Book Show and “networked”. And poor Mavis and Dot? They are sitting on a bench on the prom somewhere, waiting for me to write their fate in the last two chapters.

Oh yes – and I went to Snowdonia for five days to escape.

 

JACKIE BALDWIN… FACE-PLANTING

Hello, again. What have I been up to this month? Editing again! This time it is a line-edit where you really get down to the nitty-gritty. Repetitions are identified and eliminated. Very Special Forces! Someone goes to dinner and vanishes into a space time continuum for five days. Your characters leap to wild, insane conclusions and you have to go back and put the seeding in earlier on. You get the drift. The absolute opposite of fun! Right now, going to Tesco, doing the ironing, even cleaning the bathroom, seem sparkling with allure. Feeling the pressure as my book, Perfect Dead, is due out on 15th June and I still have a copy-edit to go through too. My mood was not improved by doing a total face plant in Dumfries High Street yesterday. I look like I’ve been in a bare knuckle fight and lost!

Best Foot Forward: Jane Cable’s blog about what happens once that digital publishing deal is in the bag continues

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Jane Cable, publishing, writing
BEST ENDEAVOURS

Jane Cable’s blog about what happens once that digital publishing deal is in the bag continues.

BEST FOOT FORWARD

Editing involves a great deal of sitting down. Far more than my slightly dodgy back can manage at the moment anyway. So after being glued to my office chair for a few hours I balanced my laptop on a box file on the ironing board and tried that (standing at your desk being all the rage). It helped, but not a great deal as I found it slightly awkward to type.

What does work is going for a walk in the middle of the day and I am hugely blessed to live in a small village tucked under the South Downs so peace and quiet and country air are only ever a few steps outside my front door. And while tramping around the lanes is freeing up my back muscles it does exactly the same for my mind.

Agent Felicity has cleverly crafted my elevator pitch as a writer as “love with a ghostly element in a beautiful setting” and I’ll go with that. Completely. And beautiful settings inevitably require walking.

publishing, what happens when you get a publishing deal

The Seahorse Summer is set in Studland Bay in Dorset and opens on the sixtieth anniversary of a rehearsal for D-Day which went horribly wrong. I visited the village exactly ten years later and on my walk up to the cliffs made special note of the wonderful countryside around me; the daffodils dying back on the banks, slowly being replaced by primroses; the tractor rumbling across the fields; tiny birds swarming the hawthorn hedges; enticing glimpses of the sea below. Minute observation helps me to create a credible world for my characters to inhabit.

Every day, as I walk, I do the same thing. It’s a great discipline for a writer. I always say that to write good dialogue you need to remember you have two ears and one mouth. To write great descriptions you need all five senses.

Yesterday the earliest touches of autumn were making themselves felt. Cow parsley dying back to reveal blackberries – some fruits ripe and squashy between my fingers, others in tight green fists. The tiniest hint of chill on the breeze which carried the pheasants’ calls and the wood smoke from a distant bonfire across the valley. The strict definition of meteorological autumn starting on 1st September becoming a reality before my eyes.

Time is, indeed, marching on. But I have finished the character edits for all but Marie and next I need to review each paragraph, making sure it is essential to the story. The book has changed so much since its first iteration I need to remove the distracting loose ends – and in the process make sure that every scene is adding something for the reader.

Jane Cable is the author of two independently published romantic suspense novels, The Cheesemaker’s House and The Faerie Tree, and a sporadic contributor to Frost. The Seahorse Summer tells the tale of how two American soldiers born sixty years apart help forty-something Marie Johnson to rebuild her shattered confidence and find new love. Discover more at www.janecable.com.

 

 

Meet Gillian Holmes – Literary Editor

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Meet Gillian Holmes – literary editor By Margaret Graham1

Gillian Holmes

 

Frost is delighted that Gillian Holmes of the editing house, The Editor, will, over the next few weeks, advise Frost’s readers on writing successful first chapters, and that tricky beast the synopsis.

 

The timing is particularly apt because the charity Words for the Wounded (sponsored by Frost Magazine) has launched its 2016 Independent Author Book Award  for self published books – fiction or non fiction/e-book or physical.  which is due to close on 6th March. Last year’s competition was won by Jane Cable, who as a result is now represented by Felicity Trew of the Caroline Sheldon Literary Agency.

Meet Gillian Holmes – literary editor By Margaret Grahamfelicitydrew2 Felicity Trew

 

It is Felicity who is judging the Words for the Wounded competition this year, so flex those fingers, sharpen your imaginations and let Frost, and Gillian, help you along the way.

 

Gillian Holmes  has been working in publishing for nearly twenty years. She started out at Quarto, working on craft books – applique and decoupage was very popular at the time and she’s endeavoured to forget everything she learned about those skills over the years.

 

She quickly moved on from that nightmare to work at Simon & Schuster where she worked with authors such as Jackie Collins, Ben Elton and Sean Hughes. As well as doing quite a lot of football, the X Files and books about UFOs.

 

Then on to Carlton, working on illustrated non-fiction and TV tie-in novelisations – the Coronation Street novel is a particularly proud moment. The entire 40 years in a novel.

 

But with three children, life in-house became difficult, so she worked as a freelance editor, copy editor and proofreader for various clients, before moving back in-house to Arrow Books six years ago, where she edited many bestselling authors, such as Katie Flynn, Dorothy Koomson, Amy Silver (aka Paula Hawkins), Cathy Woodman, Lisa Lynch and Margaret Graham, and many others.
Gillian is really looking forward, over the next few weeks, to helping those of you who are working on a novel, or perhaps to inspire those who are not, to do so.

For more information about the Words for the Wounded Independent Author Book Award, and the charity which raises funds to help in the recovery of wounded service personnel, go to www.wordsforthewounded.co.uk

Gillian has now set up her own concern, The Editor: gilliansholmes@hotmail.com 

 

 

 

Win! Three Copies of MAGIX Photostory To Giveaway | Competitions

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Win! Three Copies of MAGIX Photostory To Giveaway | CompetitionsMAGIX Photostory 2015 Deluxe offers over 300 freely combinable high-quality effects, animations and decorative elements. You can combine individual images to make panoramas or 3D photos, and travel route animations allow you to create interactive presentations of travel images. With over 50 new music pieces and 500 effects, the program now features more than 850 professional sounds & songs for audio dubbing. You can also add your own audio comments and music.

If you don‘t have much time or a creative streak, you can always make use of the Photostory wizard. With tons of thematic templates for birthdays, weddings, Christmas and other events, you can automatically create the right Photostory for every occasion.

In addition to new effects, templates and audio content, the controls have also been further optimized. You can now assign photos, videos and music to up to 8 multimedia tracks, and the optimized multi-track performance allows for a more efficient use of multicore processors.

The program stands out against online slideshow providers in its ability to allow you to create as many slideshows as they want. There is no need to upload photos and video to the Internet, and everything can be saved locally on your PC. You can also choose to export to DVD, mobile end devices, online on Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, as well as showy and we have three to giveaway.

To be in with the chance of winning this fantastic prize, follow @Frostmag on Twitter or Instagram, or like us on Facebook. Alternatively, sign up to our newsletter. Or subscribe to Frost Magazine TV on YouTube here: http://t.co/9etf8j0kkz.Then comment below saying what you did. Competition finishes a month from now.