Reducing your word count can serve more purposes than saving money with your editor or meeting contest guidelines. The more you hone your writing style, the stronger your writing becomes.
What editing service do you need?
by Cayce Berryman / February 17, 2021
/ Finding a freelancer, Path to publication, Revision stage, Uncategorized
Most fiction authors need one of the following: proofreading, copyediting, line editing, developmental editing, and formatting. Some may know how to format their own books and others may only need a copy editor (and ideally a proofreader, too), but most authors will want some combination of the above. This post will cover three types of editing.
Subplots not only spice up your story, but they add depth to it as well. You add in a subplot or three or four, and your story will be filled with tension and wonder and excitement. Hopefully, they'll also serve as foils for your character(s) in a way that prepares them for their goal, too.
When writing dialogue, what do you do with periods or quotation marks? Multiple paragraphs of dialogue, quotes within quotes, and even action tags change the location of punctuation within and around quotation marks.
Editing tools, if you use them correctly, can help writers identify certain areas in which they can improve. While I don't suggest depending on these tools, they definitely don't hurt. The key is to know why you're agreeing with whatever the tool says and only making the changes you agree with. Never assume the tool is right. Many times, it may not be. Then, if the change is something you've had to do more than once, add it to your style guide so you can be consistent with your flaws and attack them early on in future works.
You finished your book! Now what?
by Cayce Berryman / December 2, 2020
/ Finding a freelancer, Path to publication, Revision stage, Uncategorized
Whether you've just completed a NaNoWriMo project or you finally finished a book after months or years, give your work the attention it needs before taking it to the next step.
The basics of creating characters
by Cayce Berryman / October 22, 2020
/ Before writing, Character development, Revision stage, Uncategorized
If someone walked into your house (invited, of course) and said they wanted to be your main character, let's say you nodded excitedly and said, "Sure! Let's do it." Would you start writing right away? Or would you get to know your volunteer more so you could create a character who portrays them well?
We want to have unique characters, so the person or creature we write out is not always based on a friend or family member, or even ourselves. But if we don't have someone to listen to and analyze, how can we create a solid and unique character with dimension and purpose?
Idioms have their purpose. When you're using them intentionally, it's okay, but when you use them because you can, you might be cluttering a great scene with a cliché.
You can take critique and do many things with it, but there are several ways to interpret notes you receive from your beta readers, alpha readers, or editors, and even more ways to recover from it.
Tracked Changes looks intimidating at first, but don't fret. With a few pictures and tips, navigating your marked-up document can be easy.