Editing on the Cheap

Professional editing can be expensive. It's worth the investment, but sometimes you just don't have the dough.

When money has been tight, I've used friends and family to help me edit. What am I saying? Money is always tight and I'm always using them to help me edit. They do require direction though, so I give them some easy-to-use editing marks:

! = liked this section

? = don't understand what's going on

:-) = like this character

X = this is where I took a break

I would continue, but I think I may abandon my old list for this one on Bookpublishing.today.com.

I hope my friends and family are somewhat artistic, because they are a little more challenging. But on the bright side, they should have a whole lot more fun.

If you've got some to add, please share!

di

Saying Good Bye to Characters

Just got the shooting script of Growing the Big One. For the first time I got to read the changes made to my script since I handed it over. I think I might need a stiff drink or two.

I've been a professional writer for over a decade — writing for a variety of magazines and companies. I know the client writing the check has the final say, so it's dangerous to attach your ego to words that can be (and often are) drastically altered.

I pride myself on being able to shrug off edits with the best of them — it's just part of the business of commercial writing. So why can't I shrug off these edits as easily?

But it's my story

I've always known screenwriting is commercial writing. It's just that this time the client is a studio and/or producer paying me instead of a publisher or corporation.

I knew while I was writing that first draft that if I was profoundly lucky and someone picked up my story, it would lead to story edits.

So, again, why can't I shrug off these edits as easily?

Saying Good-bye

This may sound odd, but I think it's because I had to say good-bye to some people I cared about. Several of the characters I had crafted, loved and lived with for months as I wrote disappeared or were combined with other characters. It's like having someone you're close to vanish into thin air.

I've listened to other writers lament over the changes made to their stories and how their characters have been destroyed. I feel for their pain, but although edits aren't the easiest thing to read, I'm not quite as worked up as some.

Saying Hello

Why? Because I'm a writer! I can write another story and I can populate it with characters I've lost.

Oh sure, they may have a different hair color, be a little older or younger, or hold a different job, but I'll know who they are. They're my buddies — characters too good to be deleted.

We writers may not have the final say when it comes to editing, but we definitely have the power to resurrect.

Editing Your Novel

Hi,

I was reading literary agent, Rachel Gardner's blog about how to Tighten Up Your Manuscript.

Her advice was just good, general advice for anyone self-editing their novels — specifically writers trying to cut out the fat.

Possible Things to Remove

1. Adverbs — especially those with “ly” endings. Ask yourself if they’re necessary.
2. Adjectives — often people use two or three when one or none is better.
3. Gerunds — Words that end in “ing.”
4. Passive voice — Over-use of words like “was,” "were" and "that" indicate your writing may be too passive. Reconstruct in active voice.
5. Overly descriptive passages — these include not just scenes, but characters' thoughts and feelings in too much detail (i.e. long sections of narrative or interior monologue).
6. Passages that tell the reader what they already know.
7. Unnecessary backstory.

Some writers have a hard time cutting, but it can be fun. Think of the words dropping away like pounds on the diet. With each word your manuscript is leaner and meaner.

Once you've trimmed the fat, you'll notice the difference. And so will your readers.

di

Sheila Bender Inspires Editors

Are you writing a memoir? Having difficulties getting your personal experiences down on paper? Sheila Bender may be your answer.

Last Saturday, March 28, was the second conference of the Northwest Independent Editors Guild. I’d gotten up early, and drove miles to get there by 8 a.m. I was jacked up on Starbucks coffee and wondering if the keynote speaker’s session was really going to be an hour and half long, because, if it was, I was going to need more coffee.

It turned out I didn’t need caffeine. Sheila Bender was about to blow me away with her developmental editing techniques. She took us step by step through her process — a process that respects writers and delivers astounding results.

She read us a couple “before and after” examples from writers she’s worked with. The initial pieces weren’t bad, but the finished works were beautiful — both heartbreaking and humorous. At the end of each I nearly stood and applauded — and it wasn’t the caffeine talking. It was inspirational to see the transformation and to know that an editor can help a writer find that level of writing.

I took careful notes and will try to explain her process the best I can tomorrow. In the meantime, you may want to check out her website, www.writingitreal.com.
 

di

You know it's not a Portfolio Piece When . . .

Today a client asked my husband (a very talented graphic designer and web designer by the way) to make a change on his website. He wanted FAQ changed to FAQs.

My husband explained that he could, but that would be incorrect. FAQ stands for Frequently Asked Questions, and by adding an “s” it would now be Frequently Asked Questionss. The client said, “Add it anyway, I prefer it that way.”

It's moments like these, my husband and I sigh, cash the check and say, “Well, it's not going to be a portfolio piece.”

Every writer or editor faces times when the client requests less than perfect work. (Please tell me it's not just me.) Here are a few of my favorite client requests.

You Know it's Not a Portfolio Piece When . . .
. . . the client gets capital happy. I Received a sales Piece to Edit with Random Words capitalized. After correcting the capitalization, the client asked that I put the caps back because “they emphasized all the important words.” I tried to explain that the text emphasized that the writer was having a “shift key” malfunction. The client disagreed and I put them back.

You Know it's Not a Portfolio Piece When . . .
. . . they vote on it. When my husband was laying out a newsletter, he noticed a sentence with a grammatical goof. He corrected it and expected maybe a “thanks for catching the error.” Instead he got an email that read, “Our group voted. The first way was right.”

You Know it's Not a Portfolio Piece When . . .
. . . the client is too creative. On occasion I'll get clients who like to create their own buzz words — at least I think that's what they're “banging the dirty cat at.” This client is hopeless. You can tell them that you Googled the phrase and no one on the planet has ever heard of it. The client will undoubtedly respond, “Just wait. They will.”

You Know it's Not a Portfolio Piece When . . .
. . . the admin is your editor. My heart stops when I get an email that reads, “My admin knows a little about writing (i.e. took a creative writing class in community college) and has made some suggestions.”

These, of course, are the exceptions, not the rule. But if you’ve found a way to convince those communication-challenged clients there’s a better way, I’m all ears!



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How to be Your Editor’s Favorite Writer

I just read an email from a freelance writer — a very talented one. She said the company she writes for has decided to take its work in-house. She's got options, but she's nervous and scrambling.

I'm in a unique position — I'm both an editor for a couple trade magazines, as well as a writer for other publications. As communication budgets are hacked and tossed away like bad meat, the writer side if frantically asking the editor side, "How am I going to stay on the good side of my editors? Tell me!! You're an editor!"

The conversation gets a little schizophrenic, but my editor side has had to take this question seriously. What is it that makes me hold on tight to certain writers? And why, at the same time, am I relieved I have the excuse of "tight budgets" to wean out other writers?

The list of reasons is short, but powerful. The writers I cling to, fight for, and assign articles to, through good and bad, have the following in common:

• They understand the publication. They know what kind of articles we run as well as the magazine's style. They work hard to make sure each article hits the mark. They don't pitch stories that are only mildly related, or write them in their own style, arguing that what I'm asking for isn't right for the subject matter.

• They pitch great story idea. Editors must continually come up with editorial month after month, and writers that can come up with fresh, timely ideas that resonate with readers are coveted. Every time a writer pitches me that great idea, it's like I fall in love all over again. My heart pounds harder, I'm on the brink of breaking into song, and I have the urge to send flowers and chocolate to this wonderful person. (More often though, I just say, "Great idea. Go for it!")

• They can write. When I get the story, it's written well. It's tight, needs little editing and is exactly what they promised. (I know stories evolve and change. But there is nothing more frightening to an editor than an email with an article that reads, "Things didn't come together like I thought they would. Not even close. So here's something a little different — OK, way different. Hope you like it.")

• They meet their deadlines. Sometimes the good writers even get their articles in early. And if they run into problems — sometimes they are unavoidable — they let me know in advance so we can work something out.

That's my list. Seems simple, but my writer side is groaning. It's a hard list to live up to.

Di