Editing Tips
I've been working on edits for the past week and I've come across a nice routine for keeping me on track.
When my editor sends me changes, she sends them in parts. It was the first time anyone had ever done that with me and I wasn't sure if I liked it until I started working on it.
Sending back the manuscript in pieces has kept me focused on one segment at a time. If you get back 400 pages in one shot it's easy to feel overwhelmed. But 100 page segments feels more humane.
One thing I did this go round, which you can do regardless if it's an editor or a critique partner, is make a duplicate copy with the tracked changes accepted and then reading it again.
By creating a duplicate copy without all the red marks it becomes less distracting. I found I could more easily polish the narrative and edit with fresher eyes.
***
Aren't you all surprised I did an actual writing post today? LOL.
***
And did you hear about that silly quiz that told you what famous author's work your writing resembles?
I could have sworn that quiz made the rounds last year, but for whatever reason it went viral this year. The algorithm is keyword based so you got all kinds of loopy answers. It has nothing to do with your writing style.
Here is the Huffington Post article out to burst your bubble. Such a shame. Now you can't go around flaunting your Kafka.
***
Lastly...
Poison ivy is getting better. I tried Stacy's (Form and Funktion) over-the-counter remedy of Technu and it seemed to work pretty well.
When my editor sends me changes, she sends them in parts. It was the first time anyone had ever done that with me and I wasn't sure if I liked it until I started working on it.
Sending back the manuscript in pieces has kept me focused on one segment at a time. If you get back 400 pages in one shot it's easy to feel overwhelmed. But 100 page segments feels more humane.
One thing I did this go round, which you can do regardless if it's an editor or a critique partner, is make a duplicate copy with the tracked changes accepted and then reading it again.
By creating a duplicate copy without all the red marks it becomes less distracting. I found I could more easily polish the narrative and edit with fresher eyes.
***
Aren't you all surprised I did an actual writing post today? LOL.
***
And did you hear about that silly quiz that told you what famous author's work your writing resembles?
I could have sworn that quiz made the rounds last year, but for whatever reason it went viral this year. The algorithm is keyword based so you got all kinds of loopy answers. It has nothing to do with your writing style.
Here is the Huffington Post article out to burst your bubble. Such a shame. Now you can't go around flaunting your Kafka.
***
Lastly...
Poison ivy is getting better. I tried Stacy's (Form and Funktion) over-the-counter remedy of Technu and it seemed to work pretty well.
Comments
Have a good Monday.
Thanks, Dru. Hope your days are cooling down a little. Looks like the heat wave is hitting the west coast now.
LOL. I know. People are always latching on to something. What they need to understand is that these quizzes are meant as entertainment, not affirmation.
They're meant to stroke the ego. I can do that myself. LOL!
First-person prose: Dan Brown. Third-person: JRR Tolkien. Bleech! I don't like *either* of those writers. Why not just stab me through the heart, it'd be a lot less painful! Off to Huff to regain Teh Ego.
LOL, I've seen that quiz. Haven't tried it but it could be fun.
Welcome Karen! I'll stop over at your blog in a minute.
I'm so glad to meet you!
Ref: I'm OFFICIALLY following you
Oh good. I'll email you the secret handshake. :)
"One thing I did this go round, which you can do regardless if it's an editor or a critique partner, is make a duplicate copy with the tracked changes accepted and then reading it again."
Word has a way to do this! You select the "Final without markup" view in the Review ribbon/taskbar. Word will then show the document without any of the comments and with the latest edits, just as if you had accepted them. However, the revisions are there, and will show up again when you select "Final with markup".
Love, your friendly certified Word expert.
Thanks, Tia!
I put in a word about your contest in Wednesday morning's post. (your afternoon, I imagine)