When you write a story\u2014whether fiction or nonfiction\u2014do you always connect the dots? In other words, do you make sure to carry your readers along with the story or do you drop them somewhere and make them have to work to catch up?<\/p>\n
Do you sometimes get so tired of writing that you leave things out? Does your story move along so fast in your head that you miss writing down important steps? And what about segues? Do you sometimes forget to build bridges from one activity or action to another? <\/p>\n
These are some of the mistakes that can be caught during your thorough editing process. But, it is difficult for the author, who is so close to the story, to always catch these blatant errors. These mishaps of fatigue or mistakes due to familiarity can sure ruin a good book. <\/p>\n
For example, don\u2019t have your character drive up to his house, turn off the car and then climb into bed. Of course, there are methods you can use to pull this off. You can have the character deep in thought as he pulls up to the house. Once you have the character express some of those thoughts and emotions, you can, perhaps, devise a clever segue having him shut down his overactive mind, go upstairs and turn in for the night. <\/p>\n
Read and re-read your manuscript from various points of view, not just the same old stale position. I\u2019ve said this before\u2014get into your readers\u2019 heads. View the story as if you are seeing it for the first time. You\u2019ll definitely pick up on holes in your descriptions, unnecessarily repeated words and terms, misspelled names\/words (usually because you changed someone\u2019s name along the way) and areas where the dots need to be connected in order to make the story flow.<\/p>\n
Just yesterday I was editing a manuscript where the author described her main character twice in two different chapters AND in two different ways. Now there\u2019s a good way to keep your readers confused\u2014not a good idea.<\/p>\n
Once you have completed your thorough editing work, be sure to turn your manuscript over to an editor. He\/she WILL see things that have escaped your keen examination. And this is oftentimes many, many more things than you can imagine.<\/p>\n
This might be a good weekend to sit down with your manuscript using several new sets of eyes. Read it as if you are someone from Mars. Review it from the standpoint of an eager reader. Study it from an editor\u2019s point of view (repeated words, spelling errors, inconsistencies, etc.)<\/p>\n
You might find the \u201cself-editing\u201d section in my book, \u201cThe Right Way to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book,\u201d of use in this process. Order your copy now at Keep this book close at hand as you will refer to it often as you consider publishing options (I provide pros and cons to help you decide the best option for your project), pursue distributors and wholesalers, present your first book signing, attend a book festival, send press releases announcing your book, seek out conferences where you can sign up as an expert presenter on behalf of your book, wonder about getting book reviews (I tell you how to get LOTS of them), develop your marketing plan and so very much more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" When you write a story\u2014whether fiction or nonfiction\u2014do you always connect the dots? In other words, do you make sure to carry your readers along with the story or do you drop them somewhere and make them have to work to catch up? Do you sometimes get so tired of writing that you leave things […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
\n http:\/\/www.matilijapress.com\/rightway.html<\/a> <\/p>\n