Six Steps to Seeing Your Book Published

The writing process for a book can take several years. During that time, you will write and rewrite many times. It helps to join a writing group, which can help you stay motivated and focused, encourage you and critique your work. If you can’t take criticism, you are at a distinct disadvantage from the beginning. Practice taking criticism from your critique group. DO NOT take criticism personally; they are trying to help you to get published.

 Step One

Create a team of those you trust who can help shepherd you through the writing  process, whether you intend to self-publish or you dream big of getting your book picked up by one of the omnipresent Big Six publishing houses.

Step Two

Get a driving force who can throw out realistic and pertinent deadlines. Someone who is an interested third party who keeps you in line for you to attain actual progress. This is crucial so you actually can see the idea into fruition.

Step Three

Write, write, write, take a break, go for a walk or swim, or have coffee with a friend then write some more.

Step Four

Take breaks from time to time. It helps prevent writer’s block. Hint: always take a break just when you’ve decided on a distinct direction for your story. Be sure there’s enough of it down so you won’t lose track and can pick it up readily when you return. Leaving the story at the end of a chapter can cause your mind to go blank. Begin the next chapter don’t leave a blank page for your return.

Step Five

Breathe. Take time to walk away from your masterpiece and breath. Get a fresh perspective from a trusted adviser. Take time to vent about your long writing journey. And take time to walk away for entire days, maybe a week or two. Time when you have left your thoughts on writing to the birds. Free your mind, meditate on life and it’s beauty, but what ever you do, remember that stepping away and thinking of other things can help you re-evaluate what you are putting on each digital or physical page.

Step Six

This one is just a thought: Think about writing a chapter or two at a time, maybe not in the order they’ll appear in the final product. This is a distinct advantage of the word processor over the typewriter.

Revision Tips for Writers

We can all agree writing is a joy. It’s fun and many of us make our living doing it. But, there are parts of the publishing aspect that can be frustrating and difficult. Most of us find revision to be the most difficult hurdle. “I like it the way it is. Everything there is important and I don’t see anything that needs changing.” How many of us have approached the revision process with that mindset? I think we all have, at times. In other words, you are not alone.

Although I am an editor as well as a writer, I don’t find revising my work to be easy. However, I’ve collected tidbits of advice from several writers and editors. I’ve found them helpful, so I’m sharing them here:

1. Revise big stuff first, make small edits later. This doesn't mean you should not correct obvious typos and grammar errors as you notice them. However, you shouldn't be actively tinkering with word choice until after you've nailed down the structure of your piece.
2. Put the manuscript down and walk away. Writers need at least a little distance from their manuscripts before jumping into revision.
3. Scan the whole manuscript without reading. Scanning can make big problems more obvious than a writer might not notice when reading closely.
4. Read carefully. Take your time and read every word. Then, read it out loud. This will help you catch obvious errors and check for smoothness or the “flow.” 
5.  Look for ways to be more concise with your language. Can you turn a 15-word sentence into an 8-word sentence? Can you turn an 8-sentence paragraph into a 5-sentence paragraph? Less almost always means more for the reader.
6. Use active voice over passive voice. There may be occasions for using passive voice, but for the most part be active.
7. Vary sentence structure. Don't fall into the trap of always writing: Noun + Verb + Noun = Sentence. Even if it's grammatically correct, using the same pattern over and over again will make your manuscript boring. Don't feel like you have to be creative with every sentence; just check that you're not falling into a monotonous pattern.
8. Save each round of revisions as its own file. Start with the first draft. Then, the second draft. Then, the third draft and so on. Saving these files provides a record of your changes and shows your development of the story.
9. Have someone read the manuscript. The more eyes the better, because they'll be more objective when reading, and they're less likely to make "leaps of logic" than you, the writer, might. It is always best to ask someone other than a relative, who naturally will be biased.
10. Print the manuscript for a final edit. There are things you’ll catch on paper that you won't on the screen.

Take your time with revision. Set it aside for a few days, a week if you have the time. Then return to the work with a fresh attitude. Save your revised version in a separate file. Be sure you have addressed all of the editor’s comments. Do not ignore them. If there are some changes that you don’t agree with, write the editor a note explaining why the revision called for will change the meaning of your work. It’s best not to take exception to more than one or two editorial changes. If you and the editor are far apart on the way the piece is written, you may wish to withdraw the work and resubmit to another publisher. That, of course, is beyond the topic at hand.

Revision is necessary to polish the work for the reader, and the reader should be foremost in your mind. If you use these revision tips, you'll be ahead with your revision process and find the editor is not the ogre you imagined.

Commas, commas, commas

Comma or not to comma
—and always use “curly” commas, not straight

Commas really are not living entities that reproduce and decide where to live and where not to live. Neither are they snowflakes that land wherever the wind may take them. They are not decorations to be used or not as a person’s fancy may decide. Commas actually have a vital and exact use in writing stories, poetry, essays, or articles.

Let’s see when and where commas should be used.

·       Use a comma to separate three or more words in a series, and use a comma before the conjunction,

·       Names directly addressed need to be set off by commas.

·       Commas should be used to set off conjunctive adverbs that introduce a clause or sentence.

·       Mild interjections will need to be set off by commas,

·       Equal adjectives should be separated with a comma. One test is to see if the word and could be used between the adjectives. If so, then a comma is needed,

·       A phrase adding nonessential information should be set off by commas,

·       A comma is needed after introductory words,

·       A clause that doesn’t add essential information in a sentence should be set off by commas,

·       Non-essential appositives should be set off by commas. (An appositive is a noun or pronoun - word, phrase, or clause - placed after another noun or pronoun to provide more information or rename the first.)

Remember...

Get ego out of the way—you are not your writing. When ego gets involved, one gets defensive. When defensive, one can no longer hear.