Use Critique effectively

Recently, I got some excellent critique from a professional editor who is familiar with current trends. This was on the opening of a novel that had already been critiqued and revised multiple times and had achieved final approval from writers I respect.

The story is about a group of friends and takes place over decades, so it is important to establish the depth of that friendship immediately, but the professional editor pointed out that the current preference of publishers is to focus on action and dialogue because, in a world of instant information, readers have little patience for lengthy narration.

Other elements of her feedback were spot on, so when she suggested a narrator to work in backstory, my first impulse was to try and decide what character could act as a narrator. Then I got home and revisited the manuscript. I decided there were two problems with the input:

• The examples she gave of books using a narrator were science fiction, and my book most definitely is not.

• My book will most likely draw older adults as readers - many of whom don't participate in media that gives bites of information and they may prefer an older style of writing with more narration.

So, I'm compiling a list of books written in the last 5-10 years that use a narrator. I'll read them and note how it's handled and whether any are in this book's genre. Then I'll decide if I really want to have a narrator. I will of course also look at popular books in this genre that have been published recently - looking at writing style and hopefully finding some comps.

However, the feedback was spurred by the writing - the editor felt the opening was too slow due to too much backstory in narration, so I'll also go through the opening chapters to make some decisions about backstory:

• Does the reader ever need to know this? If not, cut it completely.

• When do they need to know it? If it can wait, cut and work it into the story later.

• If it can be worked into dialogue in a natural exchange, do it.

The final word? To use critique effectively, it's important to listen for the reasons suggestions are being given, to know your genre and audience, and to be ready to use the critique to improve your writing accordingly. Writers revise.

www.sherimcguinn.com

Before you hire an independent editor

Understand levels of edit

Before you hire an independent editor, know what kind of editor you need. A first draft is not ready for a copy edit.

First consult with a developmental editor who will look at things like structure, flow, and continuity. You may decide to do revisions that would need copy editing again. Why pay for that twice?

Choosing an editor

Once you know what type of editing you need, ask for credentials, examples, and references. Most online websites where you can get creatives cheap do little or no vetting – that’s up to you. A short free example should be offered – look at it, see if it’s what you want and expect for your money. Check The Alliance of Independent Authors watchdog list rating - it won't have every editor listed, but you can avoid any that have been red-flagged.

Before You hire an independent editor:What can you do yourself?

Why pay an editor to do things you can do yourself?

list terms that might slow an edit

This includes foreign language phrases, words requiring an accent, unusual names, terms specific to the topic, etc.

check research sources & quotes

Make a citation list that includes author, title, publisher (and their location), publication date, page numbers used overall in your research and specific pages for any direct quotes. Do this even if it's "just" a quote used in fiction, even if it's a picture book. You need to give credit, whether it's formal footnotes or a bibliography or a note on the copyright page.

While you're making that list, make sure direct quotes are accurate and clearly shown as such - and that you have avoided careless rewording of large tracts of text (aka plagiarizing).

images

You can’t legally just clip and paste from the internet. For every image, list the source, documentation that you've gotten written permission to use it in your book, and how to give credit for it the way the source requires.

While you're going through your images, make sure you've used "insert" to put images on the page. Cut and paste can become an issue later.

How Does Your Publisher Make Money?

How does your publisher make money?

Traditional publishers make their money selling books - that's why they're so picky about what they will publish. Back in the day, vanity publishers made their money from writers paying to have their books printed. In the new market, print-on-demand has made it possible to publish a book yourself and sell it worldwide for the minimal cost of copyright registration and ISBN purchase.

Some writers aren't comfortable doing it all themselves, so there are "self-publishing" and "hybrid" companies that will help you get that book into print. They're making most of their money selling services to authors. Some of those companies are expensive but legitimate; others are a complete rip-off. Investigate any company you consider using for self-publishing.

To read about my personal experience hiring the wrong company, read Never Pay to Publish – and OMG. (The OMG's about a daring surf rescue where my daughter and her husband risked their own lives to save three young strangers.)

For a more indepth description of publishing options see Deciding How to Publish Your Book. It also includes links to watchdog lists that help you avoid current scams.

There's also the option of hiring a book shepherd - someone to walk you through the self-publishing process, helping you become your own publisher. Some companies act primarily as printers and distributors of your work - such as Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing and Ingram's IngramSpark. They make money when your book sells.