17 replies to this topic

[thealtruismsociety]

Would anyone be willing to go over my first chapter and red ink the hell outta it. I'm probably doing all sorts of thinking wrong just in formatting this novel. If someone (Preferably with editing experience) could point out all my bad habits in the first chapter, I should be able to apply them throughout the rest of the book, any takers?

[Thoth]

Hmmm. Now who around here has editing experience? And who around here is willing to work for free? And who...oh, heck TAS, did you really think there would be any takers.

I guess it never hurts to ask.
- Thoth.

[Marguerite]

thealtruismsociety, on Apr 25 2010, 08:46 PM, said:

Would anyone be willing to go over my first chapter and red ink the hell outta it. I'm probably doing all sorts of thinking wrong just in formatting this novel. If someone (Preferably with editing experience) could point out all my bad habits in the first chapter, I should be able to apply them throughout the rest of the book, any takers?

If you can wait a bit for a response (say, a week to ten days), you are welcome to send it to me. Send me a PM, with an attachment if you can--if you can't, I'll reply with another e-mail address.

I'm swamped with work right now, plus I'm trying to make sure the SF screenplay hangs together and I have a writers' group meeting on Sat. Otherwise I could get to it sooner. But if it really is just one chapter, it won't take long once I get started.
Best,
M

[thealtruismsociety]

Thoth, on Apr 25 2010, 08:52 PM, said:

Hmmm. Now who around here has editing experience? And who around here is willing to work for free? And who...oh, heck TAS, did you really think there would be any takers.

I guess it never hurts to ask.
- Thoth.

Yeah, never hurts to ask, hehe.

[Thoth]

Lady M is a real doll.

Feeling cheap and sulky.
- Thoth

[Marguerite]

Thoth, on Apr 25 2010, 09:07 PM, said:

Lady M is a real doll.

Feeling cheap and sulky.
- Thoth

Cheer up, Lord of Magic. It's a banner day. We're all winners here, right?

Will you hit 3,000 posts before the forums log 10,000 and I get to 1,500? Lots of milestones heading our way. Hope you have a slew of celebration pics ready!
M

[Thoth]

Marguerite, on Apr 25 2010, 09:17 PM, said:

Cheer up, Lord of Magic. It's a banner day. We're all winners here, right?

Damn right, Lady M.

Marguerite, on Apr 25 2010, 09:17 PM, said:

Will you hit 3,000 posts before the forums log 10,000 and I get to 1,500?

The race is not always to the swift nor battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet.

Marguerite, on Apr 25 2010, 09:17 PM, said:

Lots of milestones heading our way. Hope you have a slew of celebration pics ready!

I'd best start building my pics folder now.

Out searching the World Wide Web, so don't wait up for me.
- Thoth

[Joolissa]

Marguerite, on Apr 25 2010, 09:17 PM, said:

Will you hit 3,000 posts before the forums log 10,000 and I get to 1,500?

Thoth, on Apr 25 2010, 10:18 PM, said:

The race is not always to the swift nor battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet.

*sigh* 3,000?


Good luck with your first Chapter TAS. I'm sure M will red ink it to hell enough to make you... er.. happy?
- J

[Thoth]

Julia Grace, on Apr 26 2010, 03:07 PM, said:

*sigh* 3,000?

Yes. I'm a little chatterbox.

Julia Grace, on Apr 26 2010, 03:07 PM, said:

Good luck with your first Chapter TAS. I'm sure M will red ink it to hell enough to make you... er.. happy?

It's been said, and I don't remember by who, that editing is a form of masochism.
(I'm thinking Mark Twain but the word "masochism" doesn't feel old enough.)

So good luck TAS, good luck Julia, good luck M, and yes, good luck Orren.
I think we'll all need it.
- Thoth

[Joolissa]

Masochism or Sadism?

Perhaps it's something like this:
Editing your own work - Masochism

Having your work edited - Masochism

Being the editor editing someone else's work - Sadism

Having Storyist to help... Priceless


Sorry.. couldn't resist that last bit.

[Thoth]

The bit was priceless.

[Marguerite]

Masochism? To give your work to someone whose only job is to make it as good as it can be? Now, sending it to an agent, that is masochism....

TAS, there are no major formatting problems with your chapter that I can see. I can correct commas and mark unneeded adverbs, if you like, but that kind of thing is useful only if you have no plans to rewrite (otherwise it just has to be done over again). So I would say, forge ahead.

Watch out for contractions that have lost their apostrophe (let's, not lets). Except for those, you are in pretty good shape.
Best,
M

[thealtruismsociety]

Marguerite, on Apr 26 2010, 07:25 PM, said:

Masochism? To give your work to someone whose only job is to make it as good as it can be? Now, sending it to an agent, that is masochism....

TAS, there are no major formatting problems with your chapter that I can see. I can correct commas and mark unneeded adverbs, if you like, but that kind of thing is useful only if you have no plans to rewrite (otherwise it just has to be done over again). So I would say, forge ahead.

Watch out for contractions that have lost their apostrophe (let's, not lets). Except for those, you are in pretty good shape.
Best,
M

If you could that would be cool, that is a rewritten chapter.

[Joolissa]

Here's a question for you M... does an editor only edit grammer/punctuation stuff like you're talking about or do they edit content? Do they only edit content if they edit the whole piece? I always thought editors edited content as well as formatting.
- J

[thealtruismsociety]

Julia Grace, on Apr 26 2010, 10:04 PM, said:

Here's a question for you M... does an editor only edit grammer/punctuation stuff like you're talking about or do they edit content? Do they only edit content if they edit the whole piece? I always thought editors edited content as well as formatting.
- J

Dont they also normally make suggestions about pacing, story etc. And that's why you want to find an editor who works in your field. (Sci Fi/Fantasy for this book.)

[Marguerite]

thealtruismsociety, on Apr 26 2010, 10:08 PM, said:

Dont they also normally make suggestions about pacing, story etc. And that's why you want to find an editor who works in your field. (Sci Fi/Fantasy for this book.)

There are different kinds of editors. Book doctors tackle the book as a whole and comment on characterization, plot holes, pacing, etc. I assume that is the kind of editing TAS is seeking (I'm not sure I'm equipped to provide it in his chosen genre). They will also do line editing, but that's not their primary focus.

Line editors focus on grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. They usually work for publishing houses.

Copy editors do either or both, depending on the context.

I read the file through once looking for major problems and didn't find any, TAS. I'll go through it again later in the week, mark whatever I find, and send it back to you.
Best,
M

[thealtruismsociety]

Marguerite, on Apr 27 2010, 10:07 AM, said:

There are different kinds of editors. Book doctors tackle the book as a whole and comment on characterization, plot holes, pacing, etc. I assume that is the kind of editing TAS is seeking (I'm not sure I'm equipped to provide it in his chosen genre). They will also do line editing, but that's not their primary focus.

Line editors focus on grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. They usually work for publishing houses.

Copy editors do either or both, depending on the context.

I read the file through once looking for major problems and didn't find any, TAS. I'll go through it again later in the week, mark whatever I find, and send it back to you.
Best,
M

Yes the first one is the one I'm looking for.

Thats cool Marguerite, I appreciate it, I was thinking there would be huge things wrong with it. If not I'll rock on as I am.

[Ironbark]

Marguerite, on 27 April 2010 - 02:07 PM, said:

There are different kinds of editors. Book doctors tackle the book as a whole and comment on characterization, plot holes, pacing, etc. I assume that is the kind of editing TAS is seeking (I'm not sure I'm equipped to provide it in his chosen genre). They will also do line editing, but that's not their primary focus.

Line editors focus on grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc. They usually work for publishing houses.

Copy editors do either or both, depending on the context.

That, M, is a stupendously straightforward characterisation of the nature of editors.

It's too bad I wasn't hanging out here at the time this thread was happening. These days I earn about 25% of my income (enough to fund my Mac habit, but only just) from copy editing, but it has to be said that this is in the field of commercial publications (reports, marketing literature) and travel magazines. I was once on the books of a theological/devotional publishing house, hired as a proofreader and line editor for the last of a series by R.T.Kendall. I ended up suggesting so much book doctoring that I was effectively a copy editor on that project, which is how I drifted into the line of work.

Anyway, I don't for a moment think that I would have found anything that M did not. And my work has not been fiction-related (I am not going to get into a debate on Kendall's theology and whether it can be called belles lettres here). But the kind of "read this and give professional-level feedback, someone else will do the same for you here one day" approach is fine by me as long as the timeframe isn't urgent and there is fair play all round. Just saying, like.