Writing Process

Editing Explained

Posted by Sarah L. Thomson on Sep 24, 2020 in Writing Process | 0 comments

I’ve been working on a new project this week–copyediting another author’s manuscript. I’m really enjoying getting into the fine detail this entails. (Can you introduce a line of dialog with a colon? Does the cat say “mrow” or mrow? Do we talk about the duke of Mantua or the Duke of Mantua?)

It led me to think that I might explain a bit about the different types of editing a book goes through.

1. Editing. This is the stuff people generally think of when they think of a book editor. An editor looks at the shape of the overall book–the plot arc, the character development, whether the climax is satisfying or falls flat. She’ll also niggle about word choice, repetition, sentence structure, and that kind of thing.

2. Copyediting. This is the final stage before the a manuscript goes to design. It’s a very careful, detailed look to make sure the manuscript conforms to grammatical standards and standard spelling and house style. Where do the commas go? Should that be a colon or a semicolon? If a character flips through a pile of paper, is she rifling or riffling? A copyeditor also checks consistency (does a character have red hair in chapter three and brown hair in chapter seventeen?) and chronology (oops, the author accidentally put forty-seven days in September).

3. Proofreading. The final stage of all. A proofreader checks over a manuscript once it has been designed. In the old days, when books were actually set in type, a proofreader was checking to be sure that the printer had not introduced errors during this process. Now, when books are produced electronically, a proofreader serves as a final set of eyes to check those pesky commas and to verify that all of the copyeditor’s changes actually got made and that the formatting didn’t go wonky during the change from manuscript to book.

I like to think of it this way. The editor makes sure the book is good, the copyeditor makes sure it is correct and consistent, and the proofreader makes sure no little details were missed.

(FYI: Yes, you can use the colon, but do it sparingly. Either “mrow” or mrow, just be consistent. The Duke of Mantua. The character who flips through the papers is riffling.)

Waiting for Words

Posted by Sarah L. Thomson on Mar 20, 2020 in Children's Literature, Writing Process, Writing Tips | 0 comments

At least it’s not too hard to social distance in Maine.

Sometimes it’s not easy to find your creative voice in the midst of dread. Like so many, I’m worried about high-risk relatives, anxious about whether I’m doing the right things to help, missing my beloved Maine community and all the small things we did to stay connected in our taciturn Maine ways.

It can be good to push through the panic and write, create, draw, sing, love. But sometimes it can also be right to take a step back, snuggle on the couch, and be gentle with yourself while the world swirls around you. In those times I lean on the creativity of others who’ve written us message from their own hard times and the fear in the center of their own hearts.

Books and stories will sustain us, whatever happens.

First Moments

Posted by Sarah L. Thomson on Dec 11, 2019 in Writing Process | 0 comments

A little green bee-eater in Keoladeo Bird Sanctuary, India. Tiny and vivid and swift–a perfect metaphor for a writer’s first fleeting idea for a new story.

I was talking with my writers’ group yesterday about that moment when an idea starts to form in your head. You’re thrilled yet anxious–what if you get distracted and it vanishes? What if what seems wonderful and glowing and yes! at this moment turns out to be absurd or embarrassing or just plain stupid a little later on, in the cold light of reason?

One of my friends quoted C. S. Lewis, saying that this moment is like birdwatching–you see something precious and beautiful and rare alight near you, but you know you can’t grab at it or you’ll lose it. So you sit, quietly, patiently, and then another image comes to join the first, and another, and you have it–the story. The start.

Another said it wasn’t images that she saw, but a mood she sensed–lightthearted and zany, sad but tough, tender and funny. This makes sense because I’ve yet to see her write two stories that are similar. Each one has a unique emotional hue.

For me, it’s a character–actually, it’s a sense of a character’s journey, like a glimmering thread. I can get this person from HERE to THERE. I’m not sure how or what will happen along the way, but I can glimpse the path we’re going to travel on.

Editing Services

Posted by Sarah L. Thomson on Jun 21, 2019 in Children's Literature, Editing, Writing Process, Writing Tips | 0 comments

Finished that manuscript? Need a second opinion or a professional touch to polish it up? I’m glad to recommend my friend and colleague, Michelle Coppola Ames, who has just hung up her shingle as a freelance editor. Michelle is an insightful editor, a talented writer, and an all-around lovely person. Look for her at Wordplay Editorial Services.