Copy editor

Very few authors do not require the services of a book copy editor to tidy their manuscript. That’s why every publishing house in the country sends each author’s manuscript through both a copy editor and a proofreader before publication.

If your book (ebook or print) is to be clear, accessible, interesting, memorable and effective, the language needs to be of a good standard. Some authors need only minimal support, others need more intensive copy-editing; but all authors, no matter how accomplished, experienced or skilled, can benefit from a copy editor’s input.

 

Successful editing depends on a good relationship with the writer. To reach the goal of a readable, successful document, both the editor and the writer need to work as a team, unified in reaching this goal. This goal is jeopardised if writers view the editor as a ‘problem’. To prevent this, the editor needs effective communication to deal with individuals and groups working on a writing project.

Four key communication skills are:

1. Active listening

This means concentrating on what the speaker means and checking information through paraphrasing and asking probing questions, such as ‘What do you mean by…’.

2. Confidence

Editors need to demonstrate that they are confident in their abilities without becoming aggressive with writers.

3. Consideration

Editors may become so intent with changes that they forget the writer’s sense of professionalism is involved. Writers themselves may find it difficult to separate criticisms about the writing from criticisms about the person.

 

 

4. Nonverbal strategies

Editors can underline their authority by using effective nonverbal strategies, such as environment (e.g. The setting of an editing conference), dress, and facial, voice and other bodily cues.

Perhaps the biggest problem writers face, when editing their own work, is simply getting too close. Even when holding the questions listed above in your mind, writers can still find it just too hard to detach themselves. But this is understandable, in fact I would go as far as saying this is essential. Just how a writer detaches themselves from the tangle of their own narrative is hard to explain and I suspect it is very personal skill.

• Is the book’s organisation and content suitable for the intended audience, medium, market, and purpose? [Structural]
• How can the book’s meaning be clarified, the flow improved and the language smoothed? [Stylistic]
• Have you ensured the correctness, consistency, accuracy, and completeness of the document? [Copy]

 

The essence of any COPY edit is grammar and spelling but this is NOT an edit. An edit is so much more. It is important that a writer avoids becoming obsessed with spelling. Yes, spelling is important, and yes you must be as accurate as possible. However, grammar is just part of the puzzle. A good edit consists of all three questions listed above – spelling is just one aspect.

Yes I do want to be a children’s writer, what’s wrong with that?

 

Why is that whenever I say I want to write for children, do people roll their eyes and act as though I am not an actual writer?

So what is so different between children’s writing and adult fiction?

Do I not use the English language?

Is the grammar that different?

I sometimes find such snobbery in writing, that I feel like the writing version of the  bad relation. No my characters do not swear, they are not into drugs. I want to write books that brought me the same joy as a child that ‘The Famous Five,’ or ‘Narnia’ did.

Some children don’t  like sci-fi or Zombies, or they are not interested if it’s a one parent family. They just want something that will take them away from the sometimes harsh realities of life.

I love writing for children, it’s something I have wanted to do for a long time.

Yet or the years I have begun to become jaded and have lost some of that joy, mainly because I don’t feel as though I am taken seriously or encouraged. I feel like I am always looking through the window, where other authors who write adult or Young Adult fiction sit in a group all encouraging one another. But I always feel as though I cannot enter.

It’s a shame there isn’t more children’s authors at festivals, or more available workshops and talks by children’s authors. Young adult always seems to be well represented and its a shame. If we can’t continue to aid children’s authors more, then good children’s writing will not continue.

 

The Porky Pie

 

Another car casts its light on the window, and shadows danced on Jess’s bedroom wall. She turned and glanced at her clock, the green light said 1.34pm.  

        With a sigh, Jess decided to give in; sleep was the last thing she was going to do tonight.  Easing herself out of bed, she slipped into her fluffy slippers, and walked across to her door using the lights outside as her only source of illumination. There was a slight chill on the steps as she descended, and she shivered pulling her dressing gown tighter to her body.

Turning on her kitchen light, she filled her kettle and got a cup from the top cupboard. Yawning, she stood next to the kettle listening to its light bubbling, and gazed out of her window to the street outside.

Friday nights were always busy on her estate. People coming from the pub, others coming from work, or maybe even starting. As her eyes adjusted to the scene outside, she could see the wind rustling through the trees, ripping leaves off branches and hurling them into the air. Next door’s cat sat on the gate, cleaning its face with its paws, then stopping alert, fixing its stare on the bush in front of it. It slowly climbed down, crouching as if sensing a victim near. The last thing she saw was it pouncing into the mass of branches, and out of the other side, clutching some small half-alive creature. It shot across the road, disappeared into a hole in the fence, and was gone.

The click of the kettle told her it finished boiling. She put the water in the cup, and prodded the teabag with a spoon, then pushing it against the side of the cup; she squeezed out the last dregs of tea from its bag. Tossing it in the bin, she then added some milk, and sat at the kitchen table in silence, savoring the warmth of the tea as it seeped into her stomach. She jumped when she heard the noise, spilling some of her tea on her dressing gown; she frowned as went to the front door, easing it open slightly, and peering out into the darkness.

It took a while for her eyes to adjust to the dimness, but soon shapes, and images began to form, and she glanced down the path that lead to the street.

‘Sorry lass, did I disturb you?’

She strained her eyes again trying to focus on the shadow that was standing over the garden wall to her left.

‘I was just putting the rubbish out, if not the missus gets a little riled.’

Suddenly next-doors security light casts a beam on the shadow, and Jess recognised Burt, he elderly neighbour.

‘Sorry Burt, I heard a noise, it scared the living daylights out of me.’

‘It was just me lass, I couldn’t sleep, I would have left this till tomorrow, but my missus likes a clean house.’

He stuffed the bag into the bin, and closed the lid with a thud.

‘ Did you hear the fire engine earlier, nearly woke the whole neighbourhood up, bet its them damn kids stealing cars, and setting them alight, should be made to do conscription. The army would sort them out.’ I smiled back at him, and opening the door a little wider, I stepped out onto my front step.

Burt was leaning against the wall, and I saw him put his hands into his pockets, and pull a crinkly paper bag out.

‘The estate was much better when I first moved here; you knew your neighbours, and you helped one another.’

He lifted something to his mouth, and took a bite, crumps dropping onto the front of his cardigan. He held it up to the light to show me.

‘The doctor says my cholesterol is way too high, says I have to cut down on fats. Never heard anything so stupid, I have eaten this food all my life, never had any problems. But the missus is worried, so I am eating like a flipping rabbit.’ As he lifted the object in the light, I realised it was a pork pie, I could see the grisly meat protruding out from where he had bitten it, the greasy sheen on its crust. He took another mouth full, licking crumbs from his lips.

‘ I have a hidden stash, keep it in my hut, then I sneak out at night when she’s asleep, and have a little nibble.’ He smiled, and winked.

Waiting for me to reply, he took another bite savouring his secret treat.

‘A man has to have something filling, and wholesome to eat, if I keep eating the muck she wants me to eat.’ He points up to his front bedroom.

‘They will be carrying me off in my coffin.’ He chuckled.

Jess smiled, and nodded her head, shuffling her feet in her slippers as the frosty night air was beginning to turn them to ice.

Burt put the last piece of the pie in his mouth smacking his lips in appreciation, then he licked his fingers as if wanted to prolong the experience.

‘You better be getting in luv, or you will catch your death a cold.’

I again clutched my dressing gown as if agreeing with him. I quickly turned, and began to walk back to the door. Before I entered, I turned, and glanced again at the wall, and Burt. He was standing in deep thought. Was he thinking about how things had changed, or was he trying the savour the last taste of the pork pie on his tongue.

I closed the door gently behind me, making sure it was locked. I went back to the kitchen to finish the cup of tea. The tea was cold, a thin skin had formed on the top. So I picked the cup up, took the spoon, and scraped the slimy layer off the top, plopping it into the bin. I poured the remaining cold tea down the sink, leaving the cup on the side, angry that I had wasted the tea. I reached to turn the light off and slipped  up the stairs. Once in my bed, I snuggled beneath the covers, and waited for sleep to claim me.

The Magic Doorknob

Every spellbinding story begins with an idea. I came up with the idea for my story, ‘The Magic Doorknob’ by listening to a song on my car radio.

Bucks Fizz’s ‘Land of make believe.’ With a long trip ahead of me, ideas began to flow. By the time I had my college class, I had a plot in my head and I sat and wrote a 2500 word short story.

We all have experiences in our lives that could make great stories. It’s all in the way we look at those experiences and memories. I dug deep into my childhood and this helped me to form some of my characters.

A children’s book idea is just a seed, a kernel, a morsel. It doesn’t need to be complicated or long or even developed. But when you’re writing you need to write from their perspective. As a children’s book writer, you need to keep in mind that the children you are writing for are looking for entertainment, not parenting.  I feel the writer’s job is to capture their imagination and bring them into your world, not teach them right or wrong.

• Familiarize yourself with the market.
• Choose an age group to write for.
• Research types of books in your age group.
• Read every book in that age group you can find.
• Spend time around kids.
• Brainstorm plot ideas.
• Share the finish product with a kid or two.
• Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback.
• Research the market.

 

 

Kids read children’s fiction to encounter characters that are exceptional, not mundane. They want their main characters to be prettier or uglier, more evil or sweeter, nobler or meaner, braver or for fearful than real people are. They have to be exceptional. But you have to add more highlights, more doses of curiosity, more awkwardness. These will make the characters more memorable.

At first I wasn’t sure I wanted any illustrations in my novel. Research altered my view. Adding some pictures would complement the text. I had earlier decided the age my book was aimed at was 8- 12 years. Looking at books in places like WH Smiths and Waterstone, most books in this age group had illustrations of some sort and they enhanced the story.

I have an idea of how all my characters look, as I have mind mapped them all and have draw sketches of them. But I also hope that I have described them well enough that if my book is given to an illustrator they would not have too much trouble getting the need inspiration form the text.

From all my attempts at writing I have found one technique has continually helped me, this is plotting.

I attended and Arvon course last year in Scotland, one week with other children’s writers. I thought I could get the needed inspiration for my book.

It wasn’t what I expected, but I still came away with valuable knowledge.

You will get criticism and not all advice is good. Sometimes you have to believe in what you write, and then put it out there.

One student did offer some good advice. She read my piece and asked if I was truly comfortable writing my story in third person? I had not really given it much thought. So I began to read books written with different POV

Rick Rhiordan has written quite a few of his books in first person, and I had in the past written short stories in the same way. Now my short story had turned into a 22000 word piece and had now decided to change the entire text to first person.

I was all also at the time, helping another student with a project, where we were taking classes of children from different schools in Nottingham. Their ages ranged from 8-10 years. Our job was to help them write their own children’s book. This gave me a valuable insight into how a child’s mind works. I got to observe how they speak and how they think. The stories they eventually wrote, let me get a firmer grasp of their voices and the language they used. This could also be incorporated into my final rewrite.

Again I found that first person flowed better and my story came together.

This year I hope to get more useful advice by attending workshops geared towards children’s writers and also listening to children’s writers speak and give experiences on their own writing process. I have also decided now is the time to start sending my manuscript out to publishers and see what happens.

At a recent book fair, ‘The states of independence’ at the De Monfort University, I had the chance to pitch my novel to a small publisher.

I had checked out the website and checked how they would like the manuscript submitted. I was very pleased when the publisher said she liked the idea and would take the submission and give it a thorough read and get back to me. This will prove very helpful, as she also said if they were not interested she would still critique the manuscript and give me some pointers on how to improve the piece.

 At the moment I am attending the young adult writers group with the Nottingham writers studio. Their feedback  has been invaluable and we have now decided to run some children’s workshops at Southall and Lowdham Book festivals.

Writing is not the only thing a writer does these days. You need to be  a master of many trades. You need to advertise yourself and get involved with the things pertaining to the kind of writing and age group you have chosen. Only then do I feel you can get a valuable perspective of the world of writing and all it contains. Plus, it’s very rare for a writer to survive on what they earn from writing alone. Getting involved with the industry can you help supplement your income and enable you to carry on.

Beach

 

Beach

The seas, salty hands embrace eroded rocks as

Sea birds phase in and out, between hidden dimensions of sunlight.

Hills fall away, land snatched by ocean

One blue plastic bucket stands alone discarded, a sentinel, defiant, against the tide.

Begin at the beginning, or not

The word ‘narrative’ derives from the Latin ‘narre’, which means ‘to make known’.

 

I would love to start this piece with, ‘I always find the beginning of my stories by…..’  Unfortunately that would be impossible, as I do not have one sure-fire way of doing this.

I have found, with these two stories in particular, that inspiration can come from some unlikely sources. Abstract things can shape an amazingly concrete story.

Inspiration is all around us; in scent, sight, touch. If you are a particularly inquisitive person, like me, people-spotting can provide you with characters and plots by the score. The writer arouses interest in the reader by providing enough detail to get the reader to ask questions, and to search for the answers.

From the apartment I stayed at recently, on my holiday in Spain, I could see workers removing a large and very old tree. I was watching them one night from my balcony, holding a large glass of sangria. I noticed their sadness. There was my story, and I quickly put all these thoughts in my journal.

From being a child I have always kept a diary; this has helped me a great deal since I starting writing.  Mark Twain said, ‘Write about what you know.’

Memories of childhood and dreams I have had, have been great sources for good stories.

With my second story I again sat on my balcony, not forgetting a large glass of sangria; a definite must. I sat and watched people walking along the seafront. I spotted one family who had taken their little girl onto the beach. I took these characters and decided to just sit and freely write; also called ‘stream of consciousness’ writing.

I wrote for fifteen minutes, then reread what I had written.  I found myself forming the start of a story.

 Do not worry about transitions or connecting the ideas, or paragraphing or subject-verb agreement, or even commas!

In a few of my other classes, using this method has produced some interesting results. It is a way of getting the brain in gear.

I also like to draw from my own experiences. I like using people I know for characters in my stories; it helps me to give depth to them. However, if I cannot find that character, I like to use a mind map. Giving people likes, dislikes, and things like hair colour helps me to know who I am writing about, even if I do not use all of the information I have written down.

In addition, it helps me to think of what the character will do in certain situations; this is a good thing to do before starting stories.

One thing that has definitely helped with story beginnings is to read, read, and read. Reading other people’s novels helps me to see how other authors start their books. When wanting help, where better to look than at examples of good story beginnings!

HOLD ONTO YOUR BLANKETS

Hold onto your blankets

Every family has its little quirts, with some people they are musicians, others sporty.

In my family it was dreaming. We were experts. I know everyone dreams, but we did it big time. The only one who seemed immune was Dad, good thing too as it could end up going pear shaped.

I was told when my brother was small he watched a film called, ‘The Beast with five fingers.’ This left a lasting impression on him that was acted out in his sleep.

Dad once told me he heard Arnold shouting, so he went to his room. Arnold was on the floor with a blanket and was hitting the offensive arm with a book. When Dad investigated he found my brother covering his own arm with the blanket, and he was hitting himself with the book. Another time Dad saved my brother from throwing the arm out of his window. You have guessed it , he was actually throwing his own arm out. Dad always came at the right time, otherwise I would have been minus one sibling.