Editing tips

[StillStunned]

As a useful resource for writers who have to make do without editors, there's a new thread over in the Authors' Hangout: Self-editing for authors.

If you're stuck looking for an editor, or if you have any useful editing tips of your own that you'd like to share, head on over and have a look. The thread is still new, but hopefully more and more tips will be added over time.

 

[SkyBubble]

Thank you.

 

[HordHolm]

Bump

 

[StillStunned]

Bumping this, and tagging @_Lynn_ about possibly pinning this thread. The Self-Editing for Authors thread is pinned in the Authors' Hangout, and new tips are still being added. It would be a shame for this reference to fall by the wayside.

 

[SkyBubble]

@StillStunned why would an author have to make do without an editor?

 

[MarieWriter]

Make do without an editor? If I am understanding that point correctly- it would be because they can't find one on here to look their work over for them.
I added a list of self-editing points in this EIDITING forum some months back. (Yes I have done some professional editing). Overall it was well received, but it also had some naysayers, which is fine, but it still leaves an author at the point of needing an editor. I did some VE on here for a bit, but it became a chore as more and more authors thought themselves Hemmingway and were not pleased with some basic editing issues. But when you write 10K in words and expect someone to look it over on a voluntary basis, you should have an idea of the rules of proper grammar. As well as the rules of the site.

I encourage everyone who wants to try their hand at writing to write!! Go for it. Like all things, you will get better the more you do it.

Good Luck - I hope the self editing thread takes off and is well received even beyond how it appears to be working now.

 

[StillStunned]

Make do without an editor? If I am understanding that point correctly- it would be because they can't find one on here to look their work over for them.

The post in this forum is intended for all those writers who come here looking for a volunteer editor for their 100k word epic and get zero response. The thread overall is intended to help writers polish their own works, whether for immediate publication or before sending to an editor.

I added a list of self-editing points in this EIDITING forum some months back. (Yes I have done some professional editing). Overall it was well received, but it also had some naysayers, which is fine, but it still leaves an author at the point of needing an editor. I did some VE on here for a bit, but it became a chore as more and more authors thought themselves Hemmingway and were not pleased with some basic editing issues. But when you write 10K in words and expect someone to look it over on a voluntary basis, you should have an idea of the rules of proper grammar. As well as the rules of the site.

I agree. I've done some volunteer editing here too, and the disrespect of some authors is unbelievable. They'll send a rough draft full of typos, grammatical mistakes, continuity errors, poor formatting and sloppy dialogue, and say, "Fix this, please and thank you." If you're going to ask someone to give their time, effort and skill to helping you with your story, the least you can do is make sure it's the very best you can achieve by yourself.

I encourage everyone who wants to try their hand at writing to write!! Go for it. Like all things, you will get better the more you do it.

Editing has made me a better writer, and writing has made me a better editor. Two separate skills, but they complement each other very well.

Good Luck - I hope the self editing thread takes off and is well received even beyond how it appears to be working now.

Thanks! It's stickied in the Authors' Hangout, along with another thread of mine about "the craft of writing". Both still get regular traffic, and they're there for everyone to find. They're also neither of them me pontificating about what I think it should be, but instead bring together the experiences and ideas of dozens of writers, from actually writing and publishing here.