Want to edit your first manuscript but you’re not sure how? Here’s the ultimate guide to a simple editing method that will bring the best out of your manuscript!
You’ve finally finished your manuscript! But what’s the next step?
If this has happened to you, don’t worry because you are not alone. Just keep reading!
In every manuscript, there is an author and in every author, there is an editor.
We all know how tricky and tiring editing can be, especially if you’ve just started your writing career. Editors can be a bit pricey and seeing that you’ve just started out, you have to edit it yourself because you have no budget.
Here’s the problem: How do you start your editing? What exactly are the things you have to look out for?
Well, I’ve got the solution for you! Presenting the Editing Fiction: Detect and Correct For Success by Kathy Gaudry. We know how editing fictional books is hard, so in this book, you will learn a simple method of editing your work!
Through this book, you’ll discover:
- The ABCs of Editing Your Manuscript: Learn the basics of editing grammar for fiction works such as how to use proper apostrophes, punctuations, and more!
- How To Build A Detailed Stylesheet: Create a simple yet detailed stylesheet that helps you to edit faster and maintain consistency throughout your work.
- The Elements Affecting Your Work: Delve into the various elements of fiction and understand how these elements relate to your manuscript.
- How To Deal With Editing Issues: Acquire the skills to deal with editing issues, for instance when your brain stops you from doing an accurate edit.
Kathy understands how editing can be challenging for a starter. This book is meant to ease you through the toughest of concepts and empowers you to confidently edit your own manuscript.
Knowing this was a short book, I didn’t expect a lot of in-depth fiction-editing information, but this book was a little sparse for someone who’s been studying fiction writing for a while.
There’s some good info in here that I would recommend to people thinking about writing who aren’t sure how much work is involved — this will give you a good idea of how many different things you need to know before you write (though it won’t help you identify or fix those areas).
However, despite the emphasis on producing a clean book, there are a few typos and significant formatting errors that make the book awkward to read at times.
My biggest issue with the book is the suggestion to use the Chicago Manual of Style but offering other grammar guides. If writes are seeking traditional publication, CMOS is THE style guide. Relying on any other could result in punctuation/grammar mistakes in a manuscript.
Overall, I’m not sure I’d consider this to help an experienced writer self-edit, but it could definitely help new writers manage their expectations.
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