Should Amazon Require Self-Published Authors to Have Editors?

Reblogged from Story Addict:

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This has been in the back of my mind for a while. To be honest, I don’t think it’s feasible for Amazon or any other publishing platform to require this of its self-published authors, but let’s speculate, shall we?

The Pros

A lot of self-published authors plunge into publishing without realizing that they do need the help of a professional editor.

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I loved this post because I do believe published (especially self-published) books should be of a certain quality, and that usually means that a writer should work with a good editor. I have no faith in reading a story that has instances of grammatically incorrect sentences, misplaced punctuations or lack thereof, spelling mistakes or structural inconsistencies. I also believe a good editor will encourage the writer to 'kill his/her darlings' for the sake of a better story. Objective input is necessary. Samir

Dear Author

Dear Author.

Two words I’ve grown to hate.  The salutation of rejection.  I open my email and there they are and I know it means not only another rejection, but a form rejection, the impersonal device used by publishers and agents to clear the slush pile decks as efficiently as possible.  I understand.  And I hate it.  I am nobody.  I am “Author.”

Read the rest of this post at Writer’s Wavelength by Cynthia J. McGean

When Your Characters Gaze, Ponder & Move About: A Random Rant

Reblogged from The Blabbermouth - Linda P. Epstein:

I've been reading a LOT of manuscripts lately, both submissions and from my clients. I've noticed a common weakness in writing that is easily remedied. If you want to describe something, just describe it. You don't have to have your character's "gaze fall upon" whatever you want to describe. They don't need to "all of a sudden notice" it. It doesn't have to "catch their attention." Believe it or not, I've read those exact words in about five different manuscripts this week.

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A fantastic blog with all kinds of useful advice from an agent. This entry particularly struck a chord as I have to deal with this often in manuscripts as well. So writers, please pay attention.

The Intrusive Word: When the Right Word Is in Another Language

This tip is for anyone who has ever tried to write in one language but another one keeps intruding.

Have you ever found yourself  in “the writing zone” – inspired, full of energy, the words just jump out and land ‘bang & splat’ onto the page like magic – so you write and write and suddenly, you find that the next word you are about to put down fits perfectly into the sentence, only it happens to be in another language? The pace then slows to a halt and for all the world, you just cannot find any other word that fits as well.

Closing Arguments: The Subtle Art of Email Endings

Have you ever found yourself writing an email and as  you reach the closing, you find you do not know how to sign off or say goodbye? Do you find that ‘Sincerely’ is too formal and ‘cheers’ is too informal?

Never fear, I am here.

Let me explain.

Formulas

In school you are taught how to write a letter and if you are of the internet generation, you probably were also taught how to write an e-mail. That’s all well and good, but here is where it gets interesting. To end a letter you have to use what is referred to as a ‘complimentary close’ or ‘closing’ (for the purposes of this post I will refer to it as the letter ending(s)).

Creative Book Porn

A fellow writer recommended I take a look at a blog called Book Porn. Apparently it’s a blog with pictures of the most beautiful bookstores and libraries in the world. As I’d already written a blog post on this (The Seduction of Bookstores), I was curious what more this site had to offer.

However, she didn’t remember what the url was and just told me to google it. So, when I got home, I googled ‘Book Porn’. I didn’t find the blog, but I did find a lot of other great things on Pinterest, a digital pinboard. If you type ‘Book Porn’ there you’ll get an array of creative ideas on how you can use books as art. Before I knew it, I lost track of  time looking at how creative some people are.

Four Ways to Reveal Character: A Different Take

Reblogged from The Plot Thicks:

If you’ve seen it once, you’ve seen it a million times: “The four ways to reveal character in fiction are action, speech, appearance, thought.” My observation of what creates a memorable character is slightly different. In my view, speech and appearance exhibit personality, but personality (persona) is only one aspect of a character. Also, appearance is often modified by behavior.

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Lela describes an alternative and more mature approach to writing characters. This is what separates the great from the mundane.

Writers and Their Videos

I love the Internet. You can find practically anything on it – including videos and films of authors being interviewed or documented or addressing a room full of graduating students. These are some of my favorites: