“How are you?” Jane asked. “I’m fine,” said Sandy. “Do you have any plans for the weekend?” Jane asked. “No, I do not,” Sandy replied. If your red pen is itching to do something about that terrible, terrible dialogue, you might be a line editor at heart. How to Line Edit Dialogue It’s common for…
I’ve talked about how beta reading can be a great way to find out whether you might enjoy developmental editing, and of course the logical follow-up question to that is, Where do you find authors who need beta readers? How to Find Beta Reading Clients My main piece of advice: You have to go where…
Most of my work comes from referrals and word-of-mouth, and that’s true of most of the experienced freelance editors I know. I also solve a lot of problems that arise by talking them over with my colleagues. Because of that, I’m a strong advocate for having a network of colleagues. But I know networking intimidates…
If you have clients who offer ongoing work, such as publishers and packagers, there will occasionally come a time when you have to fire them. Sometimes this is because you ignored a red, red flag. Other times it’s because you’ve moved on to higher-paying clients, less demanding clients, more fulfilling work. Don’t Burn Bridges with…
I learn a lot about what not to do from the spam emails I get. For example, I get a lot of offers to help with my website, wherein the writer breaks the bad news that my site is not ranking on Google. But . . . not ranking FOR WHAT? Chinese restaurants near me?…
One of my secret vices is reading advice columns. They’re always about conflict, which is the heart of story, and so I can’t help but be drawn to them. Over and over again, the writers express a desire to set some kind of a boundary – to tell their parents they can’t stay for three…
In fiction, dialogue is used to forward the plot and reveal character. But authors often get bogged down in writing boring, mundane conversations that may reflect how people actually talk, but aren’t very interesting for readers. Helping authors sharpen dialogue can make a good book great. Sharper dialogue engages readers and keeps them immersed in…
Aspiring editors sometimes aren’t sure of the differences between different types of services they could offer. Three of the main big-picture services editors offer are beta reading, manuscript evaluation, and developmental editing. Here’s how they differ. Beta Reading Beta reading is a type of reader feedback on a manuscript. If you’re familiar with writers’ workshops,…
Once upon a time, I trained in the martial arts. When I was a brown belt, I hit someone pretty hard and broke his rib. We were supposed to demonstrate excellent physical control, and accidentally breaking someone’s rib does not equal excellent physical control. I felt terrible for causing him pain and for not having…
I wrecked two Christmases in a row as a freelancer for a publisher client. I was trying to salvage disasters that someone else had caused, so there I was, working feverishly all Christmas Eve and half of Christmas Day, trying to fix it. I couldn’t enjoy the season or time with my family because of…