Tag: editing

My B

I pay a professional editor and scour my manuscripts before publishing, and still I make mistakes. Who doesn’t? But that’s part of why I love writing — mistakes can always be edited — even in a book that’s been published for years.

A few months back I had a reader write in and tell me about a “turn to page xyz” paperback error, where Z was one number off.

How many people had seen that and ignored it? Letting me know means I can fix it. And for that, I’m always grateful.

Which leads to my most recent mistake.

I found out via a 1-star review of MURDERED. Read for yourself:

beww

No writer likes a bad review, but I’m glad I got this one. It gave me the chance to fix it. Yet, I still haven’t heard back from that reader, and so I still haven’t been able to fix things with that reader. (If you’re reading this, please contact me.)

And if YOU find a mistake in one of my books, please don’t ignore it. I want to know! I might even make it worth your while…

In fact, I certainly will. That’s “My B” — An open bounty on errors! Find a mistake, let me know, and you shall be rewarded.

Thanks for reading! What do YOU think? How do you react when you find an error in a book? Have you ever found an error in one of mine?

Leave me a comment below, and don’t forget to share and subscribe!

by Categories: MusingsTags: , , , , , , , , , 4 Comments

CYP#4: Cooper Complete!

Finishing up with Cooper marks the completion of PATHOGENS. Or the first draft, anyway. It’s by far my longest book, both in terms of word count and choices. Six whole characters to choose from! Cooper eventually becomes the leader of the merry band of survivors in the city, which is how you meet her in INFECTED. But it didn’t start off that way. You get to step in her shoes and go from ordinary grease monkey to the draconian leader of a group of survivors in PATHOGENS.

m-gf-female-1
PS — Sure was hard to find a picture of a female mechanic actually working. Cooper would no doubt roll her eyes at the bimbos posing secuctivly (wearing, ahem, very little protective gear) that I had to wade through in Google images.

Up next? Editing! However, I’m thinking of reaching out for the first time to beta testers for the various characters. If you’re interested, make sure you sign up for my mailing list.

Thanks for reading! Excited? Confused? Bemused?

Leave me a comment below, and don’t forget to share and subscribe!

by Categories: pathogensTags: , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

The Power of Editing

This post serves as the official announcement that I’ll be self-publishing an ebook later this year (hopefully this summer).  It’s the new Wild West in publishing, and anything is possible in this exciting time.  I’m proud to be part of  this neo-Gutenbergian movement bringing far greater reach for the written word and empowerment to writers.

I’m still finishing my manuscript, but I’m getting close to completion, so I’ve begun researching ebook self-publishing already.  As such, expect updates chronicling what I learn along the way.

For this entry, I want to highlight editing.  A professional editor is perhaps the single most valuable resource a publishing house deal could provide.  But the indie writer is not without hope thanks to the internet.  Many excellent editors freelance, and I’m searching for one to work with now (so feel free to contact me with any leads!).

All the short stories on this site are, hitherto, unedited by a professional; peer-review only.  As a part of my learning process, I’ll be taking these stories down in the next upcoming weeks, sending them to editors, and then publishing them as ebooks.

I was perusing David Gaughran’s excellent website on the subject and came across a link to a Raymond Carver story, showing the markups by his editor.  It’s originally from the New Yorker, and can be found here: Primary Sources: : The New Yorker.

It’s worth checking out!

by Categories: On WritingTags: , , , , , , , , 1 Comment