The Next Step in Getting Published

By Lucas Beechinor

Congratulations! Your manuscript is complete and ready for publication . . . Or is it? No matter how much time you’ve spent polishing your work, attending workshops, or reading about how to get published, there’s nothing quite as valuable as a trained, professional set of eyes reading your manuscript. Period.

It’s easy for authors to miss errors in their work for a number of reasons. There’s either a rule on grammar or punctuation they just don’t know about, or they’ve become so familiar with their writing that their eyes fly right over mistakes, some big, some small, but all of them worth correcting. Consistent errors and sloppy style are major turn offs for agents and editors. It’s added work for them and it will slow down the publishing process. You also have to remember how many submissions publishers get in the mail: thousands and thousands and thousands per year. The competition you’re up against is staggering. If there’s a manuscript that’s better written than yours, chances are, the publisher’s picking that one. Hiring an editor will eliminate some of that competition, guaranteed.

There are authors who are intimidated by editors, or afraid they’ll destroy their work. Don’t be afraid. A great editor will recognize your writing style and enhance it, bringing consistency, clarity, and correctness to the edited work. It’s an editor’s job to help you get published, and a good one has as much passion for the written word as you do. Find one with experience, discuss a rate and a timeframe, and then let the magic begin.

There are a few levels of editing your piece might need. It could involve developmental editing of the story itself, or restructuring at the sentence level, or a round or two of copyediting, in which the work is read letter for letter, and checked for every possible mistake.

Editors shouldn’t take the wheel in interpreting the story. They’re the passengers, alerting you to the rules of the road, and suggesting enhancements that will get you to your readers (and sales) faster than you could on your own. Many editors are also deeply connected with the publishing world at large, and they’ll be happy to point you towards a specific publisher or agent who might be looking for a manuscript just like yours.

So, check us out. Give us a call. Send us an E-mail. We’re happy to discuss your project and its potential needs.

Published in:  on February 26, 2010 at 11:03 am Leave a Comment
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Google and the future of E-publishing . . . plus some other things

Sir Stirling Rehm (yes, that's what my birth certificate says so hush up)

Today, I thought I would remind you all to double check what Internet browser you’re using. This doesn’t have much to do with the book world, but it kind of does . . . I think? I don’t know. Google isn’t going to support Internet Explorer 6 anymore, so you should upgrade to IE8 or just switch to something completely different. Schnauzers prefer Google Chrome, mostly because it’s super fast and eats other Internet browsers for breakfast. There’s also Safari (for Macs, but PC users can download it too) and Firefox (app-rich, but sluggish), which have some nice features, but still aren’t quite as fast as Chrome.

If you don’t use Chrome, that’s fine, I guess. You won’t be able to ignore Google for much longer though. The concepts for their tablet look amazing, and the video above got me a little more excited than I should have been, perhaps. Akhtar also mentions the Google Nexus One. The Nexus One plus the tablet plus Chrome make for an impressive array of products that go far beyond a simple search engine. I’m still wondering about Google’s role in the future of E-publishing.

What do you think, readers? What browsers are you using? Why? Is anyone else thinking about Google like I am?

Published in:  on February 5, 2010 at 2:53 pm Leave a Comment
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Owning Your Possessives

Sir Stirling Rehm (yes, that's what my birth certificate says so hush up)

Greetings, Stirling readers!

Today’s post will focus on an issue that many writers brush aside as kid stuff: possessives! Possessives are important. Why? Because they determine ownership. There’s much more to it than tacking an apostrophe up there and instantly calling that word possessive, however. What about double possessives? Can inanimate objects take a possessive? How do you tell the difference between a possessive noun and an attributive noun?

Luckily, you’ve come to the right schnauzer. Frankly speaking, I’m an expert on this subject. I’ve spent hours and hours debating these tremendously important questions as I’ve pawed through author’s manuscripts. And now, out of the kindness of my heart, I’ve compiled a small reference guide to help you answer some tricky questions and maintain consistency when using possessives.

Problem #1: How to treat double possessives . . . A friend of Stirling or A friend of Stirling’s?

Chicago Manual of Style: 15th Edition, 7.29: “The possessive form may be preceded by of where one of several is implied. ‘A friend of Dick’s and ‘a friend of his’ are equally acceptable.” So, be mindful of what you are implying in your writing and be consistent! Section 5.52 also addresses the use of personal pronouns as possessive. If a double possessive contains a pronoun, “that letter of Sheila’s becomes that letter of hers. Such a construction is unobjectionable with names, and mandatory with pronouns.” Clear us mud, I know. A wonderful book titled Grammar Snobs are Great Big Meanies: a Guide to Language for Fun and Spite simply tells us that “no amount of cooing or fluttering” will ever settle a solid rule. The experts will never universally agree on this issue.

If you don’t like to read the Chicago of Manual of Style for fun like I do, then I’d say you have problems. No, I joke! . . . But here at Stirling Editing, the CMS is what we usually recommend for our fiction writers to refer too, so you might as well use it. Grammar Girl is another good resource that has much to say on the subject of double possessives, as well as the other problems I’ll be addressing in this post.

Problem #2: Can inanimate objects take a possessive?…The building’s door?

For this, I referred to 7.25 in CMS: “In compound nouns and noun phrases the final element usually takes the possessive form. If plural compounds post problems, opt for of.” CMS lists an example: “A cookbook’s index.” That’s about all CMS had to say that I could find, anyways. Again, it’s important to consider the context of the sentence and what will take ownership. For the sake of clarity and consistency, record what you decide to use on your style sheet and refer back to it often. Keep it fresh in your mind.

Problem #3: What’s the difference between a possessive noun and an attributive noun?…The writers strike or writer’s strike?

CMS, 7.27: “The line between possessive or genitive form and a noun used attributively—as an adjective—is sometimes fuzzy, especially in the plural. Although terms such as employee’s cafeteria sometimes appear without an apostrophe, [CMS] dispenses with the apostrophe only in proper names (often corporate names) or where there is clearly no possessive meaning.”

Consider the following:

“a consumer’s group, taxpayers’ associations, children’s rights, the women’s team, a boys’ club”

Also consider:

“Publishers Weekly, Diners Club, Department of Veterans Affairs, a housewares sale”

Grammar Girl takes a simple approach that schnauzers the world over prefer greatly to CMS: “If the words are possessive, we need an apostrophe, but if they’re adjectives, we don’t need an apostrophe.” That’s basically what CMS tells us, but Grammar Girl is easier for me to follow, so I often cross reference CMS with her.

However, the issue always leads back to the context of the sentence. Be mindful of nouns as adjectives and other wacky double-meanings. Above all, retain consistency and take the time to think about why you’ve chosen your appropriate style.

Published in:  on February 1, 2010 at 11:23 am Leave a Comment
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PSU’s Book Publishing Program and Ooligan Press

By Ian VanWyhe

First, a little history. After I graduated with a degree in English, I attended the Denver Publishing Institute (DPI), a wonderful month-long seminar that provided an in-depth overview of the publishing industry, with many guest speakers from various general trade, academic, and textbook publishers around the country. There was also some hands-on work, but not as much as I had hoped.

After that, I came home to Portland, and proceeded to not find a job for around a year. Despite my willingness to bankroll my own moves, publishers in other cities weren’t interested in hiring out-of-towners, I couldn’t afford to move to another city without a job lined up, and there simply weren’t any opportunities in Portland. As I made contact with Portland publishers, particularly the founders of Ink and Paper Group (http://inkandpapergroup.com/), I learned the reason for this: the Portland State University publishing program. Though I hadn’t originally planned on attending graduate school, I talked to the head of the program, Dennis Stovall, who was patient and helpful, decided to apply to the program, and got in.

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Published in:  on September 11, 2008 at 3:25 pm Leave a Comment
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Ken Arnold Sheds Light on Digital Publishing

 

Q. You use digital printing, a more unusual approach to the printing process. Many writers are unaware of this shifting paradigm to a more environmental- and budget-conscious approach. Can you explain the benefits of digital printing for both publisher and author?

A. For publishers, the advantages are in not having to invest as much money up front in publishing a book. A print run of even 2,000 copies can cost $6,000 and up. And then it might take two years to sell all of them—or perhaps to sell only some of them. Capital is tied up for all of that time. And, moreover, the publisher has to pay to store the books in a warehouse. Digital printing requires only the cost of printing each book as it is sold or ordered. And there are no warehouse expenses. For the author, the advantage is that the publisher can invest money in promotion rather than storing books (assuming the publisher is honorable). There are some disadvantages. The publishing business, particularly some bookstores and review media, hold a prejudice against digital or print on demand because over the years self-publishing has tended to use these printing techniques. Excluding books digitally printed from a bookstore or review makes it easier for booksellers or reviewers to decide which books to ignore. It is not a fair way to make a choice, but it happens. (more…)

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Track Changes

By Cheri Lasota

Microsoft Word’s Track Changes is fast becoming the editing method of choice for many editors and writers. It has a lot of features, some limitations, and occasionally some jaw-dropping glitches that make you want to pour gasoline on your computer and light it on fire. (Whoa! is that just me?)

For writers who cannot afford to run off a copy of their 350-page masterpiece everytime somebody wants to read it, Track Changes is a viable choice. It also works for editors working with clients who live in another town, state, or country. In short, sometimes you need to use it, and knowing how to make the most of it will increase your speed and accuracy when editing.

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A Portrait of a Writing Editor: Elizabeth Lyon’s A Writer’s Guide to Fiction

 

Ever feel like you’ve lost your way when you sit down to another writing session on your Great American Novel? Who hasn’t?

Elizabeth Lyon’s A Writer’s Guide to Fiction is the second book in an ongoing series for writers on various aspects of the craft called—you guessed it—Writer’s Compass.

A Writer’s Guide to Fiction is a compass for novices, a general reference for intermediates, and a refresher course for pros. I recommend a lot of books to my editing clients and friends, but this craft book lies at the top of an esteemed list.

In the following Q&A, I asked Ms. Lyon about writing, editing, and the publishing industry in general.

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Published in:  on September 8, 2008 at 1:10 pm Leave a Comment
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The Bible of Fiction: Chicago Manual of Style

By Cheri Lasota 

When I started freelancing as a fiction editor, I searched for a definitive stylebook to help me navigate the often shark-infested waters of fiction. I grew up on AP, generally known as newspaper style. But the AP Stylebook is built for speed and narrow spaces. Fiction needs more breathing room, more elasticity, and—gosh darn it—more commas!

Enter the Chicago Manual of Style, my friend and closest adviser in all matters of writing and editing. This stylebook covers the usual topics of grammar, usage, and punctuation, but it also delves into publishing and book design, copyright problems, foreign languages, and formatting.

So why should you consult this orange monster of a stylebook? Because everybody else does! While Chicago was originally produced as a guide for scholary journals and books, fiction writers and editors use the Chicago Manual of Style as an all-purpose reference manual. The 15th edition boasts a host of new additions, focusing in particular on the industry’s current trend of using computer software to edit and write. With the explosion of the Web, writers and editors have sought a definitive source to help them prepare, edit, and cite electronic publications. This new edition has addressed these issues and more.

If you have been in the market for a stylebook, but have been unsure which is most appropriate for fiction, look no further than Chicago. It is one of the most comprehensive stylebooks, but also one of the most expensive. Your local library will have the Chicago Manual of Style available in the reference section or you can find a used copy on-line at Amazon.com or Powell’s Books. (Hardcover $55, CD-ROM $60; www.chicagomanualofstyle.com.)

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