Writer's Resource: Revision and Editing Tips and Tricks From The Publishing World

When revising, it's easy to become desensitized to the words on the screen and miss typos.  Especially if you're writing from the same device, day after day, using the same font style and size.  While typos might not seem like a big deal, they can be the difference between coming across as a professional writer and coming across as an aspiring writer.  So before you hit send on that next partial or full request, here are a few tips and tricks to help you spot errors.

1. Review your manuscript on a different device.  

This will shake you out of your comfort zone and help you spot errors that you otherwise might have missed.  If you write on a desk top, consider reviewing on your ereader or tablet.  If you write on a tablet, shake it up and review from your phone.

2. Change the font.

Your eyes may be numb to your standard Times New Roman 12pt, so when proofing consider increasing to 14pt, change the color, or switch to Courier or another font you're less accustomed to.

3.  Read aloud. 

This is a great way to spot missing words that your mind auto-fills when reading.  It will also help you spot awkward sentences and unnatural dialogue.  Consider doing this with a critique partner for additional input.

4.  Increase the margin size.

You'll reduce the words on the page, which will make it easier for your brain to focus.

5. Highlight the text or add a background color.

Similar to changing the font color, changing the color around the font will shake up the way your brain processes the words.

6. Leverage text-to-speak software and apps. (Hint: the iPhone comes with one!)

Like reading aloud, this will help you find missing words and awkward sentences.  It's also a great option for people with long work commutes, as you can listen during your writing downtime and see how your story pacing is progressing.  Even better is that anyone with an iOS 5 already has text-to-speak capabilities.  Here is a handy video that shows you how to activate it.

7. Take a looong break.

You've heard me preach about the benefits of taking a Ross-and-Rachel-style break from manuscripts before, so I won't harp too much on this. But taking time away from a story will help you shake off your comfort with the words so you can spot the errors you previously read right through.

8.  Use beta readers and critique partners.

Another set of eyes is always a must before you send anything off to an agent or editor.

9. Only edit one chapter a day.

Avoid power-revising, and instead give yourself longer stretches of time to process fewer words.  Scour vs. skim. Your brain will thank you.

Happy writing!

Writer's Resource: Pub(lishing) Crawl

One of the best times of my day is when I pull up my blog reader (usually on my phone these days, since the baby makes laptop time scarce) and read the new posts. I follow a few dozen writing blogs, some written by agents, some by editors, and some by aspiring or published authors.

I find myself bookmarking posts from one of them far more frequently than any of the others, so I thought it would be a good idea to highlight it here as a writer's resource.

Pub(lishing) Crawl is, in their own words, "...a group of authors and industry professionals (formerly known as Let the Words Flow) who blog about all things writing, publishing, and books!"

According to their Who We Are page, there are currently 16 contributors, including editors, a bookseller, a sales rep, and authors. They post on a huge variety of topics, including writing and editing techniques, new book releases, and tips on how to survive life as a published author. They also host giveaways and often feature guest bloggers, so there's always a good reason to check back frequently.

What are your favorite writing-related blogs? 

Writers Resource: SmartEdit

I planned to write a completely different post, but earlier this week I was introduced to a handy little writing tool called SmartEdit, and I had to share.

SmartEdit is a free and easy-to-use tool that speeds up the editing process.  You simply post your manuscript in either a text or rich text format and hit enter.  The SmartEditor then lists repeated words, repeated phrases, counts dialogue tags for repetition, lists adverbs, highlights cliche phrases and identifies potential misused words (their vs. there, affect vs. effect, etc.)

Sounds amazing right?  It is.  I popped my manuscript in and a few seconds later I had a full listing of all my trouble spots.  (Guess who used the word like over 400 times in their manuscript?  This girl!)  

I found the adverb listing to be especially handy - I never realized how much I used unnecessary adverbs like actually. I actually use it quite a bit.

You can download the tool for free right here:  SmartEdit

Now go forth and edit!

A huge thanks to the bloggers at QueryTracker for introducing me to this amazing tool!

Happy Writing!