Proofreading Tips, part 1

Let’s face it, catching mistakes in our writing is not easy. Our brains often read our own writing as we intended it to be written, not the way we wrote it. Critiquing the writing of others is much easier because we don’t have a mental concept of the text. We’re reading it for the first time, so if there is an error, it pops. Margaret Atwood says it this way: You can never read your own book with the innocent anticipation that comes with that first delicious page of a new book, because you wrote the thing. You’ve been backstage. You’ve seen how the rabbits were smuggled into the hat. Therefore ask a reading friend or two to look at it before you give it to anyone in the publishing business. This friend should not be someone with whom you have a ­romantic relationship, unless you want to break up.

Before sending a manuscript out to editors or agents, proofreading is a must. But if we can’t “see” all the mistakes, what can a writer do?

Of course, a professional proofreader is one option, but probably not an affordable one for many. So checking our own work is a good place to start. Here are some techniques I’ve tried with success.

Place the manuscript aside for a few days, a week, or even better, a month. Don’t look at it. Start another manuscript, so your mind will focus on the latest work. After a length of time, refocus on the finished manuscript. By that time your writing palate will be cleansed and your mind will catch the mistakes more easily.

Keep an error list. If you sometimes confuse the use of “which” and “that,” make a note so you can double check the manuscript.

Take your time proofreading. It’s a slow process, so don’t rush it. Read slowly—each word, each sentence.

In my next blog, I’ll provide more proofreading tips.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

Skipping Stones Magazine. Publishing poems, stories, articles and photos from both youth and adults for readers ages 8 to 16. A resource in multicultural and global education, ecological and cultural diversity.

Submission guidelines at https://www.skippingstones.org/wp/youth/

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

Skipping Stones Magazine. Our readers, ages 7 to 17, hail from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. We want to make their reading of Skipping Stones an active experience, relevant to issues confronting them locally and globally. Writing and artwork by adults should challenge readers to think, learn, cooperate and create.

We encourage adults to submit creative informational stories rather than pure fiction. We prefer submissions focusing on your own culture or experiences. No adult poetry, please.

Submission guidelines at https://www.skippingstones.org/wp/adult/

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Leave a message or check out my blog at www.nancykellyallen.com

Let’s face it, catching mistakes in our writing is not easy. Our brains often read our own writing as we intended it to be written, not the way we wrote it. Critiquing the writing of others is much easier because we don’t have a mental concept of the text. We’re reading it for the first time, so if there is an error, it pops. Margaret Atwood says it this way: You can never read your own book with the innocent anticipation that comes with that first delicious page of a new book, because you wrote the thing. You’ve been backstage. You’ve seen how the rabbits were smuggled into the hat. Therefore ask a reading friend or two to look at it before you give it to anyone in the publishing business. This friend should not be someone with whom you have a ­romantic relationship, unless you want to break up.

 

Before sending a manuscript out to editors or agents, proofreading is a must. But if we can’t “see” all the mistakes, what can a writer do?

Of course, a professional proofreader is one option, but probably not an affordable one for many. So checking our own work is a good place to start. Here are some techniques I’ve tried with success.

Place the manuscript aside for a few days, weeks, or even better, a month. Don’t look at it. Start another manuscript, so your mind will focus on the latest work. After a length of time, refocus on the finished manuscript. By that time your writing palate will be cleansed and your mind will catch the mistakes more easily.

Keep an error list. If you sometimes confuse the use of “which” and “that,” make a note so you can double check the manuscript.

Take your time proofreading. It’s a slow process, so don’t rush it. Read slowly—each word, each sentence.

In my next blog, I’ll provide more proofreading tips.

Call for Submissions for Young Writers:

Skipping Stones Magazine. Publishing poems, stories, articles and photos from both youth and adults for readers ages 8 to 16. A resource in multicultural and global education, ecological and cultural diversity.

Submission guidelines at https://www.skippingstones.org/wp/youth/

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

Skipping Stones Magazine. Our readers, ages 7 to 17, hail from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. We want to make their reading of Skipping Stones an active experience, relevant to issues confronting them locally and globally. Writing and artwork by adults should challenge readers to think, learn, cooperate and create.

We encourage adults to submit creative informational stories rather than pure fiction. We prefer submissions focusing on your own culture or experiences. No adult poetry, please.

Submission guidelines at https://www.skippingstones.org/wp/adult/

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 40+ children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Leave a message or check out my blog at www.nancykellyallen.com

Revision and Proofreading Tips for Chapter, MG, and YA Manuscripts

You’ve finished writing your manuscript, down to the last word. Now is the time to begin anew with an eye toward what works in the story and what is junk filler. Revision means to “see again” and the purpose is to improve the writing, whether it’s small corrections or sweeping changes. Here are six tips to consider:

1.      What happens in Chapter One?

Does the story open with a dream or a character staring out the windows silently reminiscing? If so, no action is happening. We need to establish a setting and offer background information, but that can come later. Start with action. This is the point where we can grab the reader’s attention, so start with the Ferris wheel stopping with the character sitting on the top of the world and no idea how to get down, or the announcement of something the character never expected and did not want, or… you get the idea. There’s time later in the manuscript to weave in background information. 

How does the character react to sitting on top of the Ferris wheel? The reader will learn about the character through thoughts, words, and actions.  

2.      Info-dumping. Providing too much background story of the character and his/her world weighs down the story, slows the pacing, and the reader loses interest. Keep the story exciting. Write action scenes with background information added in bits and pieces, rather than large amounts at once. 

3.      Show, Don’t Tell. Sometimes it difficult to know if I’m showing or telling. Telling is fine if the scene needs the action to move quickly. But showing is used most often in storytelling. Watch for the “feel.” If you write how the character is feeling, the reader doesn’t experience the information through action or context clues.  

4.      Create distinctive voices for each character. If characters are not distinguishable, they don’t stand out. Their physical features, mannerisms, verbal speech patterns, and attitudes help readers know the characters’ individual traits and goals, giving a realistic lift to the story.  

5.      Chapter endings. Leave each chapter with something that makes the reader want to continue reading. Cliffhangers have an urgency that keeps us turning the pages. A question or introducing a new problem has the same effect. 

6.      If facts are woven into the storyline, check for accuracy. Use reputable sources, first-person accounts, and a variety of written sources. 

In my next blog, I’ll give tips on finding mistakes in a completed manuscript.

Call for Submissions for Adult Writers:

Root & Star 

·         is wise and wild, strange and sweet.

·         cultivates happy, healthy, peaceful, creative children.

• is dedicated to creating an artful, quality, ad-free magazine that inspires the poetry of childhood.
• takes children offline into the pleasure of pages they can touch, turn, share, and read in the grass.

Root & Star magazine strives to bring quality art and literature to children in the ephemeral magazine form. It hopes to inspire and be inspired by the whole child – the wise, the wild, the strange, and the sweet. It is a place for creative people to play and to share the complexities of their work and spirit with children.

Submission guidelines at https://rootandstar.com/pages/submit

Nancy Kelly Allen has written 48 children’s books and a cookbook, SPIRIT OF KENTUCKY: BOURBON COOKBOOK.

Leave a message or check out my blog at www.nancykellyallen.com