editing

Wasted Words?

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Words by Stephen King

In the opening chapters of MUTINY there is a conversation between the protagonist – Sir Christopher – and Reginald, a recruiter from MI6:

[“Be careful, Sir Christopher, and watch your back.” She reaches into her handbag. “If anything happens, call this number.” The card is impressive and embossed. “Let me show you out,” she says, “and I’ll check nobody’s snooping around.”]

A quick re-read of this clip makes me wonder about the sentence, The card is impressive and embossed. Why not take out the word ‘impressive’ and leave ’embossed?’ After all, would an embossed card be impressive? Is ‘impressive’ a wasted word in this case? I’m leaning towards the simplified sentence, with ‘impressive’ removed but can’t decide whether Sir Christopher was impressed by the card enough for me to leave that in. Someone once told me, “If in doubt, don’t.” Therefore, I’m leaving the sentence alone. Now, dear bloggers, you can understand the tortuous word-play we have to wrestle with as authors. I hope you’re impressed!

The Creative Process

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I was having a debate with myself about the creative process of writing and how much an outside editor et al can influence a manuscript.  For example, MUTINY had three main Beta Readers and their input was invaluable and I respected their views. I also had two external, professional editors – who brought extensive publishing experience with them. While I valued their respective views, I had to be careful not to let their ‘style’ dictate my own. Don’t get me wrong – they were worth every penny and would use them again. They gave practical guidance on obvious errors – both grammatical and plot-related. I’m pleased that the self-publishing route is one for writers to preserve their ‘own voice’ rather than have it restricted by editorial interference. For this reason, I am reluctant to offer critique of another writer’s work – simply because my suggestions may conflict with theirs. For example, here is one comment I made on a colleague’s novel:

[Dear xxx, Thanks again for this opportunity to enjoy your detailed story-telling, with shades of many shady characters thrown in. It makes me wonder whether NZ breeds them in response to a gullible culture? Some locations/brands may not be well known to readers – e.g. Mangere, Fonterra, Calais? A super-personal comment. I would love to see more dialogue being used to show action/emotions, etc.

‘The following Sunday the two young women drove into the carpark at the community centre and were immediately struck by the warm greeting of the two handsome young men who were at the door and warmly shook hands with them. One of them even commented on what beautiful red hair Lizzie had. While Lizzie was soaking up the attention Rosemary also noticed two young men on the door and two very attractive young women from the same team who were focusing on greeting the young men who came in.’ (Remove some of the repeats?)]

I was exhausted after finishing my comments and I doubt they made much difference. Therefore, I prefer to just write and not correct other writers. I would be a lousy member of any writing circle though I do enjoy people sharing how a novel (or writing sample) makes them feel. When my sister had finished MUTINY I wanted to know how it made her feel. She said, “I like an ending that finishes on a note of completion. And I enjoyed it when someone went to withdraw from the ATM.”

Updated MUTINY

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The advantage of self-publishing is the ability to update the manuscript and launch the improved version at short notice.

I’m pleased to announce that the new MUTINY paperback has been uploaded to Amazon and the new Kindle version will follow in a few days. The main changes include:

  1. Fixed a few grammatical and spelling errors that had slipped past my Beta Readers and me. Approx. 10 in total. On a side note, I dislike any errors in a novel, though they can be difficult to spot. Some readers don’t mind, but sloppy writing can affect the experience of reading. In saying this, no novel is perfect.
  2. Improved dialogue (e.g. “we are” –> “we’re”) and one major plot element fixed. I try to sound out the dialogue to hear if it is correct (normal speech).
  3. More detail added in a few places – for example, bugging a room in Chapter 22.
  4. Reduced word count by eliminating unnecessary text and a few paragraphs. My motto is, “If it is awkward reading, get rid of it.”The overall effect is, I hope,  a tighter novel that is better reading and more polished. When the new Kindle version is uploaded I will be offering a free download for my readers.

Walton Street, London

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It’s only a short paragraph in Chapter Two in MUTINY, but an important scene-setting;

The coal-dark night and lush foliage provide ideal cover across the grounds of St Stephens church. At the gate, I stop to get my breath and scan the neighborhood. Walton Street is hushed as a convent, its stucco homes asleep with blinds pulled low like eyelids. Street lamps puncture a soft drizzle and light my way to the Knightsbridge Underground.

I was happy with the overall description, but wondered about the use of the word ‘light’. Should I use ‘guide’ instead. Yes, I prefer ‘guide’ – it provides comfort and direction as I escape the intruders on my doorstep. The lamps ‘puncture a soft drizzle’ implies light and this fact does not need repeating? I will add this minor change to an updated reprint coming soon. [Incidentally, I have spent many weeks editing this particular chapter during the six years it took to write MUTINY and, even now, keep coming back to checking my earlier work. Are some authors never satisfied with their word-craft?]

Comparing Walton Street to a convent seemed to fit, especially given the up-market appearance of this London suburb? Only my readers can agree or disagree with me, but the scene is set in a dreary London and I flee for warmer places.

Walton Street, London

Improv – the Art of Self Publishing

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Improv is short for improvisation – spontaneous ensemble theatre where performers make up theatre/music.writing on the spot. The BIG advantage of self-publishing is being able to make inspired changes to the text. For example, in 3 WISE MEN, I added a chapter some years after it was published and the new text was the result of an inspired moment. Such improvs are difficult to do in traditional publishing, which is a pity. After all, we do change over time and our ideas mature and shift as we age. Given the time it took to write MUTINY, I don’t expect any big changes, but the option is there to make them if I feel the need. For example, MUTINY has a focus on Artificial Intelligence and rapid advances in this field may well require a small re-write at some stage, and this is easily done via the self-publishing process.

Done and Dusted

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Rakib on Fiverr

Another milestone in the publication of MUTINY – final edits all done and both paperback and kindle versions uploaded. It’s just a matter of waiting a few hours for the updates to appear online but, I must say, quite a relief to have this book polished and finished. Just to recap: Beta Reader find 3 errors –> author fixes errors and decides to check manuscript for others –> 10 days later the full edit is finished –> book formatting done using Rakib on Fiverr (can’t speak highly enough of his work) –> new versions uploaded onto Amazon. From errors being discovered to having revised manuscript uploaded was around two weeks. That’s all folks in the (busy) life of a self-published author. Now, back to my day job :-).

Is the Finish Line in Sight?

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There is much debate about whether to write with a clear idea of the ending, or to wing it and let the writing unfold to a surprise conclusion. Before I started writing, I had no idea which process I would follow, but it soon became clear.

James Joyce

It is said that a friend once visited James Joyce as he wrote, inquiring upon arrival the source of the scribe’s obvious vexation. Of course it was the work, as always. “How many words did you get today?” queried the visitor. “Seven,” replied Joyce. “Seven? But James… that’s good, at least for you.” “Yes,” Joyce at last assented, before lamenting, “But I don’t know what order they go in!”

I think many writers can relate to the challenge of determining sequence and structure across an entire manuscript. So, who’s right? Is it better to set down your stakes straight away, finish line forever in sight, or at least in mind—or to wing it, to breathe life into your story and its inhabitants and sit back and enjoy the ride?

I must confess that I have no idea of how my novels will end, and that’s why I love writing. I wait for the ending to surprise me, then hope that my readers react in the same way. My first ending for MUTINY was OK but – as one of my Beta Readers pointed out – there was no real twist. I went back to editing the manuscript and ‘discovered’ an ending that was far better. And it got even better after meditating on it for a few days. Looking back on my writing journey for MUTINY, I spend countless hours on the opening chapter – feeling much like James Joyce struggling over every word – and an equal number of hours agonising over the finishing lines. The hours soon became days and the days years, until MUTINY was well-matured and ready to print. And, the funny thing is, James Joyce happens to make an appearance in MUTINY.

Another Day, Another Issue

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My orders for 8 x 3 WISE MEN arrived last night – alas, with poor packaging damage to the books. After some negotiating, Amazon kindly offered a full refund, which was a nice outcome, but little comfort as I prepare for my book launch (of MUTINY) in two weeks’ time. The copies of 3 WISE MEN were for those interested in a package of both books. In addition, these copies of 3 WISE MEN are the revised version following the full edit completed last month. That leads me to an interesting challenge – how to distinguish the new copy from the old? The solution was to include a lovely addition of an e-Type Jaguar car on the back cover (see pic with this post) plus a note on the inside cover.

Out with the New, In with the Old

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3 WISE MEN

 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have been revising my first book – the one I picked up by mistake. I’m pleased to say that revisions have been completed and I am much happier with the result. I really enjoyed a few chapters that I had skipped over before (more on this shortly in another post). This led to another consideration – should I also change the cover design to reflect the new version? And, I did, but it is subtle. In fact, I preferred the first book cover design and tweaked it in Photoshop for the new version. It’s clearer, cleaner and has more impact. It also includes one of my lead ‘characters’ – an e-type Jag. I hope you enjoy the changes too. The time taken for these revisions was about 3-5 days at a leisurely pace. FYI, the reformatting of text for Kindle and paperback cost about $US60. Being able to do these changes on the fly is a huge advantage for self-publishing. But, I warn you, choose your formatting expert wisely.

Launch Books Ordered

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We are now just a month away from the book launch for MUTINY and the extra books have been ordered. I just hope they arrive on time. Meanwhile, what does a writer do when the book has been published. In my case, I have been a little disorientated and lacking the inspiration to get started on a new novel (yes, there is one in the works). In a moment of weakness, I picked up a copy (by mistake) of my first book – 3 WISE MEN – and started reading it. Guess what? I liked it and it seemed more relevant/significant in light of recent events in the Middle East. But I could see room for a few improvements and have begun a re-edit. And, to be honest, I am enjoying the experience, except for a few quirky Microsoft Word issues (oh, I loathe that program)! It will be fun to see where the editing takes me. Will I add more chapters? Will I change the plot? I don’t anticipate any major changes, but wait and see.