With Theodora Bryant and Cara Crescent Cara Crescent: What is it like going to a Romance Writers of America’s National Convention when nominated for two awards? It’s a little different! I hadn’t expected it to be, I wasn’t up for a Golden Heart or a Rita, after all. I can’t imagine what a whirl-wind conference …
by Theodora Bryant I’m one of those editors who say that you should never change your book based on what an agent or book-buying editor says would be “a good idea,” or “just the thing your story needs” … unless that agent or editor says he will represent you, or will put your book under contract …
Does your fiction novel even need a prologue? By Theodora Bryant Developmental copy editor / Manuscript evaluations-critiques Book Editing Associates; Editing-Writing.com Definition of prologue: Pro: Before. (Greek) Logos: Word. Before the word. Research indicates agents don’t like prologues and neither do readers; in fact, readers are reporting that they skip prologues because they don’t want …
by Theodora Bryant, Developmental copy editor / Manuscript evaluations-critiques Writers’ conferences are exciting venues where both established authors and wannabe writers mingle and mix and talk “how-did-you-get-your-first-break?” stories. Agents and editors hook up, do business, and both listen to the wannabe writers’ pitches and decide on the spot if that book sounds like one they could …
By Theodora Bryant | Developmental Editor, Copy Editor Book Editing Associates | Editing-Writing.com Homophones are words that sound alike, but differ in spelling and meaning. Spellchecker has no idea which word you want to use when your sentence reads: “He went threw the door,” so it’s a good idea to nail your …
by Theodora Bryant My publishing house was located in Aurora, Colorado, not exactly a known hub for publishing. I’ve been doing freelance editing for twelve years now, about half of that time in Texas. Between the two jobs, I’ve probably critiqued and/or copy-edited somewhere between 400 and 500 manuscripts. Granted, some were repeat authors, but I …
by Theodora Bryant Book-editing.com, Editing-Writing.com Copy editor, manuscript evaluations/critiques Just recently, one of my clients said it must get very discouraging to work with writers who don’t know the craft, when the world around me is so full of great books. That’s certainly not the case. I love what I do. The ongoing challenge for me …
By Theodora Bryant The division of genres has become a bewildering game of slots, and the meaning within those slots, and woe betide those who send in a query to an agent who reps books that are in Slot A, not Slot B. Take fantasy. Is it children’s, young adult (also called middle grade), or adult? …
Theodora Bryant Any novel is only as good as its real facts. Readers pick up novels prepared to suspend their disbelief right up to the point they are expected to swallow such errors in reality as E=MC4 in science fiction, or that the Texas Rangers could get from Waco to Copperas Cove in two hours on …
Theodora Bryant They are “tell” words, they are lazy words, they are smudge words, not action words, and your readers are going to drown in the goo of them, not get all on the edge of their seats waiting for the next ly adverb that describes your action. Some of the worst (which can be discarded …
By Theodora Bryant Point of view, or POVs, are just about the trickiest of all the writing techniques one has to master to master the craft. Second only, I think, to “show,” don’t “tell.” Most of you know there are three basic POVs: First person (1PPOV), Second person (2PPOV), and Third person (3PPOV), subtitled as 3PPOV-limited …
by Theodora Bryant | Fiction Editor Every now and then I get an email I think is worthy of turning into a blog article. [If anyone knows the author, I will happily give credit.] Enjoy. Homographs are words of like spelling but with more than one meaning. A homograph that is also pronounced differently is a …