Keep boring conversations out of your fiction

Posted on 05/14/2021 at 10:55 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Editor Louise Harnby opens her discussion of effective, compelling dialogue with a handy trick. Evaluate your dialogue by three measures:...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Louise Harnby, Writing advice, Dialogue

Use this checklist to decide if your novel is ready for publication

Posted on 03/29/2021 at 02:00 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Some writers may be itching to shove their books out of the proverbial nests, while others are afraid of letting...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Writer Unboxed

11 ways to rephrase a cliché

Posted on 03/05/2021 at 11:00 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

We love seeing the tongue-in-cheek writing advice to avoid clichés like the plague. And we also empathize with the struggle...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Writing advice

The five stages of editing (and why each is important)

Posted on 03/04/2021 at 02:36 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Readers may still pick up your book and even forgive it if it has an odd cover or underwhelming blurb....

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: David Gaughran, Editing

Try these six writing tips to improve your novel immediately

Posted on 02/25/2021 at 03:22 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Some editing and revising tips are like a deep clean of your house, while others are a nice surface-clean. Today’s...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Language, Louise Harnby

What to ask for and expect from an editor

Posted on 01/12/2021 at 10:41 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Writer Unboxed and Jane Friedman both featured posts recently on the editing experience. At the former, longtime editor Jim Dempsey...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Jane Friedman, Writer Unboxed

Take it from an editor: How to edit your own novel

Posted on 01/04/2021 at 03:00 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

The first thing you should know about self-editing is that it doesn’t replace a professional editor, says David Gaughran. What...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: David Gaughran, Editing

Do you have a story, or simply a situation?

Posted on 12/03/2020 at 11:28 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Revising and editing doesn’t have to be deadly dull, serious work. Editor and writing coach Allison K. Williams shares a...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Jane Friedman, Writing advice

New tricks for tightening your manuscript

Posted on 11/30/2020 at 11:00 AM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Does your manuscript feel as bloated as the typical American diner after a traditional Thanksgiving meal? Well, Kathryn Craft recently...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Writing advice

Comma class is in session at editor Louise Harnby's blog

Posted on 10/30/2020 at 03:00 PM by Sadye Scott-Hainchek

Falling leaves, Halloween parties, discussions of when to use commas — it really feels like back-to-school season around here at...

Categories: Behind the scenes

Tagged As: Editing, Language, Louise Harnby