Editors and Editing

I am really, really lucky. I have a great editor, Grace.

I was a nonfiction editor for five years, so I have some idea of what it's like on the other side of the writing fence. Unfortunately, editors rarely receive the sort of recognition or appreciation that they deserve.

Their jobs are tough--they're supposed to point out everything that a writer's doing wrong. Few of us like to hear that. They get the thankless job of rejecting, correcting grammar, educating writers on the use of the semicolon, and responding patiently and repeatedly to plaintive emails from authors, each of whom has the most important manuscript in the entire world.

But editors also advocate for writers; they can and do make the difference between acceptance and rejection. They're an objective set of eyes on your manuscript, which is especially helpful if you've been working on it for so long that you can virtually recite it word for word. Plus, a good editor can make you a better writer.

I'm not talking about learning the correct way to punctuate dialogue--any decent paperback novel can show you how to do that. I'm talking about the more subtle aspects of writing. For me, it turned out to be point-of-view. Grace must have some hypersensitive point-of-view error detector, because I can't get away with a single sentence that even hints that POV has shifted.

Grace has made me a better writer by helping me to dissect the perspectives of my characters. No more diffuse scenes in which POV moves back and forth between hero and heroine diluting their thoughts and feelings. I'm slowly learning to remain focused on one character and convey her experience of the situation with greater intensity and emotional impact.

Now think about how your editor has helped you improve your writing. Write her a nice email and say thank you.

Ten Rules for Writing Fiction

The Guardian--a great source of news and opinions on writing, reading and publishing--recently asked successful writers for their dos and don'ts of writing fiction. Here's the link.

Most of the advice boils down to this: just do it.

Reader Comments

This week I got the first reader comments on my book. Happily, they were positive and totally made my day. No, they made my week.

As a new author, it's a scary enterprise to put your first book out there. You've done everything you can and now you just have to hope for the best. If you're a reader and you've just read a book that you really, really like, tell the author! While I can't speak for all authors, I can say that for many of us, it does make a difference. You can comment on their website, you can write a brief review on Amazon, or you can go to the publisher's website and say something positive.

Especially for those of us publishing electronically, web "buzz" really matters. It helps with sales and it tells us, as writers, what you want to see more of as readers.

Plus, comments give authors an emotional and psychological pat on the back that we often desperately need. Because writing is a solo enterprise, it's easy for self-doubt to creep in. Is this story really any good? Maybe everything I've written today should be scrapped. Who's going to want to read this?

Positive comments may come at exactly the right time to help an author get over a tough plot problem. Or give her the enthusiasm to get back to a manuscript that's been languishing.

Bottom line: Comments matter. Really, really matter. Don't think that authors are so important/popular/busy/high-and-mighty that your email or brief review is irrelevant or a waste of time. Your thoughts and opinions matter. And they just might be the right words at the right time to make a big difference.

Historical Fiction

I'm a long-time reader of historical fiction: think Dorothy Dunnett, Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, and Philippa Gregory. Until recently, I was forced to load up my suitcase with historical fiction every time I went to the UK. This made it difficult to travel with sufficient clothing, but I was happy to sacrifice myself upon the Altar of Fiction.

Much to my delight, there's been an emerging trend in historical fiction published by North American authors. Available even in the Frozen North without paying ghastly expensive airmail postage. Here are a couple of good historical novels published in the last five years:

On a Highland Shore, by Kathleen Givens

The First Princess of Wales, by Karen Harper

The Rules of Gentility, by Janet Mullany (not, technically, an American, but she lives on this side of the pond)

Strange Saint, by Andrew Beahrs

The Queen's Lady, by Barbara Kyle (from Canada, which I can also see from my house)

I suspect that this trend is due, in part, to the success of Philippa Gregory and the sale of movie rights to Hollywood (think The Other Boleyn Girl). Incidentally, Philippa Gregory has an absolutely gorgeous website.

Whatever the reason, I'm grateful. Now there's more room in my suitcase for clothes!