Tip for Writers #2

Test your professional editor.

At some point, all writers should hire an editor who will help strengthen their work. However, the first thing you need to know about professional editors is that the word “professional” simply means they are paid to edit. It doesn’t mean they’re good. If you handed your manuscript to my ten-year-old son and paid him enough to buy his next Lego set, he would indeed be a “professional editor.”

I’ve learned the hard way that not all editors are created equally. Some are brilliant at finding grammatical errors and nothing more. Others can help you with pacing while missing split infinitives left and right. An editor can impress you after finding fifty-six errors in your first chapter, leaving the other twenty-two errors for your readers to find.

Believe me. Finding a competent editor isn’t as easy as searching for the most expensive out there. (That would actually be silly.) The best way to know what you’re getting in an editor is to test him or her. Write a two- or three-page piece for them to edit before hiring them. Make sure that you plant errors throughout, and try not to make them obvious. If you know the kinds of errors you make, it’s a must that you plant quite a few of those. One of my demons is homonyms. Eye can’t seam two fine them, sew I make sure that I due plant sum inn my “test peace.” Have a character chugging down a Budweiser on page one, then switch it to a Heineken by page three. Whatever you can think of to trip them up.

If an editor refuses to be tested, thank her for her time and move on. And whatever you do, do NOT agree to pay an editor by the hour (unless you can agree how many hours the project will take.) Otherwise, paying according to the page-count is the way to go, and if your work is clean enough for them, they may cut you some slack on pricing (but don’t count on it). In fact, don’t be surprised if an editor charges you more than the usual rate due to how sloppy your manuscript may be. After all, not all four-hundred-page manuscripts are created equally, either.

Tip for Writers #1

Develop a great idea.

This advice is for anyone looking to publish and do well with sales. Far too often, writers have a general idea for a story, so they rush to the writing process, cranking out the chapters with zest and enthusiasm. If you ask them what their book is about, they’ll no doubt talk your head off about their creative baby that’s still mostly in their heads, all with the excitement of a first-time mother showing snapshots of her latest sonogram results. However, if you ask them why you should purchase the book once it’s completed, that’s when the answers cease to be lively and creative. That’s also when more than a few smiles begin to falter.

The first thing you may notice is that instead of answering the question, many writers ignore it entirely and start telling you what happens in their books, sometimes scene by scene. Depending on their enthusiasm, you may want to make yourself more comfortable. For the writers who do attempt to answer your question, you may notice that their answers apply to many books in the same genre:

“It’s filled with excitement!”

“There are great plot twists!”

“There’s an awesome romance!”

“It’ll make you laugh!”

“It’ll make you cry!”

“It’s motivational!”

“It’s a coming of age story that kids will love!”

“These words were inspired by God!”

“It’s an exciting, motivational (insert genre) that will touch your heart because it was inspired by God!”

I could go on, but I think you get the picture. These answers do not explain why you should buy their book instead of the one sitting next to it on the same shelf in a bookstore.

It would serve writers best to develop an awesome answer to this question before they start writing their bestseller. The answer should be a concise one, the kind you can spout off in less than a minute. An extremely short paragraph is what you want. When you have it as perfect as you can get it, take a bow. You’ve just penned an amazing marketing device that will serve you well, particularly with query letters and obtaining media interviews.

I cannot stress enough what a great idea can mean to you as a writer. A great idea trumps so many other writing faux pas. There are tons of books published about vampires, but Stephenie Meyer (Twilight) and Charlaine Harris (True Blood) came along with great ideas. Wizards in books are nothing new, but J. K. Rowling had a great idea. Many writers warn you not to write your stories in the present tense, but writers like Veronica Roth and Suzanne Collins couldn’t care less because The Hunger Games and the Divergent series were great ideas. A few years ago, I read a bestseller about a typical girl who finds a typical drug-using boyfriend, and they both fall prey to designer drugs in a most typical way and proceed to ruin their lives. Very typical, very much done to death by other writers. However, Ellen Hopkins decided to write this novel (Crank) entirely in short poems. What a great idea. (And so much for poetry not selling well.)

Did you know that in the nonfiction market you could win a book deal without having a book? Yep. You guessed it. The deal was based on the idea alone. If the idea is good enough, the publisher will actually help you write the book!

So do yourself a huge favor. Use your creative abilities where they will really count. When writing a book, don’t forget to write the most important short paragraph of your life. You can also shrink this concept to having a great idea for each chapter or extend it to having a great idea for a series.

And just in case you’re wondering, I do follow my own advice. I’ve developed a great idea for an author. Name another author who focuses on education as much as John Grisham focuses on the legal system or Tom Clancy focuses on the military: “Edward M. Baldwin, America’s education novelist.”

Yes, that was a shameless plug. (Great idea?)