September is a month synonymous with “back to school and back to work”. For me it includes both. This month I will begin my 6th course with the University of Toronto’s Creative Writing Certificate program (there are 7 courses in the certificate). After focusing on novel writing courses through this program, I’ve selected Screenwriting: Introduction as my elective. This teaches the elements behind developing a story for film and includes screenings and writing exercises. I’m also “back to work” this month too, as I power through the editing of Draft #4 and #5 of my third novel. On October 1st I will hand the manuscript over to my five readers for the month of October, and then sit back and bite my nails!
How does the Editing process work in Publishing?
I always thought I understood editing. But during the process of editing my second novel, The Acquisition of Elizabeth Grace with my publisher RE:BOOKS, I learned there was a defined process publishers followed. As I’ve been editing my third book, I’ve pulled on that experience and complimented it with reading Patricia Westerhof’s The Canadian Guide to Creative Writing and Publishing. I had the good fortune of having Patricia as my first instructor when I began my Creative Writing Certificate in 2021. She was an excellent teacher and I highly recommend her book!
There are 3 types of editing: Substantive editing, Line editing and Copy editing.
Substantive editing: This is the first step where you are examining your full content – the structure, plot and characters. What needs to change? In The Acquisition of Elizabeth Grace some chapters were cut, others amalgamated and tightened, and I added a Prologue and Epilogue. Because I had many characters in the novel, which can be difficult for a reader, I eliminated some, changed the names of others so their names began with different letters and removed names from minor characters who only appeared in one scene. (They became “the neighbours” or the woman” etc.) Substantive editing, while called editing, feels very much like you’re still in the writing process. The creative juices need to be kept turned on as you seek to make the story better and better.
Line editing: This is the second step where you are focusing on each sentence. Is it as well written as it can be? If it is a character thinking or speaking, you would puzzle over their voice – does this sound like them? If it is a descriptive sentence: Are those the best words? Have you stayed away from cliches? Can sensory images be added? And always you are looking to cut out wordiness and increase clarity.
Copy editing:This is the third step where you are looking at every word. Here punctuation, grammar and spelling are checked along with scrutinizing for the overuse of words, inaccurate use of words and ensuring all facts are correct. I love Patricia Westerhof’s advice about copy editing. She recommends you don’t spend time on this type of editing until after substantive and line edits have been done. You may very well remove a line that you might have spent 10 minutes copy editing. As she says, “Copy editing too soon is like cleaning the kitchen in the midst of installing new cabinets. Save your energy!”
With these three forms of editing complete (which for a writer never, ever feels as if it’s complete), what comes next?
When I worked with RE:BOOKS, our next step was to typeset the manuscript, which involves formatting it so it looks like the final printed copy. This is when the “Proofreading” step comes in. It was amazing that even with three to four sets of eyes on the book, plus a professional proofreader, mistakes wiggled their way through. I was ecstatic when we got a green light for a 2nd print run in August and we had a second chance to correct errors. It’s fascinating how the brain reads not just what is on the page but what it thinks should be on the page. As long as our minds are built that way, it will be tough for a book to be perfect. But the fun is in trying to make it so!
PODCAST with Jennifer Kjell
This month I joined Jennifer Kjell on her Podcast. She titled our episode Resilience & Reinvention. It’s available on Spotify, Apple and through the podcast icon. It was a heartfelt session, covering my transition to writing, past work experience & how to handle challenge and change. Hope you like it!
BOOK CLUB
Huge thanks to Nancy Abbey & friends for your invite to join you on Sept.19th. Fun to meet a dynamic group of tennis players who chose a Book Club format to carry on conversations off the court. Thanks for all your questions & observations about my characters & plot!
Creative Aging Books & Ideas
Thanks Cece to you and Jen Tindall, for your invitation to join you and your members from Art Your Service. Our hour Zoom flew by and I enjoyed the questions from your members. Certainly your kind feedback about your love of my descriptions was encouraging. Pondering over ways to describe something takes time and it’s great to know the result is appreciated. Thanks!
THE WORD ON THE STREET
On September 28th to 29th Queen’s Park Circle will be a vibrant book and magazine marketplace, as this festival celebrates literacy & Canadian Authors. And it’s FREE! Come join in.
RE:BOOKS, with my book, is in Zone C – midway in the strip of booths.
I’ll be there Sat @ 1pm & Sun @ 11am
Thanks for your posts!
Thank you for your continued posts of The Acquisition of Elizabeth Grace. It’s heart warming to see her out and about. Please do share posts of either of my two books with me, and with your friends. Thanks for all your support.
Are you in a Book Club?
I’m open to attend in person or by Zoom, depending on dates and location. Thanks to all who have booked me for the fall and winter. I’m looking forward to meeting you! I can be reached at gwen@gwenkharvey.com.
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