Journal
Notes from inside the press: how a book gets written, edited, designed and published.
32 items, page 2 of 2
Editing
Filter words: saw, heard, felt, noticed
"She saw the door open" puts a character between the reader and the door. Often, the sentence is stronger without her.
Editing
Structuring an argument across the chapters of a non-fiction book
A non-fiction book that argues something needs more than good chapters. It needs an order in which each one makes the next possible.
Editing
Chapter endings that pull the reader forward
The end of a chapter is where readers decide whether to stop. A good ending leaves them with a question rather than a conclusion.
Editing
Quoting other people's work: permissions and fair dealing in the UK
UK law allows some quotation without permission, but less than many writers assume. A cautious guide to fair dealing and when to ask.
Editing
Cutting ten per cent without losing anything
Most drafts carry a layer of words that repeat, hedge or clear the throat. Removing it rarely costs the book anything.
Editing
Reject all changes and get your book back
An edit you can undo in one keystroke is an edit you can actually argue with. That is the whole principle.
Editing
Reading your manuscript aloud, and what it catches
Your ear notices what your eye forgives. Reading a manuscript aloud is slow and slightly embarrassing, and it finds problems nothing else does.
Editing
Point-of-view slips and how to catch them
A single sentence that knows too much can pull a reader out of a character's head. Here is how to hear it happen.
Editing
Keeping a timeline: days, seasons and ages
A novel can survive a slow middle. It struggles to survive a Tuesday that follows a Thursday. Here is how to keep time straight.
Editing
What a copy-editor actually checks
Copy-editing is not a quick tidy of the commas. It is where a book is made consistent, and consistency is harder than it sounds.
Editing
A working method for fact-checking non-fiction
Fact-checking a book is less about suspicion and more about bookkeeping. A method that makes every claim traceable before anyone asks.
Editing
Dialogue tags, and why "said" disappears on the page
Readers barely register the word "said", which is exactly why it works. Most alternatives draw attention to themselves.