Kia ora, I half-arse many things in life: styling my hair, cooking dinner, gardening. With just a bit more effort, I could take those things from good enough to oh, wow! But I’m (mostly) fine with half-arsing them. One thing I don’t half-arse: my job. I’d be a terrible editor if I did that. ButContinue reading “Eh, good enough”
Tag Archives: Self-editing
How to make your dialogue realistic
Great dialogue means your readers hear peoples’ voices, their tone, and their personality. But dialogue doesn’t happen in a vacuum. When you’re recounting conversations you had during your travels, be sure to include what was going on around you. The gestures you made or the actions you took as you talked go a long wayContinue reading “How to make your dialogue realistic”
What a sample edit shows you (plus advice on getting published)
Kia ora, Last week I introduced coffee/tea/beverage chats that you can book with me. (More on the chats here.) The other, even better, freebie I offer is free sample edits. I’ve talked a bit about them before, but here are the details. Sample edits work in two ways. For me, they help me see whereContinue reading “What a sample edit shows you (plus advice on getting published)”
Want to hang out and talk books?
Kia ora, First off: Thank you for the replies to last week’s question about where you are in the writing process. You’ve helped me a lot! You probably know that I offer free sample edits. I provide these so you can see what my editing style looks like before you invest in a full edit.Continue reading “Want to hang out and talk books?”
6 adventure-related updates
Kia ora, We’ve passed the halfway mark: for us in the southern hemisphere, winter solstice happened on Sunday. Longer (but colder) days ahead! Hoorah! I’m keeping it short this week with six adventure-related updates about books, movies, and gear. Got any links you want to share with me? Reply and send them my way! Cheers,DeborahContinue reading “6 adventure-related updates”
There are already so many memoirs about walking this trail – is there space for mine?
I recently saw someone ask this question online: “There are already so many memoirs about walking Te Araroa. Is there even space for mine?”
YES! There is space for your story! It doesn’t matter if you’re writing about Te Araroa or the Pacific Crest Trail or the Camino de Santiago or any other popular trail. There is space for your story.
Writing a book one moment after another
Kia ora, Writing a book is hard! Do you know how many chapters that is? How many pages? How many words? It’s hours and hours of thinking and staring and typing, and thinking some more, and getting distracted and typing… But you don’t have to write it all at once. You don’t even have toContinue reading “Writing a book one moment after another”
That time I suggested an author add a … tasteful? … joke to his story
Kia ora, That tasteful joke in the subject line. It was actually a dick joke. But I didn’t want to say it that obviously in case the spam gods banished my email. But yes, I once suggested an author add a dick joke to his story. This author had a particular writing style – self-deprecating,Continue reading “That time I suggested an author add a … tasteful? … joke to his story”
Author scams – stay safe out there
One of my regular authors had a run-in with a scammer recently. I want to tell you about it so you can notice the red flags should the same thing happen to you. A senior editor from Penguin Random House emailed this author and told him Penguin were keen to acquire their latest book. ButContinue reading “Author scams – stay safe out there”
A fresh idea for dealing with a writing rut
Kia ora, Yesterday I spent the morning staring at a blank doc trying to figure out how to get a blog idea out. I had the topic, and I knew what I wanted to say, but … the thoughts were not connecting with the fingers on the keyboard. Feel familiar? I’m sure you’ve had yourContinue reading “A fresh idea for dealing with a writing rut”