Wording Around with Editing: Getting your First Draft Ready to Publish

by Kathy Mac

Wording Around with Editing gives readers everything they need to get their first draft of any writing project ready to publish.   

 

The first three chapters detail steps of the editing process and introduce the types of Substantive, Stylistic and Copy. The next four chapters get into the nitty gritty of each of those, with an additional chapter on Proofreading. The final three chapters explain the importance of writing communities in helping writers bring their book to its very best form. Every chapter of Wording Around with Editing ends with a resource to help readers dive more deeply into that chapters' topic, as well as prompts that help authors take their first steps on each stage of the editing process.  

 

"Kathy Mac is a 'writer's writer.' In this tight and mighty work, she cuts to the heart of what she's learned about process, craft, and loving yourself through the hard parts of writing." 

 – AJ Ripley 

 

During the COVID-19 lockdown in the spring of 2020, poet and creative writing professor Kathy Mac (St. Thomas University, Fredericton, Canada) taught a free online course, the notes for which became Wording Around with Prose, the first in the Wording Around series. Wording Around with Getting your First Draft Ready to Publish  is the second one in the series.

77 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 18, 2022

About the author

Kathy Mac loves dogs; helps run the Odd Sundays Reading Series in Fredericton NB, Canada; published her first ebook “Wording Around with Prose” in 2020, her third poetry book in 2017, and a book of essays (under the name Dr. Kathleen McConnell) in 2012; is starting to envy retired friends though she still enjoys teaching creative writing at St. Thomas University; has won a couple of writing awards and been nominated for more; has brown eyes; used to have brown hair; is somewhat allergic to social media (sorry!); and has a website at kathymacpoet.com.

Reviews

[alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wording Around with Editing uses humor and accessible prompts to engage readers while providing advice and resources that are realistically applicable. Kathy Mac's guide challenges an author to approach their work in ways they hadn't seen it before, resulting in a stronger piece of literature. Beyond just providing a guide on how to edit, it provides insight into the process leading up to publishing, something many of us forget about while caught up in the "joys" of writing and editing. Her guide confronts you with important questions that you may have forgotten to ask yourself about what direction you would like to take your manuscript, preparing not just your work, but also you, for processes that are ahead of you (like working with agents and publishers). The advice from this book will remain in my mind going into my future projects and will be a valuable resource.

[Danya · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a writer (even as one who does it mostly for fun) editing is one of the most important steps in creating a finished piece and it’s one of the areas I struggle with the most. But this book does a very good job at breaking down the steps of editing and the important tools that can go along with it. I highly recommend to anyone who struggles with editing and is looking for even a basic how to guide or introduction to the editing process.