Making Connections discussion

I recently read a book that needed to be edited really bad but it was mostly just spelling errors and context errors but I didn't give it a bad review because of it but I did mention to the author it might be in her benefit to read read it again and told her where I found some of the major errors that made the book a little confusing. You can always go back and look at it and publish a revised edition?

Possibly, is the main reason they gave you a bad review was just because if the spelling and contextual errors, I'm by no means an editor but I was a strong English student so when I notice things like that I bring it to the authors attention but when reviewing a story I don't let the author stress if it was a good book

If errors are still showing up then yes, hire a proof reader or editor. Spelling and grammar are important but they shouldn't warrant a bad review if the story is good. I would give a good review on a good book, and then mention the spelling or grammar errors.

Professional editors can definitely tell you where you could change some wording or even make the story stronger. Might be a good learning experience as well.

Probably not, the editor will be able to best tell you what to do with it,

Hi Elizabeth,

As a reader and a copyeditor, I understand your pain. As a reader, I cringe when I read errors that could have so easily been prevented. Likewise, I simply cannot believe how many authors print books without having a professional editor. I knew one author who hired an editor, but only a story editor. I believe that company committed a crime in not enlightening her about the glaring errors in her novel.

Now, if you have e-books, of course those are easy to change. Print copies obviously cannot be reprinted per se, but you can certainly print updated versions and re-release them. Your other option is to swallow the painful pill of experience, and hire an editor for your next novel.

Email me if you'd like to discuss this further. We can dialogue as professionals, or just chat as Goodreads acquaintances. Also, feel free to take a look at my website: www.hjseditingservices.com

-Heather

Heather, is the photo on your home page of your web site your library? I'm jealous if it's someone's real library!

Elizabeth

Hahahaha - in my DREAMS, it is!

I think that sooner or later all indies who really want to be regarded as pros come around to the fact that you can't do it all yourself. Get it as perfect as you can but then take the hit and get an editor or at the very least a high quality proofreader. I just hired one the recommendation of a friend and had her do a novella - I couldn't believe how much stuff she found. She did an amazing job. She wasn't cheap, charging 3 British pounds/1000 words for proofreading or 6/1000 words for editing, but she found stuff I didn't even know were errors.

Basically, if you want to be seen as a pro then you have to act like a pro and take the hit. I'll never let anything out again until it's gone past an editor (either this lady or another editor I work with). I get very few complaints (I'm an English grammar teacher halfway through a linguistics Masters degree, blah de blah) but I want NO complaints. That's the difference. I can catch and fix 95% myself, but it's that 5% that's the difference between a reader considering you a pro or just an indie who's pretty good. And if that is the difference between being recommended to that reader's friend or not, then it's worth it, in my opinion.

The best thing about working with an editor/proofreader you trust is that you can publish the book in the confidence that you're not going to keep needing to update the file every few weeks when a reader spots an error. You can put it out there and leave it out there. And it's going to be out there for a long time - so as long as you make efforts to promote it, it'll make the costs back eventually.

Just my two cents worth, having learned the hard way...!

I'm sure we'd all agree that Ken Follett is a good author. He uses editors. Yet in two of his books the term immaculate conception is used to mean a virgin birth. I've seen it in other books. That is 100% wrong, that is not what the term means at all.

I think if your book is about any given religion it should be proofed by someone who knows that religion very well. I also think if it's a book with a medical theme it should be proofed by a R.N. or M.D. I know Catholicism and medicine well so I always find little, and sometimes, major, errors. It's the same for any profession or job, have someone who knows the field proof the book. This is over and above the editing and proofing that people like Heather do.

Elizabeth wrote: "I'm sure we'd all agree that Ken Follett is a good author. He uses editors. Yet in two of his books the term immaculate conception is used to mean a virgin birth. I've seen it in other books. That ..."

Yes, some types of books needs specific types of editors. Absolutely.

I'm curious as to what "immaculate conception" means to you, Elizabeth. Apart from Mary, mother of Joseph, no one has experienced an immaculate conception, so how could it be written about in any other way than biblically? Interesting.

Immaculate conception refers to the conception of Mary, not Jesus. It is a dogma of the Catholic Church which teaches that Mary's soul was free of the stain of original sin. Her parents Anne and Joachim had sex, she was conceived and because God already had chosen her to be the Mother of Jesus her soul was pure, no original sin. Even too many Catholics are incorrect in their understanding of what the term means. It does not mean a virgin conception or a virgin birth. The feast of the Immaculate Conception is December 8th.

Any other Catholic questions? :-)

As a friend of mine who's also a very successful writer (we're talking thousands of sales a month) is fond of saying, writing is an art, but selling is a business. You have to invest in both. As for the book, you have to decide whether it's more work to save it or to write a new one.