What Do You Do When You Have Finished?

Sandra here on Monday instead of Tuesday. Pam was a dear friend and traded with me since I'll be on the road tomorrow. So today I'm here with a hot pot of chocolate velvet coffee and on the sideboard we have a variety of teas and hot chocolate with whipped cream.

I also have a crystal dish filled with Sees Candy for a chocolate pick-me-up.

Please join me while we get down to brass tacks with our Speedbo project.

Sandra signing books at the
Tucson Festival of Books
March 16, 2014
My Speedbo interuption

One week to go and we hit the finish line.

What are your plans when you finish that rough draft manuscript???

Here are some of my recommendations and some helpful hints from past Seekerville posts.

1. Set that baby aside. Put your manuscript into a file folder and don't open it. If it is printed, hide it under the bed or in the closet.

Anyone want to venture a guess as to why this is number one on the list???

It helps to let the story sit and rest.

Most of us don't have the luxury of doing that because of deadlines.  If you do have a deadline, the ideal scenario is to finish the rough draft early so you do have time to let the manuscript sit.

The reason we do this is so we have fresh eyes and a clear head when we read over the first draft. I don't know about you, but when I write, the characters are so real in my head that I think what is there in my head goes down on the paper.  Well it often doesn't.  If I've let the manuscript sit for awhile and the characters have gone home, then I see the problems.

2. Give the manuscript to a critique partner. If you have a critique partner that has been working with this all along, then you might want to find another critique partner or beta reader that has fresh eyes.

Click here for some past posts with some great tips for working with critique partners.

You can also have the manuscript professionally critiqued.  Our own Tina does this.  Check out her website page My Critique Partner.

3. Self-edit.  While your critique partner is reading over the manuscript, you can start to edit the manuscript yourself.

Looking in the archives I found several articles on self-editing. Click here to find all nine articles.

Last December Tina wrote The Unauthorized Cheat Sheet of Self-Editing Tips for Writers.

Ruthy and Mia Ross teamed up to post Trim Your Novel Like You Trim Your Tree.

Last April, Glynna Kaye wrote an excellent post Deep Cleaning Your Manuscript.  I really paid attention to this article because Glynna writes some of the cleanest manuscripts I've ever critiqued. She really knows how to self edit.  I am sure that is why her editors love her.

Be sure and check out the other articles and learn more ways to self-edit that finished gem. Because when you are done with that project we go to the next step.

4. Pay a professional editor.  This is an option if you want to impress a traditional publisher's editor, but it is an absolute necessity if you want to self-publish.  There is nothing worse than a poorly constructed book and there is simply no excuse for one--not with the excellent resources we have available to us.  Be sure and find one that is recommended by some person or organization that you trust.  Audra invited Sandi Rog to write about finding freelance editors here.

You can find professional editors listed in most writer organizations. If you can recommend any, please feel free to do so in the comment section.  I personally hire Amber Stokes of Editing Through The Seasons.

Amber Stokes of Editing Through The Seasons

5. Have your manuscript copy-edited.  Do you know the difference between story edits and copy edits?  A story editor will read through the story for inconsistencies, plot problems, word usage, character development, etc.  A copy editor mainly looks at the final draft for punctuation, spelling and technical formatting glitches.  A copy editor is not reading the story. A copy editor is strictly reading for technical accuracy.

We have several articles written by the Grammar Queen that can help you with copy editing.

We all know who the Grammar Queen is don't we???

5.  Ready to publish.

When you have completed all of these steps your "baby" is ready to publish.  How exciting is that??


Sure hope these recommendations and past posts help you refine that "baby" you finished during Speedbo.

If you have any other recommendations and or helpful suggestions please share them and  your name will be put in the puppy dish for a drawing.

Winner will receive an e-copy of my new release LOVE'S PROMISES  and  a paid for professional edit by Amber Stokes of the first ten pages of your new manuscript.

For Monica Scott, building her late father’s house at Lake Tahoe isn’t an option—it’s a necessary distraction from confusing memories and an uncertain future. But a handsome planner working for the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) is keeping Monica from moving forward with the project. Never mind that he’s young and charming with a great sense of humor. No one is going to stop Monica from making her father’s dream—and her own—a reality.

All Greg Linsey wants is for his work to mean something. His job at TRPA gives him the opportunity to fight for the environment he loves and make a difference in his small corner of the world. But with the sophisticated Monica Scott’s arrival, his dedication is tested as never before, especially when Monica turns to his unscrupulous nemesis for assistance.

As Greg and Monica’s animosity turns into something far sweeter, can they learn to appreciate each other’s goals and avoid the growing danger to their lives and hearts?

GO SPEEDBO

GO, GO, GO 

FINISH, FINISH, FINISH

HOORAY!!