A little secret from Liz Pelletier with Entangled Publishing (Self-Editing Class)

Self-Editing Class

A little editors secret from Liz Pelletier, Sr. Editor, Co-Owner of Entangled Publishing:

How many times have you heard that you need to polish your manuscript until it's gleaming before sending it out the door? Armed with an almost infinite supply of caffeine, you toil over your baby for hours, cutting a few words here, changing a few words there. You diligently run spell and grammar checker over and over. You may even use a macro that points out you used the word "that" 16 times per page and smack yourself in the head. You argue with your critique partner over appropriate comma usage and dialogue tags until neither one of you can remember when to use a comma. And finally… Finally, you deem your baby ready for public consumption and send it off to your dream agent or editor.

After what seems like an eternity, you get a polite rejection in the mail claiming she just didn't "connect with your characters" or she felt your "plot was too passive" (my personal favorite) or he "didn't think your story started in the right place" or any number of things. I betno one mentioned a single thing about comma usage or redundant word choice, did they? And yet, every time we sit down to edit our manuscripts, those are the things we tend to focus on.

I'm going to share a little secret with you... Editors typically consider the mechanics of your writing only if they're truly horrible, but that's only after they decide if they can sell your story, if they love your voice. In the history of publishing, I don't think anyone has ever lost a book deal due to a missing comma or over-usage of adverbs. If you can write a story that a reader can't put down, even despite grammatical errors… Now that's a bestseller.

With that in mind, during this workshop we're going to focus on both the big picture and line edits, but we'll be focusing on concepts that will help you craft a bestseller: How to review your book through the standard three pass editing structure used by professionals, how to evaluate character growth arcs and story structure, how to peel away those bad writing habits to reveal your voice, and how to refine your writing style so a fluid and engaging story emerges.

By the end of the day, I hope everyone will have the tools they'll need to "Edit a Bestseller Like A Pro"!

Join us near New Orleans, LA. as we learn from Entangled Publishing co-founder and editor Liz Pelletier. Registration information is here. Early registration prices have been extended until June 10th.  Class is on June 22, 2013...  (if the links above don't work try this one below) http://solawriters.org/2013/06/03/self-editing-workshop-why-should-you-join-us-liz-pelletier-lets-you-in-on-a-secret/

I hope to see you there!
~ Dawn Chartier

Erica Spindler, Sola-Writers August 2011 Speaker

Sola-Writers speaker for August 20th.

Presentation: Erica's 5 Must Have Elements For A Killer Thriller

Erica Spindler is an International and New York Times bestselling author of 28 novels. Her latest thriller, WATCH ME DIE, is in stores now. Published in 25 countries, her work has been lauded as "terrific twisted tales" "packed with authentic detail" and "must-reads for suspense fans." Erica lives just outside of New Orleans with her husband and her two sons.



The meeting is this Saturday, August 20th, beginning at 10am. We meet at the east bank branch of the Jefferson Parish Library in Metairie.

Checking in....Update...

Hey y'all,

It's been a while, and yes of course I'm still writing. lol

So what's been happening with everyone? Good things I hope.

Me? I took a little time away from my witch novel, giving it room to breathe, then I'll pick it back up and work on it with fresh eyes. But while Buried Magic is relaxing, I started a new novella and finished writing it. I'm in the critique mode right now, it's only 20k so it won't take long. Maybe a week.

I'm also reading books again, which I neglected to do while writing Buried Magic. You gotta keep reading - that is a must.

Anyway, just wanted to shout out to my friends that I'm still alive. (a little sick with Sinus problems, but alive.)

Oh, and I'm not going to RWA this year. (boo-hoo) Yes, I'll be at Heather Graham's workshop (www.writersforneworleans.com) and yes, I'll be at Mary Buckham's one-day workshop in NOLA as well. (www.solawriters.org) Looking forward to both of those writers workshops. Oh, and don't forget the Dixie Kane writing contest is going on now. That is on the Sola website too.

Happy Summer y'all!
Dawn
Not An Angel, out now!

Sola's April meeting presenters are - Candice Proctor (C S Harris), Agent Pam Ahearn & Barbara Colley

When our regular speaker had to cancel due to a conflict in her schedule, my co-program partner, Pamela Kopfler went to work right away and found a wonderful speaker or shall I say speaker(s) for Sola's April meeting. It's going to be fab!

Candace Proctor (w/a C.S. Harris), Agent Pam Ahearn, and Barbara Colley all agreed to be on a panel to discuss, WRITING A SERIES. This couldn't be better timing for me because I'm about to dive into my second book in my Vieux Carre' Witch Series. (which I'm already plotting) So thank you, Pamela!

Show up early because space is limited. April 16th @ 10:00am
For more info, click on this link: Solawriters.org

I hope to see you there,
Dawn Chartier
NOT AN ANGEL, OUT NOW!

SOLA'S July meeting presenter is Dr. Jeffrey Long - Near-Death experiences

At Sola's July writers meeting Dr. Jeffrey Long will discuss his research in the area of "near-death" experiences. (See bio below)

Jeffrey Long, MD is a physician practicing the specialty of radiation oncology, which is the use of radiation to treat cancer, at Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center at TGMC. Dr. Long completed medical school and did his radiation oncology training at the University of Iowa. He moved here from Gallup, New Mexico where he practiced radiation oncology and also worked extensively, both professionally and in public service, with the Navajo Nation. Dr. Long lives in Houma and practices there full-time.

In addition to Dr. Long’s professional interests, he has an interesting hobby. Over 10 years ago he began studying near-death experiences. He recently published his research findings in the book “Evidence of the Afterlife: The Science of Near-Death Experiences”, which became a New York Times bestseller.

Dr. Long has discussed near-death experiences extensively with the media in the past, including appearances on ABC Evening News with Peter Jennings, NBC Morning Show, The O’Reilly Factor, Discovery Health, and The Learning Channel. He has been quoted in the Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, and Time.com. In Houma, Dr. Long is a member of the Rotary and is participating this year in Leadership Terrebonne. He has given a number of community talks on both cancer and his research that led to his book.

The findings are presented in his groundbreaking book.

SOLA’s July meeting begins at 10am on July 17th, 2010 at the East bank branch of the Jefferson Parish Library at 4747 Napoleon Avenue in Metairie, LA.

Hope to see y'all there.
Dawn Chartier

SOLA WRITERS - FEBRUARY 20TH MEETING 10AM

The next SOLA meeting is on February 20th, 2010 at 10 am. Please join us for a presentation by Nicholas Genovese on Writers’ Resources.

Hope to see aspiring writers, authors, and the publishing industry attend.

Dawn Chartier
www.dawnchartier.com
NOT AN ANGEL, coming soon from The Wild Rose Press.com
(if you'd like to see the book cover scroll down a few posts)