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Publishers want lots of ‘stuff’ from authors now. Not just the book, but lots of other stuff. Content, it’s called, for online things.

One of the bits of content I’ve given my publishers recently is a file of deleted scenes, from my new(ish) teen thriller Mind Blind.

It wasn’t hard for me to find half a dozen deleted scenes, because I delete lots from my manuscripts as I rewrite and redraft. It’s not unusual for me to reduce the length of a book by 20,000 words or more between first draft and final publication. Which sounds very inefficient – wouldn’t I be better just writing shorter books in the first place?

But I’m not a planner and plotter. I discover the story as I write, as I follow the characters on their journey, and that means diversions and doubling back. I never deliberately write anything that I know is irrelevant at the time, every word helps me find out about the characters, their reactions to problems and my own feelings about the story. But once I reach the end and get a sense of the main thrust of the story, it’s usually clear that I've regularly wandered off the narrative path, and that some scenes are now unnecessary. They may have been necessary to get me to the end, but they’re not necessary to get the reader to the end. So I'm ruthless in slashing them out. I reckon that if you can slice out a scene without it seriously affecting the rest of the story, it probably wasn’t that important.

And in a thriller like MindBlind, where it’s very important to keep the pace up and the pages turning, I also removed scenes or parts of scenes because they slowed the story down too much. (Here’s an example of one.)

And sometimes I cut a scene, not because it’s slowing the story down or because it’s an unnecessary diversion, but because I come up with a stronger idea once I know the story and characters better. However, the original scene is still part of the way I got to know the character, so it’s part of my history with them. Here’s an example of that – it’s the first scene I ever wrote about Ciaran Bain, the hero (anti-hero) of the book. It’s not in the book, but it’s still the place I first met him!

Of course, it’s misleading to suggest that all this slashing and slicing is my idea. Quite a lot of it is, but some of it is in response to gentle prompts from my wonderful editor.

a mountain of many Mind Blind manuscripts

So, I have no problem removing large chunks of my first draft or even my fourteenth draft, because as I’m writing, I know that I’m just discovering the story, not finding the perfect way of telling it first time around. And I know that it takes a lot of work to make that original mess of scribbled ideas into a book.

But having taken all this stuff out, why on earth would I want to show it to anyone? These deleted scenes have often been removed quite early in the process, so they’re not that polished (why would I polish them, once I’ve deleted them?) So it does feel quite weird and slightly uncomfortable, revealing these unfinished bits of my creative process to the public gaze.

Even if these are scenes that I took out for plot or pace reasons, rather than pieces of writing I don’t like, they are still parts of the story that didn’t make it into the book. So is it a bit of a risk to show less than perfect examples of your writing to the world? And why on earth do it?

The first reason is the pragmatic one of feeding the voracious social media monster. (This is not a particularly good reason.)

But I wonder if a much better reason is that realising how much an author cuts from their early drafts can be useful, especially for young writers. It’s a very practical way to show that published writers don’t get it right all the time, that our first drafts are just the start of the process and that we have to work at them, slash at them, perhaps radically change them, to get them into shape. Deleted scenes are perhaps the online version of showing manuscripts covered in lots of scribbles and scorings out to groups of kids at author visits. ‘Look, I don’t get it right first time, so you don’t have to either. Just write, and see what happens!’

So, while I was wincing and cringing this week as yet another deleted scene appeared on Tumblr, I wondered:
How much do other writers delete?
Are other writers happy to let the world see the bits they sliced out?
And do readers learn anything about the writing process from deleted scenes?

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I am currently writing my seventh novel. I have published one novel for adults and three Y.A. and I have one book not yet taken and one which is just about to be submitted. But as Sue Gee, award winning author and Faber Academy tutor once said, "All writers are apprentices all their lives." So this blogpost is about my editing process with my Kindle as a relatively new and developing tool to help me.

Recently someone recommended Rachel Aaron's short ( and cheap £0.77) e-book and I decided to download it and see what there was on offer. I wasn't particularly interested in writing 10,000 words a day but I am always open to new ideas for the editing process.
The one idea I took away from this book was Aaron's recommendation to download your finished manuscript onto your Kindle and read it.
Why?
Because when you read a manu on a Kindle you read it like a reader.




I loved it! I was working on my new book, Behind Closed Doors, (BCD), about two teenage girls who are at risk of becoming homeless, for very different reasons. I downloaded the book, took my Kindle into the living room and sat down on the sofa which is where I read at least half of my books. I was in complete reader mode. This is such a different experience to either reading on the screen - my least favourite way to edit an entire book - or to printing a hard copy of the entire manu. With the hard copy I am much less relaxed. I sit there, pen in hand, scribbling all over the place and I am definitely not reading like a reader.

But sitting on the sofa with a cup of tea and a biscuit, nice and relaxed, each page appearing like a page in a printed book in that pleasing rectangular screen my brain was completely in reader mode. I read the book over a couple of days and then I put it to one side, went out for a long walk came back and wrote a couple of pages of notes by hand and with a nice clear head.

Ok - SNAP! You already do all this, I can hear you say and yes, I would think nowadays, a lot of writers do the same thing.

But then I had a new revelation. I went back to the computer, continued working on my book and finally sent the finished manu to my agent. All done and dusted, feeling pleased, etc.
Couple of weeks later I decide to download and read the manu again.
Groan! Suddenly I see loads of copy edits ( houses instead of house) - not earth shattering, I know, but I am beginning to realise that my Kindle edits could have been so much more.

However, after some feedback from an interested editor, it was decided to alter the last few chapters before widespread submission. This is my chance I think.
I rewrite the chapters - very satisfying job. Then I download onto my Kindle.
But this time I sit at my computer with the manu up on the screen.
I start at the beginning, chapter by chapter and every time I spot the error on my Kindle ( errors I have failed to see on the screen because I'm not reading like a reader and I seem to be much sharper in that role) I scroll down and correct it on the screen.
I catch all those pesky errors ( houses instead of house), feel I have a much cleaner text and press SEND in a much happier mood than before.


When I considered trying out this method I thought it would feel laborious and annoying.
In fact, I found it to be smooth and extremely satisfying.

From now on, I will be downloading in 10 chapter chunks ( I've just done that for the new WIP), reading on my sofa, making notes when I've finished and then working the Kindle and the screen version at the same time to build up to the much more perfected finished product.

Do you have an editing tip you'd like to share?

www.miriamhalahmy.com

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Credit | Flickr Keyofnight

In graduate school for creative writing, I had a classmate who conceived of an elaborate way of track her characters. She combed consumer magazines clipping advertisements for furniture, perfume, and clothing that her characters would buy. In three-ring binders, she would carefully glue her characters' homes onto pages and pages.

When she returned to edit her work, she could review the pages and center herself in her characters' lives.

But what if you are, like I am, not as meticulous at tracking your character details? In Margo's question posted last week, she wondered what are some good ways to keep track of character details? I have a couple ways that I keep track, but they are generally not cut-and-paste and a three-ring binder.

First, I find that with my work, I like to start writing first. After I've written several pages, I backup and develop my characters' personalities outside of my story. Sometimes I'll take out an unlined piece of paper and sketch what I think my main characters look like. But mainly I will build out the characters by building their bio.

Some writers prefer doing this electronically (in a spreadsheet, for example). I prefer to write about my characters in a handmade spreadsheet on a piece of notebook paper. Pen to paper allows me to doodle and write in the margins--something I feel is more free flowing and creative.

What do I write down? Here are some suggestions to start with (some more obvious than others):

1. Age (this will color a lot going forward)
2. Eye and hair colors and other physical traits
3. Education
4. Favorite book or music
5. Likes and dislikes (foods, movies, cars, clothes)
6. Major motivation(s)
7. Describe what is in his/her pocket/purse

 And if I'm editing and, as the author, had forgotten to create the spreadsheet, I will start the spreadsheet as I edit. As I find gaps in my descriptions of the characters, it becomes an exercise of filling in the blank. Such a system can also help to flesh out errors in the characters' descriptions when you find that the main character has blue eyes on page 10 and brown eyes on page 54.

What characteristics do you generally come up with first in your writing? 

Also, if you have a question about editing (or writing), ask in the comments section and I'll (try to) answer  you in my next post.

Elizabeth King Humphrey received her master's in creative writing from UNC Wilmington. One of her professors, Clyde Edgerton, has written some very colorful characters--check out his work if you haven't had a chance.

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Credit: Sidewalk Flying | Flickr

In my last post, I asked for questions about self-editing. Angela asked a great question about how to start self-editing on a novel she hasn't touched since 2005. What I would advise for tackling an edit after such a distance is:

• More time. Okay, so not eight more years. But before reaching into the drawer to pull out the manuscript, I would take some time to think about what the novel is about. Not what you thought the novel was about so many years ago, but what you think the novel is about. As if you were recalling The Great Gatsby. Describe the main character and his or her motivations. What is the conflict in the novel? Sketch out a basic idea of the plot. Although you may not have touched your novel since 2005, I'm positive your brain has worked on it some, maybe even working through some of the plot issues. Capture that before you start editing.
• Read it! I'd like to offer the advice to keep your pen down the first time you read through, but I find that difficult to do. To keep you from marking up or rewriting during the first go-round, promise yourself to only use a highlighter to indicate where you think there may be problems (punctuation or other difficulties). With a highlighter, you won't be able to change and rewrite like you might with a red pen. It will also allow you some fluid reading time. If you need to note something, do so on a notepad during your first reading. (This is something possible electronically, as well.)
• Study your notes. Before you take up the red pen, study the notes you've made to determine if the plot or characters' motivations need adjusting. Note if there are any big picture changes you can make.
• Start editing! Keeping your notepad by your side, now you can start editing. Tackle one chapter or section at a time. Don't try to tackle the whole manuscript in one sitting as the frustration may force you to throw it back in the draw. During the edit, refer often to your notes and make more notes to keep the consistency throughout. Pay particular attention to the highlighted areas.

 As Angela mentioned, her voice will have certainly changed. Personally, the change is something that I would try to embrace. Yes, your grammar and punctuation may have shifted in the time since you last touched this novel--just make the changes without judging your earlier self. As much as possible, enjoy the editing process as you did writing the novel.

You're in a different place now. Take your novel there with you.

Do you have a self-editing question you would like answered? Just ask in the "Comments" section and I'll do my best to answer it in my next post.

Elizabeth King Humphrey is a North Carolina-based writer and editor. She earned her master's in creative writing from UNC Wilmington and her editing certificate from the University of Chicago, Graham School.

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When I wrote my first novel, it emerged from developing characters I'd created in a short story I had written. Initially, the kernel of the novel--the short story--was edited from the novel. Then, as I worked with my novel in my graduate workshop classes because I wanted to trim more from what I'd written, I wondered if my novel really wanted to be a novella.

Writing shouldn't be measured in inches, but if the story gets told. Credit | Elizabeth King Humphrey

In writing, determining a length is important.

That seems like such a trite statement, but this week the length of a written piece has cropped up in conversation a lot. I sat in on a magazine writing class that discussed that readers like chunks of text: 500 words at a time. Length, length, length!

How long should my piece of writing be? Should it be an inch...or should I take a mile?

The answer that comes to mind is that a piece of writing should be as long as it needs to be, which is probably not very helpful if you are looking for a specific answer. Of course there are suggested guidelines for pieces of writing that help define the writing and publishers routinely provide word count guidelines.

So, call an 80,000-word piece a feature magazine article and it will certainly be re-classified as a novel. And a short-short is not even considered short if it comes in at 15,000 words. Even if you can write 200,000 words, you might want to make sure it is at least 50,000 to 80,000 words put together really well for it to be considered as a novel.


How can I figure out what the length will be?

1. Look at the structure of your story. Is the structure clear and does it serve your piece? Have you covered all the areas in the plot that you wanted to? Are you struggling to write more for the story?

2. Have you written just to add to the word count. If you are just adding filler, then re-think your story. You should write long enough for the story to be told. If you find yourself struggling to make it to the 50,000 word finish line, take a critical eye to the piece. If you overwrite a piece, will your reader miss the importance of what you are writing?

Last week, I took a red pen to a person's nonfiction work (at a professional request) and trimmed more than 1,500 words of a 3,000-word piece. I trimmed until I found the essence of the piece and brought that information to the forefront. Much of the other words prevented the reader from getting to the essential information. While the author could, at some point, add more information that information needs to support the structure of the piece.


My novel and I are still at an impasse as to whether it wants to be a novella or return to a short story, but I know one thing for sure. And I guess I will never be able to whittle this work down to a short-short or business card size, unless I sign with the right agent.

Elizabeth King Humphrey has a writing plan for her second novel and hopes to reach the story's end soon. Follow her @Eliz_Humphrey.

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A bunch of us around here were participating in NaNoWriMo this year and sharing our individual NaNo progress. I was one of them. And I'm proud to say, I 'won' again this year (YAY!)! But now that the euphoria of having a brand new finished manuscript has died down, I realized I now have to edit this story (BOO!).

Not my favorite part.

As a freelance proofreader/editor I can tell you that it's much easier for me to edit another author's work than my own. I can rip a manuscript apart, suggest ways to beef up the plot, help to tighten dialogue and even guide the author to make their characters more endearing to the reader. So why the heck is it so hard to edit my own stuff?

I've come to the realization that it's because I'm too close...too intimate...to my own story. Self-editing is tough because we need to let go of the idea that the story is our 'baby' and be just as hard and critical on our own writing as we'd be reviewing someone else's work. (Actually, I don't really have a problem with being critical of my own work...I'm my own worst enemy sometimes. HA!) Here are some things I do as a freelance editor when reviewing a manuscript that I will have to do on my own manuscript:

1) Content edit: When I'm doing a content edit, I give the story a close read--beginning to end--and I ask questions such as: Does this story have a solid plot? Does it make sense? Is the storyline engaging? Does it capture me from the start? Does each chapter have a hook at the beginning and a mini-cliffhanger at the end (that's what keeps readers away all night saying, "Just one more chapter!")? Do I know where the author is taking me on this journey (eg: where is the story located?) Are the characters believable? Are they engaging? Does the author breathe life into them so I can see, hear and feel them? Is the dialogue solid? Is there more show than tell? Is there a gradual peak in the storyline? Is the ending satisfying (or at least makes sense)? Are there, what one of my wonderful writing mentors calls, 'red herrings' sprinkled throughout the story to make me want to keep on reading? These are more but these are the general and, I feel, most important questions to address. These are what make a story solid. Starting with answering these questions will kick your editing in the butt.

2) Line edit: This part of editing is the nitty-gritty, picky stuff. Once all the story has the solid base, you read it through again to check for things like: Is the punctuation spot on? Is the grammar perfect (or as close to it as possible)? Is the dialogue conversational (This is so important. Nothing slows a story down more than dialogue that rambles on endlessly. Think of real-life conversations that do the same thing...ugh!)? Are commas under control? Are paragraphs tightened up? Are there any spelling words (this means making sure words that you check for synonyms or other things that spell check 'fixes' that don't need to be)? This is all the fussy stuff that helps the story read well. And, believe me, when you're getting reviews red marks in this area after it's gone through edits can make the difference between a 3 star and a 5 star rating.

3) Proofreading: This involves more than just making sure all the above things are taken care of. It also means you make sure to check for things like line spacing, format, tabs and other things that editors really hate having to fix or mess around with. This is like the final run-through.

There you go. OH! And one more good idea is to have a writing mentor or buddy read your book over one last time to mak

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Choose your editor--and your editing "weapon"--carefully.

So, you want someone to edit your fiction? Do you really?

For most writers submitting their work to a publisher or agent, having several people to read over their manuscript seems enough. Besides, they are over the red marks bleeding over the manuscript pages. Their book is in good shape now. After all, they've spent years crafting your manuscript with care. They've workshopped it and re-written the awkward bits and pieces.

Workshops and having friends read your work is great. Often other writers and your readers and friends will find that you've changed the spelling of Margo to Margot halfway through the book. They can look at the big picture and let you know that you killed off the antagonist in the fourth chapter...and, uh, again, in the seventh chapter.

Sometimes, however, they won't or can't.

Frequently a friend can read something and mark a problematic area with a question mark, but is unable to explain why the section seems wrong.

Those may be enough of a reason to hire a manuscript editor or an editing service, but there are others as well.

You may have read of the importance for your manuscript to be styled properly. A manuscript editor working with a fiction or nonfiction work should be familiar with and know how to edit using The Chicago Manual of Style, which is a publishing industry standard.

Whenever I mention style, writers often get nervous. As a writer, I understand that. I like my own writing style. However, the style guides are created to impose a uniformity and consistency to manuscripts, not kill the writer's voice. Which numbers are written out? Which ones aren't? The style manuals are not to squash a writer's unique style, but to make sure a reader is not distracted by inconsistent styles that bring a reader out of the web of intrigue the writer has created.

Once I was hired to clean up a manuscript just for styling and grammar errors--including the persnickety two spaces after a period. The writer's friends had read her manuscript, she assured me, and they all thought it was fine. But as I read along, there were conflicts throughout the story regarding the point of view. Even though it wasn't what I was hired to work with, I noted each instance of these jarring shifts that had brought me out of the narrative.

Now, true, you'll also encounter an editor who doesn't catch every grammatical error and may leave a number or two inconsistent. That happens. And you'll run across editors who differ in opinions moving a word here or --> there. But an editor works to make your prose better. She's not your high school English teacher who left you nervous each time you turned in a paper. Working with an editor is a collaborative relationship; she wants your work to look good so you can go forth and publish, sharing your unique voice and story with the world.

Have you ever hired an editor for your work? Would you do so again? Why or why not?

Elizabeth King Humphrey is a writer and editor living in Wilmington, NC. Her piece "Running on Heart" is in the September 2011 issue of The Writer.