How to Edit Yourself Into Print
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Average rating4.2
Reviews with the most likes.
The good news: This book has lots of great editing tips to improve my story, with good examples and applicable action steps.
The bad news: It showed that my novel (currently in its third draft) needs more revision than I had thought.
If you're a fiction writer, this is a must-read.
When people talk about books that changed their lives, they usually talk about novels. The power of fiction is incredible and stories like “[b:The Lord of the Rings 34 The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, Part 1) J.R.R. Tolkien http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1156043001s/34.jpg 3204327]” and “To Kill a Mockingbird” resonate for decades. But if someone asked me what book changed my life, I'd have to point to “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers.” Yes, I'd immediately be branded a super-dork, but this book transformed my work like nothing before or since. For ten years, I'd been struggling with “Show, Don't Tell.” Everybody said it, but nobody explained it. “Self-Editing for Fiction Writers” took my hand and guided this dumb little pup through example after example, telling me exactly how to improve my writing. The difference between my before stories and my after stories is remarkable. This is one of the only books I recommend to people who ask me about writing. It's clear. It works.
Want to improve your fiction writing skills? Then this is the book to buy. The editors discuss the most common problems they have to fix when doing their jobs - and give the aspiring author the skills necessary to make their work more professional and become better writers.
The book's chapters each focus on one issue, giving examples of how to and how not to use the techniques, a check list of things to watch for in your writing and exercises to make sure you understand what they're teaching.
The writing is clear, to the point, and designed to turn a passable manuscript into something publishers will be fighting to represent.