Monday, September 17, 2012

A Polishing Pointer

Hi All! I wanted to share something. Something that has worked well for me in my latest round of polishing the ol' MS.

Earlier this year an agent requested the full of Dark Waters. This submission ended in a rejection, but a very nice rejection. He explained why he was passing on the project and gave advice to fix the issues he found. The main issue he had with my MS was the amount of inconsistencies. Yeah. Ouch.

He also agreed to let me re-query him when I had made the changes. So, after months of work, I'm done. Oh, I revised the tar out of it. But, when I was done, I did something I have never done before. And here's where I share the little something that's changed my writing in a major way.    

I downloaded the MS to my Kindle and read it like a novel. I know writers re-read their MS's on the computer, but I gotta say, it's way different on an e-reader. When I read my work on the computer, even as I would a regular novel, I'm still in edit mode. I'm in story-teller mode. But when I read it on the Kindle, no more story-teller. I am a reader. In the first chapter I had the scoffing, "Why is she asking that when it's already been answered?" reaction. And I've read that piece SO MANY times. But, this time, when I read it as a reader, I had a reader's reaction.

I read the MS in a matter of days. Two or three, I think. And this was great to clear up inconsistencies. When you write the novel, it takes months. And for me, to edit it takes months. So, sometimes I forget I already mentioned something. Reading it on an e-reader in two days kept every fact, hair color, and plot line fresh in the front of my mind.

Here's a picture I took of myself as I was reading my MS. I didn't take it to use in a blog, but to send to my CP. It works, though. I had my laptop nearby, open to the chapter I was reading, so I could make any tiny changes as needed. I had a notebook nearby to note the bigger changes necessary. I went back and fixed the bigger changes later so as to not pull me out of reader mode.


How about you? Have you read your MS on an e-reader? 

12 comments:

  1. Funny you mention it, but yes. And you are so right, it makes almost as much difference as reading it aloud!
    Good luck with your second submission.

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  2. This is a really good idea! I haven't tried it but I can imagine how it can be helpful. Besides, if the story is up in a Word document I have a tendency to over-edit. So glad you discovered this and I wish you lots of luck with that re-query!

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    1. I over-edit too! Thanks for the luck wishing! I read on another blog to send a query with each rejection received. So, I'm off to send another query. ;)

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  3. I totally do this! It really does help and I've learned to love the little notation key on my kindle. :)

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    1. I still need to figure that out. :) It's my daughter's Kindle. I still need to learn how to use it completely.

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  4. I do this, too! I've only had an ereader for a few months, so I haven't really taken advantage of reading my manuscripts on there yet, but I already put PDFs of a couple on there for me to do so in the future!

    In the past, I did it the old-school way by formatting the pages to resemble the interior of a book, then printing them. It really does help trick the brain into thinking you're reading something new, making it easier to catch mistakes! I'm so glad I now have a Kindle for this, though, since it's going to save me a lot of ink and paper. ;)

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    1. Oh I hear you! I've done the printing it out before, and man it gets expensive! Enjoy your new Kindle!

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  5. I do this! It's very, very useful. :D

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  6. Excellent tip. This is why I print mine out for my final read. Somehow it's easier to catch things on paper for me. And advice (and a re-query request) is priceless. Keep it up! :)

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  7. What a fantastic idea! I'm actually re-reading my novel now, but I'm doing it on my laptop. Maybe I should try it on my Kindle. Good luck with your re-query (and all your other queries, too)!

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  8. I have printed my manuscripts out at Kinko's, double sided, spiral bound, after I have done all the polishing I can muster. There is still something about holding paper in my hands that works well for me.

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