tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post7697607329616831297..comments2024-03-29T03:30:18.368-06:00Comments on Blood-Red Pencil: Editing and Marketing: Are they related?Danihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14471919576687777886noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-59928123964782398842010-08-01T08:29:42.179-06:002010-08-01T08:29:42.179-06:00Having an editor is so important! An editor not on...Having an editor is so important! An editor not only catches those blunders that we can't see anymore because we as writers are too close to the text (and we are not perfect) but a good editor can really help you make your story work. I'm an Indie author and I have been reading a lot of new independent authors lately. Most of them are very talented but few of them seemed to have their work edited. And that's a pity. There are gems of genius in their stories, but the writers often lack some basic skills. A good editor could help them make their work shine. You learn from your mistakes, but if nobody points them out to you, you tend to repeat them over and over again and you never get to that next step. And the reader feels: "Gee, this could be a really good book, if only . . ."author Christa Polkinhornhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14609212815347152668noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-40496123012032761212010-07-29T21:37:21.286-06:002010-07-29T21:37:21.286-06:00I always have someone look over the free stories a...I always have someone look over the free stories and sections that I post to my website. I just posted one of my short stories on Smashwords as a marketing tool. I hired a copy editor to go through it.<br /><br />What shocked me was how many people asked "why." I ask, why would I not? I don't always have the best grammar skills. I miss words. I think a sentence makes sense, but it doesn't. An entire plot line might be off. <br /><br />The free things - especially the free things - are meant to entice people to purchase my work. It would be a poor reflection on me, as an author, if I didn't put my absolute best foot forward.<br /><br />I 100% agree that the editing process is vital to being about to survive the word of mouth marketing out there.Krista D. Ballhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13735832053631141449noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-47877266297105536132010-07-29T11:50:38.601-06:002010-07-29T11:50:38.601-06:00You're quite right, Scott, it must always be t...You're quite right, Scott, it must always be the best we can do. But on the shelves at Borders, BN, etc., and even on Amazon, our books are product, inventory, and they need to sell. This in no way demeans or negates the process of honing the craft to give our readers a fantastic experience. Sometimes our books take them as far as they ever get to go in their lives. We need to make those trips memorable.Linda Lanehttp://www.DenverEditor.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-88969249951493862042010-07-29T11:34:22.262-06:002010-07-29T11:34:22.262-06:00There's also the satisfaction of honing the cr...There's also the satisfaction of honing the craft and delivering the reader the best possible experience. Never perfect, never merely product--but the best we can do.<br /><br />Scott Nicholson<br />http://hauntedcomputer.blogspot.comAuthor Scott Nicholsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09778999586794284457noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5704943052235281766.post-32475019639102960262010-07-29T11:28:12.685-06:002010-07-29T11:28:12.685-06:00As I reread this post, I realized the marketing/ed...As I reread this post, I realized the marketing/editing connection may not be as clearly linked to the author/editor connection as I had intended. I apologize for failing to clarify that they go hand in hand. Without a positive and effective author/editor relationship, no amount of marketing is likely to make a book a bestseller. <br /><br />Perhaps the last paragraph might better read like this: love, marriage; horse, carriage; author, editor; editing, marketing. It's a stepwise progression to the book sales we all want.Linda Lanehttp://www.DenverEditor.comnoreply@blogger.com