okay, so last week [last blog entry] I spoke about the low points of being an editor. That galley, BTW, went to final production late last night. We shall have a release date by Thanksgiving, I hope.
so one of the high points happened a few minutes ago when i opened an email from an author who'd been rejected by another editor, with my blessing, several months back. The rejection letter was well written, supportive, and encouraging--something WRP takes serious. Long story short, the author is taking the editor's advice by lengthening the story into a rose length story. She's pleased with the treatment received by the editor and myself.
What a nice way to end the day, the week, the month, the year.
How was your day?
Siochain
Friday, November 13, 2009
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
The low moments of editoring
Probably the thing I loathe the most about being an editor is correcting galleys, over and over, until my teeth ache. I tend to rush when I'm tired. When I rush invariably I make mistakes, and that makes me nuts.
Recently a manuscript, IMO one of the best examples of the Last Rose of Summer, has been the cause of extreme bouts of agita--due to incompatibilities between the author's word processing program and mine. To the fault of no one, progress has become my worst nightmare.
It meant I had to read every sentence, several times to, among other problems, ensure quotation marks were present and curved in the correct direction, and consistent in appearance with the marks in the previous lines of dialogue. Ugh. Ick. Dreck. Ewwwyeew. Too awful for words. I thought I'd caught them all.
Not.
I discovered the "NOT" after I sent the galley to the author for her comments and changes. In most cases the author lists for changes are short.
This one went on for 38 pages. Count 'em, boys and girls, thirty-eight. No mistake, no exaggeration.
Most were relevant and responsible to the "readability" and overall clean, error free appearance of the book.
And, sadly, many of her comments regarded inserting quotation marks where there were none. Ugh. Ick. Dreck. Ewwwyeew. Shrieks, ranting, weeping and renting of clothes. Not a pretty sight.
But. . . finally, it is completed. A task that should have been finished in late summer now will go into final production by Thanksgiving.
Not fun. Not nice.
It's time for a nap.
Siochan
Recently a manuscript, IMO one of the best examples of the Last Rose of Summer, has been the cause of extreme bouts of agita--due to incompatibilities between the author's word processing program and mine. To the fault of no one, progress has become my worst nightmare.
It meant I had to read every sentence, several times to, among other problems, ensure quotation marks were present and curved in the correct direction, and consistent in appearance with the marks in the previous lines of dialogue. Ugh. Ick. Dreck. Ewwwyeew. Too awful for words. I thought I'd caught them all.
Not.
I discovered the "NOT" after I sent the galley to the author for her comments and changes. In most cases the author lists for changes are short.
This one went on for 38 pages. Count 'em, boys and girls, thirty-eight. No mistake, no exaggeration.
Most were relevant and responsible to the "readability" and overall clean, error free appearance of the book.
And, sadly, many of her comments regarded inserting quotation marks where there were none. Ugh. Ick. Dreck. Ewwwyeew. Shrieks, ranting, weeping and renting of clothes. Not a pretty sight.
But. . . finally, it is completed. A task that should have been finished in late summer now will go into final production by Thanksgiving.
Not fun. Not nice.
It's time for a nap.
Siochan
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Finding inspiration when I wasn't looking for it
I recently decided the blurb lines for my blog sites and signature lines for my email addresses needed a shot of B-12. As I surfed the web today, I found a wealth of quotations which, while forcing me to recall the bad old days, also inspired me.
Margaret Thatcher: "I usually make up my mind about a man in ten seconds, and I very rarely change it." More women should take Madam Thatcher's advice. Then stick to it.
Bella Abzug: "The test for whether or not you can hold a job should not be the arrangement of your chromo-somes." I was reminded of the women who went through high school and nursing school with me. Bright, intelligent, hard working women who wanted to become physicians but were told they should not attempt something so rigorous for 1. it would make them unattractive and therefore would never find a husband or 2. could not absorb all that detailed information because after all they were just a 'girl'. Grrrr.
Joan of Arc: "I am not afraid . . . I was born to do this." If only more of us heard and heeded that inner voice.
That is for another day.
Suaimhneas
Margaret Thatcher: "I usually make up my mind about a man in ten seconds, and I very rarely change it." More women should take Madam Thatcher's advice. Then stick to it.
Bella Abzug: "The test for whether or not you can hold a job should not be the arrangement of your chromo-somes." I was reminded of the women who went through high school and nursing school with me. Bright, intelligent, hard working women who wanted to become physicians but were told they should not attempt something so rigorous for 1. it would make them unattractive and therefore would never find a husband or 2. could not absorb all that detailed information because after all they were just a 'girl'. Grrrr.
Joan of Arc: "I am not afraid . . . I was born to do this." If only more of us heard and heeded that inner voice.
That is for another day.
Suaimhneas
Friday, September 25, 2009
The Last Roses are Blooming!!
Each month of the year, the various lines at Wild Rose Press are featured. September is the month which focuses on the last roses. Since sales in the last quarter were the best ever for this rather quiet line [believe it or not, not all readers hold their breaths waiting for older heroes and heroines!] I took a look at the "Coming Soon" link on the WRP website.
Over the coming months we will release full length novels which involve an Alaskan adventure [Honorable Intentions, October] and two people who unite in their obsession to find a bone marrow donor for a critically ill teenager [The Trouble With Tessa, November]. Also slated for a November release is a darling short story with a Christmas theme [JD's Christmas Wish]. Lastly, in January we will be treated with A Fairy Tale for Gwynn, a widow with toddler twins and a tweenager with an attitude meets Mr. Wonderful--an actor looking for permanency.
We have some great stories scheduled for the first 5 months of 2010, including one of mine, but more on those later.
Siochain.
Kathy
Over the coming months we will release full length novels which involve an Alaskan adventure [Honorable Intentions, October] and two people who unite in their obsession to find a bone marrow donor for a critically ill teenager [The Trouble With Tessa, November]. Also slated for a November release is a darling short story with a Christmas theme [JD's Christmas Wish]. Lastly, in January we will be treated with A Fairy Tale for Gwynn, a widow with toddler twins and a tweenager with an attitude meets Mr. Wonderful--an actor looking for permanency.
We have some great stories scheduled for the first 5 months of 2010, including one of mine, but more on those later.
Siochain.
Kathy
Thursday, August 27, 2009
A New Blog For Me
Some of you know I make tote bags for fun and profit, plus it keeps me off the streets.
Until recently photos of the bags were posted on my website, but this became too difficult to manage. Many of the bags on the website have been sold or "reinvented" into a different style. Plus, having made almost 30 new bags this summer, I would have been bugging the web mistress to add and delete bag photos every few days. Not fun for anyone.
So . . . while updating another blog, one of those "well, duh" moments struck. I'd recently learned another computer skill--adding photos to my blogs. I could do this.
And I did.
To see up to date pictures of the bags I've made this summer, go to www.KatsKarryAlls.blogspot.com
Peace
Until recently photos of the bags were posted on my website, but this became too difficult to manage. Many of the bags on the website have been sold or "reinvented" into a different style. Plus, having made almost 30 new bags this summer, I would have been bugging the web mistress to add and delete bag photos every few days. Not fun for anyone.
So . . . while updating another blog, one of those "well, duh" moments struck. I'd recently learned another computer skill--adding photos to my blogs. I could do this.
And I did.
To see up to date pictures of the bags I've made this summer, go to www.KatsKarryAlls.blogspot.com
Peace
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Sharing Gifts With Others
Recently two people [actually more than two, but these two are foremost in my mind right now] shared their gifts with me.
A member of my writers' group brought in copies of articles from the recent Writer's Digest. Not only was it an excellent, well written article, it was something this man did not have to do. Now that I think about it, he does this often. I shall have to make the time to thank him.
The other gift came from a second chapter member: one of our newest members [she recently rejoined after an absence of maybe 10 years, maybe less] shared memories and lessons learned from the founder of the chapter on our blog. it was a lovely tribute from one friend to another. I shall have to take the time to thank her privately.
Peace
Kathy
A member of my writers' group brought in copies of articles from the recent Writer's Digest. Not only was it an excellent, well written article, it was something this man did not have to do. Now that I think about it, he does this often. I shall have to make the time to thank him.
The other gift came from a second chapter member: one of our newest members [she recently rejoined after an absence of maybe 10 years, maybe less] shared memories and lessons learned from the founder of the chapter on our blog. it was a lovely tribute from one friend to another. I shall have to take the time to thank her privately.
Peace
Kathy
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Toss out that loaf of stale bread
until recently if anyone asked me how to handle writer's block, I'd have responded with my favorite acronym: BTSOOM.
At a recent writers' group meetings, other members had abeen pushing writing to different audiences or targets, shorter romances, less than 5,000 words. Impossible, was my continued response--until I tried it.
What a difference it has made to my entire frame of mind!
Unbeknownst to me I've had writer's block for years, since finishing Try Just Once More back in 2006 I'd started many stories, outlined several, researched sort of for a few, completed nothing.
Until I wrote 2 shorts [less than 1,000 words] for an e-zine. I didn't think I could do it and almost gave up a few times. I submitted in the end of July and early August. They responded, saying they might go on hiatus and pick things back up again in 2010 and offered me the option to submit elsewhere.
So I did!!
I took one of the ezine stories and expanded it to just a tad over 3,000 words. It was a struggle at first finding those last 500 words, but I did it and submitted it as a stand-alone story but part of a series titles based on the vanDyke poem I call Those Who Love.
The second was somewhat easier to write due to the amount of external conflict [take back the night march].
I am quite pleased with myself.
More than that, I am feeling better about myelf and my writing than i have in a very long time.
Peace
At a recent writers' group meetings, other members had abeen pushing writing to different audiences or targets, shorter romances, less than 5,000 words. Impossible, was my continued response--until I tried it.
What a difference it has made to my entire frame of mind!
Unbeknownst to me I've had writer's block for years, since finishing Try Just Once More back in 2006 I'd started many stories, outlined several, researched sort of for a few, completed nothing.
Until I wrote 2 shorts [less than 1,000 words] for an e-zine. I didn't think I could do it and almost gave up a few times. I submitted in the end of July and early August. They responded, saying they might go on hiatus and pick things back up again in 2010 and offered me the option to submit elsewhere.
So I did!!
I took one of the ezine stories and expanded it to just a tad over 3,000 words. It was a struggle at first finding those last 500 words, but I did it and submitted it as a stand-alone story but part of a series titles based on the vanDyke poem I call Those Who Love.
The second was somewhat easier to write due to the amount of external conflict [take back the night march].
I am quite pleased with myself.
More than that, I am feeling better about myelf and my writing than i have in a very long time.
Peace
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