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The first step to turn a First Draft into a published novel is to write a Second Draft.
The Self-Editing Even Writing Gods Do
The most prolific authors and the highest sellers read their manuscript again and again after the first draft. They correct punctuation, grammar, and spelling, find more powerful words than those that flowed during Draft #1, and modify dialog that strayed from a character’s tone and voice.
They revise Draft #1 into Draft #2, #3… #n, until they are satisfied they have told their story as clearly, concisely, powerfully, emotionally, and engagingly as they can.
Then, because they have a relationship with a publisher, their work enters the editing meat-grinder, engaging the publisher’s staff in one or more of the following disciplines.
Editing
There are four levels of editing, and while overlap abounds, each brings its own perspective to the manuscript.
- Developmental editing: Employs an editor with the honed skills to evaluate a manuscript’s structure, content, and sentence style ensuring they are consistent with and effectively tell the story. Characters, dialogue, tone, pacing, and balance are all subject to the developmental editor’s scrutiny.
- Copyediting: addresses grammar, spelling, punctuation, formatting, readability, and word usage.
- Line editing: tightens sentence structure, clarity of language, and word usage (again).
- Proofreading: that final slow, deliberate read-through searching for typos, verb tense errors, and anything the previous editing may have missed.
Editing with WFC
The Word Frequency Counter, is a Find & Destroy editing tool to uncover passive, repetitive, soft, uninspiring, and poor word usage, allowing invigoration of narrative and dialog.
The instructions for using WFC are spelled out in detail on its page so that you can do it. However, it is a laborious task you may choose to outsource. We are masters at navigating word frequency issues, and we will go through your
Because changes to words and phrases will be made, it is best that we return the manuscript in MSWord.Doc(x) format with our edits available in Track Changes for your perusal and approval before committing them to file. How to get a free program equivalent to MSWord at bottom of page.
Cover, Blurb, & Bio
We offer cover design required for Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing trade paperback. Trade size is 9″ x 6″.
Because you best know the story you want to tell, we ask you to outline a cover blurb of about 100 words. Similarly, we’ll need about a 50 word biography mostly aimed at writing experience or inspiration.
We then compose the blurb and bio.
Publishing on Amazon/KDP
Amazon is not the only platform on which to self-publish, but it is the gorilla. Publishing on them exclusively, at least for the first 90 days of your promotion is advantageous.
Amazon charges nothing for publishing on KDP. That’s right, you can do it for free. However, the manuscript and the cover must each be formatted to their rigid metrics and for that there is a fee.
Publishing on Amazon is $150. Contract for 2 or 3 of the above services, and we waive the publishing fee.
Service Fees
Copyediting/Proofreading.
$300 for 80,000 words plus $40 for each additional 10,000 words –or– $100 flat fee with Word Frequency Counter editing.
Word Frequency Counter editing.
$300 for 80,000 word manuscript plus $40 for each 10,000 words thereafter.
Cover design, Blurb & Bio editing.
$300.
Full 80,000 word package: $700 plus $30/10K words.
Free MSWord Alternative
Open Office offers a suite of programs paralleling Microsoft Office that can be Downloaded for Free*. It is safe and stable and in distribution to hundreds of millions of users.
OpenOfficeWriter is analogous to MSWord and is compatible with MSWord’s Track Changes function that allows editor and author to exchange corrections and comments on a document. OpenOfficeWriter can read and save files in MSWord format.
*Disclaimer in Terms and Conditions applies.