Self-publishing; more useful, basic tips for authors.

Self-publishing: more useful, basic tips for authors.

Self-publishing is becoming more popular and accessible, and many authors now prefer to edit their own work. All writers are aware that we cannot simply rely on the ‘auto-correct’ system on our computers. Sometimes it takes spelling, grammar and punctuation out of context and suggests an incorrect alternative. And sometimes it’s just WRONG!

To support anyone in the task of editing, I offer a further selection of common pitfalls, with some simple explanations. (See previous blog.)

In this blog, I shall concentrate mainly on words which sound the same, but are spelt differently.

 To, too, two:

‘To’ would be used most often, except when we require a number, ‘two’, or wish to mean ‘also’ = ‘too’. Comparison also requires ‘too’.

e.g. My two friends are going to the beach, too, unless it’s too hot.

Who’s and whose:

Who’s simply means ‘who is’ (?) or ‘who has’ (?). Once again, the apostrophe denotes a missing letter or letters.

‘Whose’ really means ‘of whom?’ or ‘belonging to whom?’

e.g. “Whose idea was it to suggest who’s attending?” * Computer auto-correct just INCORRECTLY underlined (‘who’s = who is attending’), suggesting ‘whose’!!

Your, you’re:

‘Your’ shows possession or belonging.

‘You’re’ means ‘you are’. Again, an apostrophe denotes a missing letter: e.g. “You’re going to miss your train.”

Also consider: you’d = you had/you would

                          You’ll = you will/you shall (mostly used in dialogue).

“You’d better be quick or you’ll miss your train!”

Similarly, we’ve = we have,

                 we’ll = we will/shall,

                 we’d = we had/would

Where/were/we’re:

Where (?)= in/at/what place?

Were = past tense of ‘to be’.

We’re = we are

e.g. “We’re visiting the house where you were born.”

Past/Passed:

past = former / on(wards)/beyond

passed = the past tense of ‘to pass’.

e.g: At half past two, having just passed her driving test, she reluctantly walked past the patisserie.

Practice (noun)/ practise (verb).

e.g. She went to piano practice. / She likes to practise the piano. (UK)

Effect (noun)/affect (verb). 

e.g. His mood is beginning to affect his work. / His mood is having a negative effect on his work.

I should like to finish by mentioning three very familiar errors which make me cringe.

Less/fewer.

To put it simply, ‘less’ is ‘to a smaller degree’. It usually reflects comparison.

e.g. “He is less intelligent than his brother.”

‘Fewer’ = a smaller number.  

e.g. “10 items or fewer” is the correct phrase for the fast check-out in a supermarket. (Again, auto-correct thinks it should be “are the correct phrase” having picked up the word ‘items’.

e.g. She has less homework because she is studying fewer subjects.

‘Would of’ is completely wrong. It should be ‘would have’. Hooray! Auto-correct has underlined ‘would of’!!

e.g. He would have arrived earlier, but his train was late.

‘Off of’: These two words do not go together. Either word can be omitted.

Essentially, ‘off’ is the opposite of ‘on’, or signifies ‘no longer attached to, or associated with someone/something’.

A ghastly example is: “I can’t take my eyes off of you.” “I can’t take my eyes off you” is fine.

Which sounds better? “When I get off of work.” “When I get off work.” Neither? (Auto-correct is about to blow up at this stage, with green lines all over the place. It has, in fact, underlined the correct phrase!!)

‘Of’ means ‘from’ or ‘belonging to’ or specifies amount or quantity.

e.g. His mistakes are of his own making. He drinks a litre of vodka a day!

To show I am by no means perfect, I will leave you with a howler I spotted in my own work.

“It was a wait off his mind.” “It was a weight off his mind.” I am sure you can see which is correct!

R.S.Charles.

http://www.mymysterybooks.com

Editing Novels: Some Basic, Useful Tips for Self-Publishing Authors

by Richard S Charles

At a time when more and more writers are dispensing with publishers, agents and editors, and are entering into the realms of self publishing and e-books, editing is becoming a natural part of any author's routine work.
While by no means exhaustive, the simple editing tips provided here can help to build up a useful aide-memoire for today's modern authors.

REPETITION.
Even the best writers cannot readily keep track of the number of times they use certain pet phrases or the same vocabulary as they progress through their work. In the first draft, this is not a priority. Once such words have been identified during checking or a read-through, a trusty Thesaurus will offer useful alternatives and help to avoid repetition.
Remember: when making alterations, expressions can sometimes inadvertently be replaced with alternatives which  may have also already been used elsewhere or are yet to be found further on. Thus a circular process can present itself.

FLUENCY, CONTINUITY AND CONSISTENCY.
It is always useful to read work aloud. It will soon become apparent where the language doesn't easily flow and a passage needs tweaking. Some authors read and record each chapter so they can judge fluency more easily during playback.

Writing a novel is not dissimilar to writing a play. Both consist of creating scenes which must run effortlessly into each other to continue the story. If specific references are made to time, manner, location, weather, clothes, belongings etc., such information must be 'tracked' for consistency until variations are stated.

Credibility also plays its part. Mentioning technology or inventions not in keeping with the time period or setting can sometimes cause embarrassing problems. "It was just after the Second World War. Sophie felt compelled to write about her experiences. She plugged in her laptop and..."

Similarly, in fiction, sequences of events, actions which have happened, or information which has yet to be divulged must all be kept in mind to avoid obvious flaws in the content of one's writing. Habits and characteristics used for the description or development of characters need to be consistent for those characters, unless a change is specified.

GRAMMAR, PUNCTUATION AND SPELLING.
Relying on a computer to check grammar, punctuation and spelling is not a foolproof method. Every author is bound to have a reasonable grounding here, but mistakes are easy to overlook. "Fragment-consider revising" often flashes up in green when there is a potential problem in relation to grammar. In context, however, what is written can be perfectly acceptable. Dialogue, for example, may call for slang or incorrect language, in keeping with the character's speech patterns. Here, advice from a computer does not always need to be strictly adhered to. A certain amount of flexibility is needed. Remember, it is the writer who is writing, NOT the computer!


A helpful tip relates to the use of 'who' or 'that'. For example: "The passengers, who were late, have just arrived". "The trains that were late have just arrived." Essentially, use 'who' for people and 'that' for things.


Punctuation is necessary to help the reader make sense of what is written. Commas are used in a list, or to show a natural pause or break or section in a sentence, and a full stop is needed at the end. Question marks and exclamation marks are self-explanatory and replace full stops, though they are easy to overlook if one is not paying attention. Speech marks are used for dialogue. These can also be forgotten, especially when closing each speaker's dialogue. New speaker, new line, is an age-old rule.

Paragraphs generally indicate a change or new development in a section of writing usually devoted to one idea and should start with an indent. This is often electronically done when publishing takes place. Initially, the writer may be directed to use a double space bar to signify a new paragraph.

Spelling mistakes will be highlighted in red for most documents written on computers. Choose carefully from the selection of alternatives given and then re-check the meaning to ensure you are using the correct word from those which have broadly the same sense or spelling.
Should one use 'piece of mind' or 'peace of mind'? I freely give this example as something I failed to spot when editing one of my novels! Unfortunately, it fell to a reader to point it out.

Common errors revolve around similar sounding words which are spelt differently. To illustrate this, I will refer to 'their' - denoting possession, 'there' - a place, and 'they're' - the shortened form of 'they are'. For example: "Their weekly routine suggests they're there every Sunday."

'Its' - reflects possession and 'it's' - is short for 'it is'. Generally, an apostrophe denotes a missing letter or letters, or suggests possession. "It's helpful to know its origin"

Their/his/her. Consider the following: "Should a writer have a good knowledge of their own language?" "Should a writer have a good knowledge of his/her own language?" "Should writers have a good knowledge of their own language?" Perhaps you can now see the correct answer(s)?

Here, I have merely tried to highlight random examples of common errors which I find useful to look out for when editing. Doubtless, as I continue to build up my list, more will follow.

R.S. Charles. (Author of "Whispering Palms.")
http://www.mymysterybooks.com

"Laugh And The World Laughs With You."

by Richard S Charles

Two tourists were talking about the trials and tribulations of their holidays in Greece.

"Did you have the shish kebabs?"

"From the moment we arrived!"

"Did you go on the Acropolis?"

"On it? We were never off it!"

This little dialogue, courtesy of English comedian, Les Dawson, has always brought a smile to my face. But it wouldn't appeal to everyone.

Man enjoys the supreme luxury of being able to laugh. In a world often divided by politics, religion, race, ideology, phobia and principle, laughter can be an unusual, yet useful, unifying force. As a biological function and human quality, it is often taken for granted, but laughter can bring people together, put them at their ease, help form friendships and sometimes create unbreakable bonds.

Its manifestation can range from a nervous trickle to a belly roar. It can be subtle or infectious. And nowadays, if people are unable to actually laugh in person, they are 'Laughing Out Loud' in written media messages all over the world. Social network sites are swamped with friends who 'LOL', giving each other an immediate, imaginable picture of their feelings or reactions, thereby sharing sentiments of happiness, warmth and fun. Indeed, according to the medical practitioners, laughter is the tonic we all need, and laughing is something every one of us can and should do!

What we actually laugh at, however, is another story. It depends on that most subtle and complex of man's qualities, the 'sense of humour'. This is uniquely human and can emanate from a variety of sources ranging from highly individual, personal taste to common attitudes of national stereotypes varying from country to country. Some sources of amusement will doubtless have universal appeal; others will be unique to a particular person, a family or like-minded people.

Some of us will prefer visual comedy to verbal humour, slapstick to sarcasm, jibes to jokes, but everyone has a trigger which will eventually set off a chain reaction allowing our facial muscles and vocal chords to show exactly how we feel. When something is funny, the effect will always be the same. We will laugh!

Never underestimate the power of laughter. It helps us to maintain a balanced sense of values. It takes the wind out of the pompous and arrogant and those who have lost their sense of proportion. If we can see the funny side, we will probably never make the mistake of taking ourselves too seriously. Indeed, to say someone has no sense of humour is usually an insult implying they lack one of the most vital of human qualities. None of us has to go far to find something to laugh at, and it's usually well worth the trip.

Just imagine a world without humour, a world without laughter. This thought alone would be enough to remove a smile from anyone's face.

http://www.mymysterybooks.com/