Lara Zielinsky

Loose ends

In the same vein as several previous articles, this week I’m going to discuss getting your draft manuscript (possibly the one you worked on for NaNoWriMo just past) ready for other eyes. This might be when you are self-editing, or getting the work ready for beta readers or a professional editor. Stories are driven byContinueContinue reading “Loose ends”

Editing Prep

Authors have many choices these days to get their words published. I’ve discussed the process from draft to done. In this week’s article, I’m going to focus on what authors should do to prepare their files for sending to editors or agents who will make changes to the manuscript. This is going to be oneContinueContinue reading “Editing Prep”

Writing with Others

Reference: This is a post about writers workshops and writing groups, and is my take (and expansion) on ideas presented by academicwritingsuccess.com. Disclosure: I am an editor. I also definitely have a teaching approaching when working with clients. It’s a new year and, if you are like many writers, some of your resolutions revolve aroundContinueContinue reading “Writing with Others”

Attributions in Dialogue

Reference: Managing Attributions in Dialogue Scenes: Who Said That? (Florida Writers Association) One of the toughest things to explain, IMHO, is when attribution is necessary, when it’s not, and whether it goes in front or behind the dialogue. This blog linked above from the FWA is very bare bones and I don’t think goes quiteContinueContinue reading “Attributions in Dialogue”

2021 Year in Review

My year of editing full time was a blast! An absolute joy. Every day. Stats From January through December 2021, I edited: short stories (under 15k) = 6collection of shorts = 1novellas (15k=45k) = 4novels (50k+) = 13 This list represents more than 1.3 million words. I also helped writers one-on-one with brainstorming and evaluatingContinueContinue reading “2021 Year in Review”

Processing Feedback

In a previous blog, I discussed the steps to go from first draft to done and ready to publish. Step 2 is getting feedback. Whether this is from alpha readers, beta readers, developmental editors, you need to get feedback from people who look out for what readers need to be able to read your workContinueContinue reading “Processing Feedback”

Editing Yourself

You don’t have to edit on paper, but you do need to be able to gain distance from your writing process to edit yourself. I generally recommend only that you edit yourself after a very long break – and stick to broad concepts. Unless you have already internalized the grammar rules – or are willingContinueContinue reading “Editing Yourself”

From Draft to Done

Listen to this post in Spotify or on Anchor.fm In today’s blog post, I’m going to try to discuss the entire writing process from first draft to publication- or submission-ready. Where you are in the process should give you some clues as to what type of editing assistance you may need to get to theContinueContinue reading “From Draft to Done”

What comes after NaNoWriMo?

Welcome to December, NaNoWriMo-ers! Yay! you’ve got 50k. But do you have a story? self-editing Ran across this blog by author Amy Jewell which offers some issues pantsers might come across as they are trying to edit. As I read I kept hearing myself mutter, “I have a solution for that in my February workshop…thatContinueContinue reading “What comes after NaNoWriMo?”

What’s word (count) go to do with it?

Stacey Carroll has a great post about word counts and where they fit in short stories, novellas, novels, and even the different genres. Go read it. I won’t repeat it here. What I want to talk about is answers to the questions “how many words make a scene?” This question about word counts really shouldContinueContinue reading “What’s word (count) go to do with it?”