How To De-stress Your Proofing
I'm a slow learner, but I finally learned a valuable lesson that’s saving me a lot of time and hair-pulling.
Does this sound familiar? You send your manuscript
to a copy editor, or first line editor, you get it back and make the suggested
changes. Next you send it to a proofer, it comes back, and now this person has
you redoing changes the first one had you make! Then, even more annoying, the final proofer doesn’t just look for last-minute errors, she
sends it back reversing some of the grammar things one more time!
It took me four novels to get
smart. Now when I send out my manuscript, I include a cheat sheet of my personal “style” preferences and tell
the person doing it that is what I’ve chosen to do and that I have no
interest in reinventing my grammar style.My style preferences will be different than yours
and you (and anyone working on my manuscripts) may disagree with them. Some of
them violate “traditional” thought, or rules, but most are simply a matter of
preference. Since there are so many differing opinions on many things
grammatical, it makes sense to firm up your own and maintain a consistency in
your style.
As an example, here is the attachment I sent to my
proofer: (This is a short list, but I’ve
begun to include it when I send out my document. I’m sure it will get longer
over time!) Try using one with your own style choices.
Hi
Rather
than have to repeat corrections, I’m sending you some style prefernces I’ve
chosen to do consistently and do not want to change.
1. She’d, he’d, who’d, etc. I
do use these but try not to have too many.
2.
TJ’s slang: ings, e.g. thinkin’ if at
end of sentence, I put the apostrophe BEFORE the period. Also, the editor’s
recommendation was not to add an apostrophe for words like coulda, shoulda,
cause, etc.
3.
My editor made me take out almost all
semi colons and replace most with dashes, so I prefer to leave them in that way.
4.
I spell email with no hyphen. Both ways are acceptable and
I’m using that one consistently, so if you find one I did differently, pls
correct it.
5.
I have researched inner dialogue and
choose to use no italics or speech tags for them when the POV is obvious.
6.
I use 911, not 9-1-1 as some authors
do.
7.
My characters reserve the right to speak
in non-perfect grammer.
Good advice, Marla. Think of all the money saved on aspirin when those proofing conflicts can be avoided so easily. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteHi,
DeleteThanks for stopping in. Yes, I think for those of us who use more than one person to edit and proof and final-proof, it saves lots of time. See you soon,
Marla
What a great suggestion! Thank you so much for sharing, Marla!
ReplyDeleteHi Linda,
DeleteYeah, I think as we gain experience, we become more confident of our style and grammar choices. I was getting crazy with all the back-and-forth advice! Happy and healthy and successful writing,
Marla
I've had and still have the same problem. I also attempted the same fix lol. Didn't work. The reviewers still complained about it even though it was a specific style of writing that was obviously used w/ artistic choice. They didn't like it. Whined about it on reviews. Can't win.
ReplyDeleteHi,
DeleteI think if your editor/proofer complains about it, you need to find a new one! I read a lot and if I like a certain style used by a famous author, I adopt it. Any good proofer should accept an author's style and not try to force their own on you. I sympathize, though, they ARE hard to find.
I always research the things I use and if it is definitely something all of the grammarians do not agree on I use whichever one I like best. The only thing I probably would not use is something specifically UK or European because I am in USA.
Nice to hear from you,
Marla
Many of your points on your style sheet I would say are absolutely non-disputable. For example, it's archaic in my view to use a hyphen in 'email'. Reported speech, i.e. your characters' speech - yes, anything goes, they can say whatever they like, it doesn't have to be grammatically correct. And abbreviations for slang - yes, definitely the apostrophe before the period, that is correct. I have a few clients who give me style sheets, and I welcome them.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Julia!
DeleteNice to hear some of my style ideas are okay! Takes time for an author to get comfortable with a "style" of her/his own. Wish more proofers had your attitude. Mine was happy to get my "list." But apparently not all of them are.
Would you care to leave us info on your website?
Also good to know if you specialize in any particular genre.
Have a nice Sunday,
Marla
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteHere's my info - https://juliaproofreader.wordpress.com/2013/11/27/what-can-a-proofreader-do-for-you-faqs/ (sorry it's a bit late). And I have worked in pretty much any genre you can think of, and maybe a couple more! Thanks, Marla. Julia
DeleteThanks, Julia!
DeleteHave a great week,
Marla
What a great idea! I've edited for several authors, & I'm always hesitant at first, esp. when they have a first-person narrator who can OF COURSE say "whatever she wants." It can take a while to get the "feel" for the dialect & style quirks. But by the time I'm doing a second or third book for someone, I'm frequently making sticky notes that just say "you're doing it again." :)
ReplyDeleteActually, the best thing about submitting your "list" to an editor is that it breaks the ice, as it were, setting some ground rules for the discussion & negotiation about these stylistic differences. Some authors are too timid(probably fuming silently), whereas some authors are very assertive & inflexible(as NO editors are, I'm sure!) in defense of their style. So it's refreshing to hear "yes, I'm aware that some people do this differently, and this is my intentional choice." Then even if I disagree with you about your semicolons or dashes or whatever, I know you're AWARE of it, & I can move on to other issues.
Hi Face4,
Deleteyes, now that I've started doing this, I think things will go more smoothly. I didn't with my latest edit and was VERY sorry. She hated semi colons and had me take out every one I used! We really were out of sync with each other. I think many of us Indie authors struggle to find an editor and/or proofer that we are in sync with. Giving one your list up front saves a lot of work for both of you! It take a few books to get to the point where you're comfortable doing that, though.
Nice to hear from you and have a great week,
Marla
Invaluable advice here. I was getting a lot of this from proofreaders, and it was driving me crazy to explain that even English teachers don't have perfected grammar lol.
ReplyDeleteGreat suggestion, and thank you for the template of your letter. I shall use this.
ReplyDeleteI was going to tell you this works well until you find your perfect editor. But even then I think it is a good idea as they are not going to remember your style exactly and you may change from time to time. And I don't use the same person to proof as to edit, so that really makes it vital. I got so weary of changing back and forth. This has shortened my anxiety time. Good luck with it! And if you know a great editor who specializes in mystery-suspense, let us know.
DeleteHave a great day,
Marla
Nice tip for successful writers!
ReplyDeleteYes! Saves a lot of irritation. Have a new book I'll be sending in for copy edit and proofing soon and will be sending my list again.
DeleteThanks for stopping in,
Marla