The Importance of a Name - Why We Need to Get it Right

Many of you may assume this post has to do with naming characters, but it doesn’t. Today I want to share about the importance of names in the context of the business end of writing.

So many times writers agonize over naming characters within their manuscripts, but don’t get the name of the editor they’re querying correct. Or they try to network with someone and get his or her name wrong. This is a HUGE mistake. Sure, this person will remember you, but chances are it’ll be in a negative way. Names are critical when you’re interacting with people.

Some of us have difficult and ambiguous names – like mine. When I was the Managing Editor for Centered Magazine I constantly had writers querying me—Mr. Eddie Melson or worse Mr. Eddie Nelson. My first impulse with those queries was to hit the delete button and that’s usually what I did. Why? Because their lack attention made me think if they couldn’t get my name right, they probably had a lot of other mistakes in their writing.

Writing is a highly competitive business. Don’t start out with strikes against you just because you didn’t bother to double check the spelling of someone’s name. When I was first starting out, I remember getting a lead from John Riddle, an instructor at the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writers Conference. As I carefully copied down the information of whom to query he made a comment I’ll never forget. “Be sure you spell the editor’s name correctly. She won’t even open your email if her name is misspelled.” That advice was golden and I’ve never forgotten it!

A lot of this business involves referrals and leads from other writers, so networking is critical. Because of that it’s also important to make certain you get the name correct when you’re posting a comment on someone’s blog or sending them an email. I read a blog last week, written by a blogger named Kathy and the first comment posted was addressed to Katy. Big mistake. It could have been a typo, but it also could mean the person commenting wasn’t paying attention. Either way, it leaves a poor impression—not just to the blogger, but to anyone who reads that blog.

Here are some things I do to help me slow down and make certain I’m getting the name correct.

• Write it Down – I keep a scratch pad next to my computer and I always write down the name of the person I’m referring to. Writing it in longhand somehow helps engage my brain and acts as a way to double check my accuracy.
• Check the Gender – so many names can be either masculine or feminine. Most websites and blogs have pictures (Centered Magazine had pictures of everyone on staff making it easy to see that I’m a woman) so I try to check that way. If it’s a blog and there’s no picture, I look at previous comments to see how most people have referred to the person – male or female.
• Add to My Contacts – if I’m going to make a comment on someone’s blog or query an editor, I add them to my contacts list. This helps me find them again without searching the Internet and it gives me another way to double check their name.

Words are our business—and that includes names—so when we write, we need to be accurate and diligent.

What are some ways you ensure your accuracy? Has anyone ever misspelled your name? How did you feel?

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

A year ago I was just beginning my relationship with the Book Doctor. Have twelve months truly passed? Thanks for coming along on the ride with me.

For the new year, I talked about goal setting. Still important. This year finds me in a different place. I need inspiration. Do you feel the same way? Or did the calendar page turn find you eager to start anew?

Here are some of the places I've found inspiration during this season of struggle and self-doubt:

• Friends. One friend wisely pointed that I have entered a new stage in my writing career, and of course I should expect problems with adjustment, but that it would come. Wow! I'm perfectly normal.
• Rest. I've been sick for four weeks with the same cold/intestinal bug that is bothering a lot of people this winter. So I've gone to the doctor, taken my medicine, rested extra and tried to take care of myself.
• God's Word. From the challenge in Proverbs to live a disciplined line to the promise in 1 Corinthians that God has affirmed the gifts of speaking and knowledge within me, God gives me that little bit of encouragement and challenge I need every day.
• Tune out. After a week of "playing" on the computer instead of writing, I decided to do something drastic. I left the computer off until the evening and wrote everything longhand. It worked!
• Family. I spent a wonderful evening with my engaging toddler granddaughter Jordan, once again seeing the world through her eyes.
• Deadlines. A powerful motivator to fix the problem.

What are some things you need to renew and renergize when life gets you down?

Clichés—Out With the Old, In With the New

We've rung in the New Year and vowed to turn over a new leaf. As part of your writing resolutions I want to challenge you to man up and join the fight against clichés. These tired phrases, many as old as the hills, are begging to be put to rest. 

Here are just a few reasons to leave the tried and true behind and chart a new path with your writing style. 

• Clichés keep you from growing as a writer—if it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right.
• Clichés encourage the reader to miss what you’re saying—after all, familiarity breeds contempt.
• Clichés are the mark of a lazy writer—only writers who keep their noses to the grindstone will succeed in this dog eat dog business. 

But seriously, here are a few of the benefits to thinking before you write. (Ha—tricked you) 

• Saying something in a new way gives your writing depth—in this day and time a successful writer is one who can stand out above the rank and file.
• It keeps your readers interested by keeping them guessing—no writer wants a reader as an armchair quarterback.
• Finding a new way to describe something keeps your writing muscles toned—no guts, no glory.

Just in case you've caught onto the tongue in cheek nature of this post I want to commend you. And to those who have just managed to catch a clue, I say, better late than never.

Now I’ll cut to the chase. I challenge you to guess how many clichés are found in this post. So knuckle down and force yourself to reread this labor of love and mark my words.  No, really—mark my words—make a list and check it twice and leave a comment with your best guess of how many clichés I've used.

Here’s a hint before you join in the fun and games. Some of these are older than dirt and will lead you on a trip down memory lane. While others are so recent they almost seem to have been born yesterday. So don’t throw in the towel without giving it the old college try. Perhaps you’ll get your moment of glory as you give this post the litmus test.

After all, every dog has its day.

REFLECTION TIME

The week between Christmas and New Year’s—when the regular world almost stops (except for those after Christmas returns and shoppers), business go to skeleton staff, and writers don’t expect contracts may have a January 3rd deadline looming. (I have two due on February 1st).

I won’t talk about goals ... it’s not quite the New Year. But I will reflect on the past year. Has it been a successful year in terms of my writing career? All in all, I would say, yes. I’ll look at four areas of writing (Janice Thompson talked about the four books she was writing at any one time, and it’s stuck with me): the book I’m developing, the book I’m actually writing, the book I’m editing, and the book I’m marketing. To those four I’ll add a fifth: how I’ve helped other writers.

• Development. I’ve pushed out at least five proposals between deadlines this year, and have come to trust my judgment about what stories “work” for my publisher. In other words, I’ve increased my chances of landing contracts. At the moment I have two contracts pending. I also went on a research trip to Texas.

• Writing. I am writing better. My first drafts require less work to polish than they used to, most of the time. And I’m more aware of nuances in writing to improve my craft. I write fast—when I write. I need to improve my discipline.

• Editing. I faced my first truly negative content review—and survived. I just learned the book has gone on to the next stage. Phew.

• Marketing. While I feel like a neophyte, I must be doing something write because people are beginning to recognize my name. And oh, yes, I’ve discovered a talent for selling books one-on-one in unusual venues, like craft fairs.

• Helping other writers. I’ve spoken to a couple of writers groups, but two new ventures for me were judging the Carol awards for ACFW and, more importantly, partnering with a new writer who will get her first contract in February!

As you look at those five areas, how have you grown? Have you grown in ways you didn’t expect? Where do you see the need for improvement?

Things a Novelist Needs to Know About Writing for the Internet

Many novelists that I run into tell me they don’t need to know how to write for the Internet because they only write books. That’s not exactly accurate. If a writer has an online presence—a blog or a website or they contribute to a blog or a website—they need to know how to connect to the Internet reader. Otherwise, they’re wasting their time, and let’s face it—no writer I know has time to waste.

So here are the basics:

People Read Differently on the Internet

One of the great things about the Internet is the ease with which people can find information. Readers are often looking for information fast. They want to be able to read or scan the content quickly to find what they want. That means the author must make organization and readability of primary importance.

Studies also show that people generally read up to 25% slower on computer screens. The reasons are complex, but here are a few:

•  Computer monitors are harder on the eye than paper
• They generally have fairly low resolution, so the words aren't as sharp
•  Also, while the contrast between ink and paper is usually strong and fairly consistent, monitor settings can vary widely depending on type and settings 

Because of these factors, most people find it tiring and even frustrating to read long articles online.

Here’s how to compensate:

• Utilize short paragraphs, never more than 100 words in length
• Don’t indent paragraphs, but skip a line between them to allow time for the reader’s eyes to rest
• Front load information utilizing the inverted pyramid to disseminate information
• Utilize headings, lists and bullet points
•  Use active verbs and specific nouns
•  Write tight 

These tips will make your online presence much stronger, making it easier for your readers to find you. 

DISAPPOINTMENT

It had to happen sometime. My editor hated my baby, my latest manuscript. She didn't like the characters, she didn't like their motivations, and thought they overreacted.

Of course I've had (many) manuscripts rejected before, and I've had edits on all my books. However, this was the first time I've submitted a contracted book that came back from the editor asking for a transplant.

We've all been there: the manuscript we've slaved over and poured our hearts into has come back, rejected. Sometimes the editor is kind enough to explain why, and that can hurt worse than simply saying "no."

So as I write today, please don't take this as a complaint against my editor. She's the greatest, and more than that, I believe she's right (as difficult as it is for me to admit that.) What have I learned through the process?

Listen to your critique partners. I was resistant to this degree of change, even though I suspected it might be coming. Others had warned me. Discover the fine line between opinion and genuine problems.

It's not personal. Although I discovered this was a very personal story as I examined it. The raw emotions reflected the time in my life when I first wrote the story (dealing with teenage angst in my children, over a dozen years ago.)

Take the time to do it right. I have also discovered that the areas I let slide--although I suspect they could be better--come back later for revision. Trust myself in the first place and redo.

Manage my time better. Part of the problem with taking the time was that I hadn't given myself enough time. My grandson came two weeks early and threw my whole schedule off. But if I had been better prepared ... it would have gone more smoothly.

Trust the process--and the Lord. I am asking God to make this book one of my most powerful.

Real life doesn't always seem real in books. I based my heroine's employer loosely on the place where I worked for ten years. Yet my editor kept saying "that's not believable"--about things I had experienced first-hand. I had to change or explain better.

What are some particularly difficult rewrites or rejections you've been asked to do? What did you learn from the experience?

How to Format a Manuscript for Submission

Every industry has standards and the writing community is no different. However, since the advent of email submissions, the rules have gotten muddy. Today I’ll share some general rules to follow that will help you present yourself professionally.

Font Size and Selection
Times New Roman or Courier – 12 point – are still the gold standard. Try not to vary from these two options unless the submission guidelines request it.

Spaces Between Words and Sentences
There should only be ONE space between words and sentences. Many of us learned to type during a time when it was the rule to hit the space bar twice after the ending punctuation of a sentence. This is no longer the case. There are many reasons for this change, but one is that it saves paper on a book length manuscript.

Justification
Always justify your margins left. NEVER justify them left and right (like a newspaper).

Line Spacing
There are two ways to space a document for submission. In times past, there was only one acceptable spacing option, double spacing. This has changed with the formatting needs of the Internet.

Special Note: When submitting the sample chapters of a book length manuscript double spacing is the ONLY industry standard accepted.


Single Spaced Document
The entire document is single spaced and paragraphs are NOT indented. An extra space is added between paragraphs.

Example:
When painting your garage floor the first thing you have to do is prepare the surface. You need to give it a thorough cleaning. Consider using a pressure washer to save time when you need to remove stubborn dirt and debris. If the garage floor has been painted in the past, it’ll be necessary to remove all traces of the old paint.

After cleaning, allow the concrete time to dry. This may take several days depending on the climate and weather. After it’s dry you’ll need to fill any cracks or holes. You can find the correct supplies at your local hardware store. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s directions when applying.

Double Spaced Document
The entire document is double spaced and paragraphs ARE indented. There is NO extra space between paragraphs.

Example:
      When painting your garage floor the first thing you have to

 do is prepare the surface. You need to give it a thorough cleaning.

Consider using a pressure washer to save time when you need to

remove stubborn dirt and debris. If the garage floor has been

painted in the past, it’ll be necessary to remove all traces of the

old paint.

      After cleaning, allow the concrete time to dry. This may take

several days depending on the climate and weather. After it’s dry

 you’ll need to fill any cracks or holes. You can find the correct

 supplies at your local hardware store. Be sure to follow the

manufacturer’s directions when applying.

All of these rules are not just arbitrary. They help an editor avoid eyestrain when reading hundreds of manuscripts during the course of a week. They also help those who upload or in rare cases, typeset the submitted material.