Tag Archives: fiction editing

Using Commas with As, Since and While

Posted on March 20, 2017 by Danielle de Valera

This is actually very easy, but people often get it wrong. Most people whack in a comma at the end of all opening clauses that contain a verb. In Australia, at least, this is not the right way to go … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for indie publishers, advice for writers, advice on commas, Australian manuscript appraisers, commas, Danielle De Valera, editing, editors, fiction editing, good editors, Patrick de Valera, Since and While | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Producing a Print Book’s a Hard Journey

Posted on March 8, 2017 by Danielle de Valera

Some time ago, I investigated Indie publishing, particularly the publishing of Print on Demand (POD) books with CreateSpace, a subsidiary of Amazon. This investigation and my own experiences with it were most illuminating, and I thought I might share my … Continue reading →

Posted in advice for indie publishers, advice for writers, Australian manuscript appraisers, Danielle De Valera, good editors, how to find a good editor, indie publishing, manuscript appraisers, manuscript assessments, Patrick de Valera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Conflict in Novels

Posted on February 11, 2017 by Danielle de Valera

Every good novel needs conflict, something that prevents its hero from achieving his or her aim. Superman wants a safe world, Lex Luthor wants to take it over and doesn’t care who he kills to do it. Girl wants boy, … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for writers, Australian manuscript appraisers, conflict in fiction, Conflict in novels, Danielle De Valera, good editors, Patrick de Valera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Collateral Damage as Amazon Applies the Thumbscrews to Reviews

Posted on November 5, 2016 by Danielle de Valera

Have you spent more than $50 on Amazon in your lifetime? (I think it’s in your lifetime.) They’re now instigating this rule where they won’t let you post a review, even though you’ve bought the book, unless you have spent … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for indie publishers, advice for writers, Amazon reviews, Australian manuscript appraisers, Danielle De Valera, indie publishing, manuscript assessors, Patrick de Valera | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Those pesky possessive Ss

Posted on May 28, 2016 by Danielle de Valera

with possessive Ss I think we all know that an apostrophe is used before the possessive of singular common nouns, e.g. the boy’s bike. So far, so good. But what if the noun being possessed (as it were) isn’t singular, … Continue reading →

Posted in advice for indie publishers, Australian manuscript appraisers, Danielle De Valera, editing, editors, fiction editing, manuscript assessments, manuscript assessors, Patrick de Valera, possessive Ss, re-editing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Commas – inside or outside quotes?

Posted on April 11, 2016 by Danielle de Valera

In my work as a manuscript evaluator and developmental editor, it’s clear to me that writers are still having a lot of trouble with commas. One of the instances that always seems to cause confusion is the one where sometimes, … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for writers, commas, editing, editors, fiction editing, indie publishing, Patrick de Valera | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Spontaneity in fiction

Posted on September 14, 2014 by Danielle de Valera

How important IS spontaneity in fiction? The answer is: It depends. Some works benefit from having a style that appears spontaneous. However, in my experience, when emerging writers talk about spontaneity and the fear of losing it by redrafting, they … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for writers, Australian manuscript appraisers, editing, editors, fear of losing spontaneity, fiction editing, getting published, manuscript appraisals, manuscript appraisers, manuscript assessments, manuscript assessors, traditional publishing | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

So yew trust yaw computer to cheque yaw spelling?

Posted on July 7, 2014 by Danielle de Valera

  Your computer can check the spelling in your fiction for you, but it won’t pick up your typos and it won’t pick up wrong gender adjectives, such as blond for blonde, where the owner of the hair is female. … Continue reading →

Posted in advice about writing, advice for writers, Computer spell checks, editing, fiction editing, manuscript presentation, spell checks | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment