The Frugal Editor: Do-it-Yourself Editing Secrets From your query letter to final manuscript to the marketing of your book Whether you are a new or experienced author,The Frugal Editor helps you present whistle-clean copy from a one-page cover letter to your entire manuscript that will convince those with the power to say 'yea' or 'nay' to your precious book. The third edition ofThe Frugal Editor, is the winningest book in Carolyn's multi-award-winning HowToDoItFrugally Series of Books for writers with accolades from Reader Views Literary Award, Dan Poynter's Global Ebook Award, the coveted Irwin Award, and many others. This fully updated edition includes the new help you need from managing gender pronouns to maximizing the usefulness of front and back matter. Altogether,The Frugal Editor now provides 50% more information designed for the success of your title. 'Writers and editors have a true friend in Carolyn Howard-Johnson. Her word smarts, her publishing savvy, and her sincere commitment to authors and editors makeThe Frugal Editor a must-have resource.' -- June Casagrande, author of The Best Punctuation Book, Period and Grammar Snobs Are Great Big Meanies (Penguin) and syndicated grammar columnist 'Previous editions ofThe Frugal Editor were excellent. Nothing could be better... except this book which has an additional 50% new content. The publishing world changes quickly, and this text allows writers to keep up with the ever-changing world of editors, publicists, finicky agents, trends, cultural expectations, queries, and media kits... exploding grammar myths, and possible scams. Save yourself time and money by learning from the best, Howard-Johnson. -- Carolyn Wilhelm, BA, MA, MS and author of environmental content 'Carolyn Howard-Johnson is a godsend for writers everywhere. Her new bookThe Frugal Editor, is part reference guide, part do-it-yourself editing manual, part masterclass on the writing and publishing industry... and all with Carolyn's signature humor and encouraging energy! She is a master at simplifying overwhelming tasks into relevant, can-do information. This book is a must for every writer's bookshelf!' --Dallas Woodburn, book coach and best-selling author of Thanks, Cariss, for Ruining my Life 'I am usingThe Frugal Editor to polish my next book. I've used it for the first edit, the beta edit, and...I'm ready to snuff out excess words. Your tip about adding spaces with the search and replace tool is a timely add to my editing skills. It was easy to weed out abbreviations like AR for Arkansas one of my clients used with the (space)AR(space) feature.' --Elizabeth Seckman, editor of Insecure Writers Group newsletter 'In the third edition of herThe Frugal Editor, Carolyn Howard-Johnson helps authors obtain a finished product worthy of Simon and Shuster. The book guides readers through evolving changes in the English language that has no governing academy regulating it.' --Helen Dunn Frame shares her secrets for Retiring in Costa Rica or Doctors, Dogs and Pura Vida and other books. 'Whether you're writing your first book or tenth,The Frugal Editor is a must-read.' --Tim Bete, director, Erma Bombeck Writers' Workshop 'Carolyn Howard-Johnson'sThe Frugal Editor has been my go-to editing bible for many years. The new Third Edition is the best yet with all the clear, easy-to-follow advice on how to edit your work like a pro of the earlier editions and a whole new range of up-to-the-minute advice about such things as using gender pronouns correctly, well-researched insider info on how to avoid agents' and publishers' pet peeves, how to avoid scams, and lots more. This is a must for every author's editing arsenal.' --Magdalena Ball, CompulsiveReader From Modern History Press
Chapter 2: Organizing Only Feels Like Procrastination
Setting up your surroundings for the editing process is so much fun it might feel as if you’re procrastinating. In these post-typewriter days, we might have two or more environments. We think of the place where your desktop computer (or computers!) resides, first. The other could be where you plop yourself with your laptop. You know, yourworkspaces. Anything from an office of your own complete with desk, desktop computer, filing cabinets, and maybe even a wall of framed award certificates to the comfy ones outdoors or by the hearth. All of them need to accommodate your work habits and your specific needs. Your book deserves it. For this coming edit, I’d like to see everything working at top efficiency—from the innards on your hardware to the new processes and ideas you choose from thisFrugal Editor to templates (at least the drafts!) for your own important marketing material. So, let’s chat a little aboutwhatever serves as yourdesktop—virtual or otherwise—inall of your writing spaces. I hope you’ll have a little fun with these organizing efforts!
Your Real Old-Fashioned Desk Environment
Clear your desk of piles of stuff so tall you can’t see over them, but don’t be tempted to take on the tasks you find buried there; they waited this long, they can wait longer. Put the papers, notebooks, and clippings aside or pile them in a box and enjoy feeling naughty. When your environment is about as tidy as needed, you’re ready to get your editing tools in shape.
Note: If you choose to balance a laptop in less-than-traditional spaces when you edit—in a shady spot on the patio or in a closet you use so you can enjoy complete quiet and isolation—those spots benefit by adapting chair-side tables or bookshelves to substitute for real desk-type storage. They don’t have to be fancy. I salvaged several such office accoutrements curbside where neighbors leave discards with big “Free!” signs attached.
Put your most important reference books on your desk near your computer even if you prefer to use online resources. It’s preferable if you can reach them without moving your fanny from your chair. Old references, like some of the ones I recommend in the Appendix of this book, qualify. Even your vintage dictionaries with words in them that gurus at Merriam-Webster have removed from newer editions may turn out to be more useful than you ever imagined. You’ll love the affirmation of knowing you are remembering stuff new resources try to convince you never existed. If you lose track of treasures like these, you’ll be chastising yourself when you decide to write, say, a historical novel or craft a dialogue using vocabulary that hasn’t been used in decades. You’ll know instantly what you’re missing when you don’t find the spelling in a newly purchased reference or go online to find a word lyricist Cole Porter rhymed with such creativity. Some of the new references can’t be accessed online without paying for them, so why not have a hardcopy—old or new—readily available, too. I especially like mine when I use it to avoid disturbing my screen to check a reference.
Note: When you go to my Appendix for recommendations, you might be surprised that I do not listElements of Style by Strunk, White, and Angell among my favorites.Strunk is astylebook that gets mistaken for a book of grammar rules, and it often confuses writers who aren’t trained editors. We’ll talk about style choices vs. grammar rules later. If you have a copy ofStrunk already, check the copyright date.Strunk has been through many editions over the years and the old ones might lead you astray big time. That doesn’t mean you won’t find a tidbit in an old edition that is still viable. Just know if it conflicts with something you just learned, there may be a good reason for that.
Getting Your Computer Ready for Editing Projects
If you don’t work withWord’s Spelling and Grammar Checker all the time, set it up with this moment in mind. You’re safe using it for most manuscript-type duties. I even installed a Microsoft word processor especially programmed for Apple iMacs on my computer. If you choose to do that, get help finding the most recent update. And keep reading for mini reviews on other word processors if you are thinking about using something else.
You have checked and installed or bookmarked your important references like the ones mentioned in the section above. If you need a specializedstyle guide beyondChicago Manual of Style for writing technical material or other narrowly focused topics, check in with Google or go to Wikipedia’s list of style guides. You’re ready except for essential details like how to make computers behave more efficiently for the task of editing which is so different from writing itself. You also want to adapt your computer and many of your old habits to what is newer and faster. Old is not necessarily bad. Experience is a good thing. But you’re going to be surprised. You are aware that digitization has wrought big changes, but much we think of as staid and reliable has changed radically in the last few decades, too. And we can blame computers for only some of it. Just keep reading!
Revisiting Familiar Computer Aids<
