Musings

Musings

So what is a dangling participle?

Dangle (v) – to hang or cause to hang so as to swing freely I mention dangling participles and modifiers...
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Musings

Strong narratives need strong conjunctions

'As' you like it Good writing is strong, confident writing, but punchy nouns and verbs won’t move the story along...
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Musings

Breathing life into your novel

‘The body – the cage – is everything of the most respectable – but through the bars, the wild animal...
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Musings

Is Perfect the Enemy of the Good …?

. . . and can you expect a perfectly corrected manuscript from Perfect the Word? I have long considered writing...
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Musings

You’re nicked! At-a-glance notes on police rank structure and terminology for UK crime writers

Do you know your FBI from your NCA? Your ADW from your GBH? Your MP from your misper? Your DA...
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Musings

Show me, don’t tell me, Mr Chekhov!

‘Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.’ Anton Chekhov This is...
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Musings

Going the distance with your readers by holding point of view

Hello all. Over the next few months I hope to publish some blogs for new and not-so-new authors, based on...
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Musings

How not to haunt your prose with head hops

An author friend of mine recently wrote a novel that included a chapter about a haunted World War Two Lancaster...
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Musings

FINALLY – A SHORT BLOG POST!

One of the things my authors ask me about most often is how they can cut down the number of...
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Musings

Author Revision Time: What Should You Do After You’ve Received Your Sample Edit?

What’s a sample edit, why have one, and whom does it help? No, I’m not talking about revision for the...
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Musings

NAIL YOUR NOVEL: DECIMATE YOUR WORD COUNT

Have you seen that student meme making its way around social media – the one where essay writers are jokingly...
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Musings

When should you hire your editor?

Holidays and books – go together like jam and clotted cream. How many books did you take on your holiday...
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Musings

Advancement

Originally posted on 14 June. At the end of my introductory musing I mentioned that my next would be on...
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More Information About:

What Is Editing

What is editing? What are the different levels of editing? With grateful thanks to Averill Buchanan and her colleagues at...
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More Information About:

Services

My Services There are several stages involved in the editing process, although not every author will need to use all...
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