Don't murder your prose!

As authors we aim to write great content that is easy to understand, clear, and grabs and holds attention. Sometimes our language lets us down and instead of exciting, attention-grabbing words, we use plain, boring and uninteresting ones - simply because we are used to using them.

Bad language

The main language killers are those modifying words: adverbs and adjectives. Instead of improving our writing, they can deaden it and make it boring and dull.

He ran quickly down the hill.

Ok, so he ran quickly down the hill. Right.
But, what if:

He raced down the hill.
or
He sped down the hill.

Now, we can feel the action.

How about . . . ?

Peter looked at her lovingly.

Sounds ok? He looked at her lovingly. Boring!

What if:

Peter gazed into her eyes.
or
Peter reached for her hand as he looked at her.

Now we can see his love for her without being told. Much more romantic!

The little word very can cause problems too.

Mary was very tired.
But, what if, Mary was exhausted? Or Mary was weary.

The elephant was very big.
Or, was the elephant huge, enormous, massive?

Always check your writing for words such as these. A simple change is all it takes. It can make your readers want to turn the pages, want to find out what's coming next and want to read your next book.

A trifling change can make an enormous difference!

For a free quote for editing or proofreading contact me info@kimoshea.com

Common Errors

There are many common errors to watch out for when editing or proofreading. The following list covers four of them;

• Transposition
• Grammar
• Spelling
• Wrong meaning

Transposition

This happens when letters are transposed or swapped around in a word;

• from / form
• cat / act
• Wedensday / Wednesday
• public / pulbic

The first two errors can only be found through careful reading of the document as the incorrect versions are still words and will pass the spell checker.

The last two mistakes are easier to find as any good spell checker will immediately pick them up.

Grammar

These are too numerous to mention here in detail, however, four of the most common problems are;

• their, there, they're
• its, it's
• plurals of nouns (apostrophes are for the possessive case NOT plurals)
• passive voice.

For the correct use of the first two sets of items, consult a grammar book or online resource.

Plurals of most nouns are formed by adding s NOT 's.

The passive voice should be used sparingly - it does have its uses.

Passive - 'The boy was bitten by the dog, Active - ' 'The dog bit the boy.'

The active voice can

• remove doubt
• move the action along
• create tension
• keep the reader engaged.

Spelling

There are always words that catch us out. Make a list of the words you find you have trouble with, time and again.

• separate / seperate
• millennium / milennium
• licence / license
• current / currant

The spell checker will catch the first two but the second two are spelled correctly but may not be what is meant - a current bun means a bun that is fresh or up to date, while a currant report means a report on a currant!

Wrong meaning

If you are in doubt, check the definition!

• illusion / allusion
• effect / affect
• ingenuous / ingenious
• uninterested / disinterested

There are many words similar to these. Make lists of the ones that give you trouble.

Editing and proofreading are skills that can be learned but if you don't have the time, give me an email for a free quote info@kimoshea.com

Indie Authors - Do you want to sell more books?

For as long as I can remember I have been a voracious reader. I love reading and have been known to read the back of a packet of cereal.

As an author myself, I know the work that goes into your 'baby'. Unfortunately, there is one thing that will ruin my enjoyment and that is a badly edited book.

Poor grammar, misspelled words, bad formatting and incorrect facts will guarantee that I will not leave a favourable review. That doesn't mean that I will leave a bad review, just that I would prefer not to bother at all just like the author didn't bother to make sure that the book was the best it could be.

If I come across a poorly edited book, I never read anything else by that author.

I have read many books with wonderful storylines and great characters but because of the errors and formatting issues, I have been very disappointed and would certainly never recommend them to my friends.

We all make mistakes. Typos and small errors slip through. These are forgivable and, while jarring, do not ruin the whole book. What I am talking about are the books that are obviously labours of love but, at the last hurdle, are consigned to the 'do not read' file.

Why?

Nobody wants to struggle through a badly written book - no matter how great the idea - books like these will never gain a following for their authors and will never reach their full potential or achieve solid sales.

How to write books that sell

• Decide on your genre
• Research
• Write
• Rewrite
• Edit
• Rewrite
• Proofread
• Publish

Simple!

While in reality nothing is ever that simple, it is true that skipping the editing and proofreading stages will have a detrimental effect on your sales.

Become a bestselling author

Write the best book you can.

Polish the book until it is perfect.

Put your marketing in place.

Publish and watch your five-star reviews come in and your sales start to rise.

Kick-start your sales! contact me info@kimoshea.com for a free quote.

The Biggest Turn-Off

With companies and businesses turning away from traditional advertising and turning towards social media advertising, the risk of errors and mistakes being published increases each day.

Scan through your social media feeds. There is a high chance of you noticing at least one (and sometimes far more than one) mistake in an otherwise excellent advertising campaign.

Poor spelling, wrong punctuation and incorrectly worded copy all serve to damage the image of the brand in question.

Does it matter?

Yes! Potential clients need to trust businesses before they will commit to an order. Even small errors can make a client wonder just how professional the people behind the business actually are.

Competition means that there is always another company or business waiting in the wings to swoop in and grab that potential client.

Don't lose clients through something as simple as a spelling error!

Contact me today for a free quote. Email info@kimoshea.com

Helping Businesses One Word at a Time

Whe Needs Proofreading?

I've heard people say that only serious writers need proofreaders. Even if that were true, what makes a serious writer?

In the media, the word writer often conjures an image of a solitary figure bent over a laptop in a lonely upstairs room, looking out over the countryside as they wrestle with the next word.

In reality, writing has come a long way and a lot of writers do not consider themselves to be writers!

There are so many types of writing!

• books
• magazines
• journals
• reports
• letters
• emails
• proposals
• presentations
• blog posts
• advertisements
• signage
• social media posts

This list goes on.

For any business to be professional, all of these communications need to be checked carefully. A simple error in a report can drastically change the whole focus of it or an incorrectly spelled word in a sign can be a source of embarrassment.

While it is not always essential for every piece of writing to be checked, good business practice dictates that care should be taken over every communication and this is where proofreading can be so important.

So if you think you don't need a proofreader, think again! It's your business, so always put your best foot forward!

For a quote, contact me: info@kimoshea.com

Proofreading 101

How do you go about proofreading your own content?

There are a few things you need to remember before you start

• You are familiar with your content and will read it as you want it to read, not necessarily as it's written
• Proofreaders are trained to catch errors and to know what to look out for
• At the very least you will need to get a friend or family member to read through your content after you have finished, to see if they can catch any further errors
• 'It will do' never does! If you catch an error you must resolve it even if it means rewriting or reworking part of the content
• Proofreading is also about the look and feel of the piece. A beautifully written piece with bad layout or a great idea that is poorly presented will never be taken seriously
• Put enough time aside to finish the job - a trained Proofreader averages 10 pages of 300 words per hour but that depends on the content and the type of proofreading needed
• Take regular breaks to prevent eye-strain or tiredness both of which will affect your concentration.

The first thing you need to do is run the piece through a good spell-checker. If in doubt about any suggested changes, look them up in the relevant dictionary (depending on what language style is being used - Oxford English, American English, dialect, jargon etc.)

Using software like track changes in Word begin to go through your document amending errors as you find them. (Using track changes allows you to go back and see the original if you decide later that you are still not happy with the change).

When you are happy with your change, hit accept all and move to the next stage.

After this is complete and you are happy with the changes, print off the document (unless you are proofing a website or very short content) as it is easier to see mistakes on a hard copy.

Read through the piece (I suggest paragraph by paragraph) aloud. This will give you a good feel for the piece and will help with pacing as well as grammatical errors or realising that another word would work better.

Mark your changes as you go using proofreading marks for brevity and clarity or short notes near the change you wish to make.

When this is complete you will need to transfer your changes to the document.

After this, either print off the document again or send it as a pdf or mobi file to a friend or family member to read through.

If you have come this far, Congratulations! Your document is nearly ready to go.

When you get the document back from your reader, take note of any changes they request and if feasible or necessary, carry them out.

At last! You should be good to go! Well, nearly.

A few more things!

• check all the document formatting
• make sure that any pictures are where they are expected to be and are captioned correctly
• establish that footnotes are referenced correctly
• confirm that references are correct
• ensure that headings and /or subheadings are sized consistently

If this seems like hard work, it is!

Why not contact me for a quote today? info@kimoshea.com

6 Reasons to hire a Proofreader

Sometimes we think, 'it'll be fine!' Sometimes we think, 'I got this!'

Other times we know we need help.

Here are 6 good reasons to check everything and then check again!

Proofreading! It really does matter!

Don't take any chances! Contact me today: info@kimoshea.com

Services

What is Proofreading?

Test your Skill

Checking for Errors

Indie authors usually struggle to find money to pay for cover design, editing, proofing or marketing. Each of these steps is essential, so what can you do?

Cover Design

A good cover sells a book. Well, it certainly helps! It's the first thing your potential buyers will see so try to make it the best you can.

• Find a friend who is good at graphic design
• Use fiverr.com
• Teach yourself Photoshop.

The first option is great as long as the friend knows what they are doing and can work with you to design a great cover. Your input is essential as you are the only one who knows your book intimately. Make sure you mock up several covers so you have a few to choose from.

The fiverr.com option is another good way to go. Check portfolios carefully and see what you think of their work before you decide on the producer. Also check any reviews or comments left by previous clients.

If you are creative (well, you've written a book, haven't you?) and have a good eye for colour and design, you could use YouTube videos to teach yourself the appropriate design software - you'll also have to buy the software!

Whatever you decide, before you release your book, join some Facebook writers and readers groups and post your proposed cover. Ask for honest criticism (you'll get plenty) and once you have narrowed it down to two or three choices, run a poll in the group to help you decide. The cover you prefer may not be the one that everyone else likes so be prepared to compromise - after all, you have asked for their opinion and they have given it freely! As potential buyers, their opinions are very important.

Editing and Proofing

If you really can't afford a professional there are some essential things that you must do before releasing your book.

• Do a spell-check
• Print off the book
• Check that margins, headings, fonts and page formatting are consistent
• Read the book aloud
• Read the book again, this time slowly, word for word.

Spell-check will help to catch spelling errors but will not differentiate between transposed words - form instead of from etc.

It is easier to check the margins and other layout issues by turning the manuscript upside-down (this reduces distraction from the words on the page).

By reading aloud you can check the pacing of the work and also take note if any of the sentences or passages seem overly complicated or confusing.

A final, slow read will (hopefully) catch any further errors.

Marketing

Many books have been written on the subject of marketing and there are hundreds of excellent blogs and articles on the web. Simple searches will get you started. All successful authors will tell you that the best method of marketing is to build your email list.

Start on the list as soon as possible and keep building - never stop!

Always remember, a final proofread can save embarrassing reviews and help build trust with your readers.

For a free quote, contact Kim at info@kimoshea.com

Can Authors Proofread their own Work?

The short answer is 'yes'.

But ...

It is very difficult to proofread our own work. As the author, we are so familiar with the piece that our eyes tend to skip what is actually there and to read what we expect to be there.

Editing and Proofreading can be too expensive for struggling indie authors so what should we do?

There are a number of things that will help us to catch  most errors:

• Put the document away for a few weeks and don't look at it
• Use the writing programme's spell-check function
• Print off the piece and check the formatting and the 'look' of the piece
• Read the document out loud
• Get a pencil and read again, this time, one word at a time
• Correct all the errors you have found and run the spell-check function again.

Be aware of some of the most common errors:

• Incorrect or changing verb tenses (if writing in the past, use the past tense etc.)
• Subject and verb not agreeing (The club is meeting today)
• Words spelled correctly but not the intended word (from - form etc.)
• Incorrect use of the apostrophe or comma (It's, its etc.).

If in doubt, correct as many of the errors as you can find and then if you are still unsure, get a quote from a Proofreader for the final review. As you have already done a lot of the work, it may not be as expensive as you think!

Remember, a first impression is only made once. Make sure your first impressions are the best you can make them.

Services

What is Proofreading?

Contact Kim at info@kimoshea.com

Test your skill

Have a go at proofreading the following piece and leave a comment when you think you have found all the mistakes.

Perhaps you'll find more than me!

Sam looked up as he walked under the tree. Dead leaves rustled under his feet and disturbed the bird sittting on a branch watching him.

As the bird flew away, Sam sighed. He had hoped to get a close - up of the bird but now his chance was gone. He lowered his camera and was about to put the lens cap back on when, he saw the bird again.

It was sitting on a fence post not too far away . He quickly readied the camera, and took six shots in in rapid sucession.

Success! At last he had a picture of this rare specimen. He couldn't wait to go home and upload it to the group page! They will be very jealous of his sighting! If only he could get a little closer and catch the delicate colours of the plumage!

He moved slowly towards the bird holding the camera in front of him, ready to get that unforgetttable shot.

The bird put it's head on the side and watched him as he got closer. Sam cautiously checked the zoom and prepared to get the elusive picture. He couldm't believe his luck! The bird continued to watch him but didn't move!

Sam brought the camera slowly to eye level and placed his finger on the shutter release buttton. One click was all it would take and he would have the picture of the milllennium .

He begun to apply pressure with his finger when a suden noise shocked him. As he watched, a cat leapt on the unsuspecting bird and ran off with it in it's mouth.

Later as he downloaded the pictures Sam, found he had caught a perfect picture of the cat at the second it grabbed the bird.

The cats eyes were focused firmly on Sam and to Sam's surprise, he could have sworn that the cat was laughing at him.

Have fun and don't forget to comment below!

The Apostrophe Crisis

It's every Proofreader's nightmare. It lurks, unnoticed by some and an affront to others. It pops up in unusual places, at the most surprising of times.

What am I talking about? The errant apostrophe, of course.

Sometimes called the Greengrocer's apostrophe, this specimen leaps out from shop windows or roadside signs.

Cabbage's for sale.

Cabbage's what for sale, I hear you asking? Has Cabbage got some prized possession he's trying to sell? This type of sign is guaranteed to raise the blood pressure - either from frustration or excitement (after all, cabbage may have something he wants to sell!).

Then there is the other one.

The one that can't differentiate between there, their or they're.

Admit it! This one really gets to you!

And what about ... wait for it!

its, it's.

Some people find it's difficult to get it in its rightful place. (Whew! You thought I was going to do the unthinkable there didn't you?)

You're going to love your next one.

Did you see what I did there? Yes. The infamous you're and your.

For anyone who's still struggling, here are the rules:

• An apostrophe is used to indicate possession or replace a contraction. It is NEVER used to indicate a plural! - That is one of Mary's cats. Don't trip over it!
• There - a place. Their - belonging to them. They're - they are.
• It's - It is. Its - possessive form of it.
• Your - possessive form of you. You're - you are.

And one more I haven't mentioned as we (thankfully) don't see it too often any more:

• Whose - possessive form of whom. Who's - who is.

So there you have it. The solution to the apostrophe crisis.

Share with your friends and family. Share with your workmates and colleagues. Share with your cousin at the other side of the world. But most importantly, share with your greengrocer. We need to stamp out this scourge.