The Strength in Our Weaknesses by Kellyn Roth {At Her Fingertips Launch Tour} + Giveaway!

Friends, today we have a special guest. Kellyn Roth is the author of The Chronicles of Alice and Ivy series, a series which I have had the pleasure of copy editing for her. The latest Alice & Ivy book, At Her Fingertips, released on July 17, 2021, so is now available.

Be sure to stay tuned after the guest article, because Kellyn is hosting a giveaway.

The Strength in Our Weaknesses

by Kellyn Roth

Hello everyone!

I’m Kellyn Roth, a historical women’s fiction and romance writer who loves filling my novels with Christian themes. Today I’m here to talk about one of the themes in my novel, At Her Fingertips.

This book is practically brimming with ideas—and I never planned for any of them! God just likes to toss random things into my novels, and this was one I hadn’t planned at all.

You see, my idea was to write a novel in which my main character, Alice, struggles to release her plans to Christ. As the Bible notes, “[God] knows the plans [He] thinks toward you.” (Jeremiah 29:11) Our end is “expected” to Him—He’s already got it all figured out!

So with a control freak like Alice (sorry, girl—it’s true!), I had a lot to work with!

However, one day, I was writing along, minding my own business, and suddenly, this happened:

“She was doing it again—letting pride and stubbornness pull her away from those she loved. She’d rather appear strong and reject vulnerability than have a close relationship with her family. But she wasn’t strong; she was weak, and every time she failed to show her weakness, she became weaker.”

After this happened, I had to go back through the rest of the novel during rewrites and think over what I really meant and do some serious Bible research.

Here’s what I arrived at.

From Sky to Sky by Amanda G. Stevens {book review}

I've read a ton of books lately (nothing unusual there, hehe), and I thought I'd share some of my favorites over the coming months. There won't be a book review every week, of course, but they are pretty easy posts to do when life is otherwise busy. Right now I have an editing job I'm focusing on, so easy is muchly needed at the moment.

So, let's kick off the reviews of 2021 reads with a book that quite surprised me.

FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book. These are my honest thoughts.

From Sky to Sky by Amanda G. Stevens

This book blew me away and soared far and above how much I enjoyed the previous book in this series. The cover is gorgeous, and the story was too.

Color-Coded Editing {with Guest Victoria Minks}

Friends, the article you've been eagerly awaiting (I hope) is finally here. Please welcome our guest, Victoria Minks. I enjoyed her book Jonas & Olivia, and I've enjoyed her color-coded editing process, which she's sharing with us today.

We're going to be diving into Color-Coded Editing today!

This is a process I use during the revision stages of editing, all the way through the first phase of line-by-line editing.

For some background, my basic routine usually goes something like this: 

1. Plan my basic novel outline, theme, mood, etc. Some novels require more planning, some I just jump right in!
2. Write the rough draft. The "just get it on paper" draft. 
3. Now is the time for 2nd drafts, rewrites, 3rd drafts, or what have you. This is when I really get the book nailed down. Sometimes a novel is pretty good to go and doesn't need this stage, but let's be honest-- most of them do!
4. Once I have the main substance there, it's on to Color-Coded Editing! (Explained further in this post, with all the how-to in applying it to your methods!)
5. After going through that Color-Coded Editing Process, it's on to basic line-by-line editing.
6. Then it's proofreading. Multiple times. 
7. Then on to Alpha and Beta Readers, and then you move into the stages of publishing!

To preface: I first read something similar to this in the "Now What?" stages of the National Novel Writing Month blog years ago. However, I've tweaked it a lot and so it's quite different from what first gave me the idea. I'm not a huge fan of editing--but this method makes me actually look forward to it.

It's broken up into simple steps with different colors for each one. I use colored pens and underline or circle sections, using a pencil or a regular black pen to write notes in the margins or on sticky notes that I attach to the paper. But if you're a highlighter kind of person, you could definitely use that instead, and of course, feel free to switch up the colors. I just use what I have on hand, and have a personal system for what color goes to what editing step, but you can, of course, adapt it.

Step One: 

1. If you've just finished your book, set it aside for at least a week. I like to go for about a month. This allows you to look at your novel with fresh eyes. If you haven't written in it for a while, you're going to print out your book (I do it on a single side of the paper to offer more space to write notes on the backs). I can hear some people saying: "But, why can't I use my super amazing high-technology for this technique?". It's true, even my laptop+ stylus pen is capable of doing this process all digitally, and if you REALLY want to, go for it. Here's why I think it's important to do it on paper though:
   1. Having a different format allows you to look at it from a different perspective. Fresh eyes mean you'll see things you didn't see before. 
   2. There's more room for the natural flow of scribbles, notes, and doodles. It's all part of the process that I feel is easier on paper-- that brain dump that just is always a little more organic on paper than with technology.
   3. It's also super exciting and motivating to see your novel in print form, even if it is double-spaced, single-sided letter-sized paper. Your words sitting in front of you in a stack is just so amazing.
2. Back to the main point after that little detour! Now you're going to read through the whole thing... if you can, in one sitting. If not, just as soon as possible. Don't try editing at all during this time, unless you printed out the copy with sections you already planned on deleting. For instance, if you happened to write it during NaNoWriMo and you put in a monologue about the weather just to add words, knowing you'd take it out later for publishing-- cross through those now with a red pen. Also, if you notice a character that wanders around with no purpose, give a quick note about them as well. Other than those kinds of things though, refrain from editing! This stage is to just get a feel for your book.

Step Two: By this time, you probably have an idea of what you got right and what you got wrong in your draft. But as I said, don't randomly attack the thing with scribbled-y red ink. If you go back to the beginning, grab an aqua pen. You're going to read through the book again, this time focusing on emotions/tension/reactions, etc. What places make you laugh? cry? feel suspense? Are there no emotions when there should be? Or maybe the wrong ones? Did your character act or say something out of their norm? Is their behavior too melodramatic? Too stoic? This is the time to go through and mark with your aqua pen all the feels (or where there should be some). Make sure that you're following what your character's responses would be, not what yours would be.

Step Three:  Grab an orange pen, and this time you're going to read through it again, looking for places where you're bored, confused, there are plot holes or inconsistencies. If you need to fact-check various things in your book, this is the time to put a little asterisk or something besides those things to check later.

Step Four: 

1. Stop now and reevaluate. You will probably want to change some more major things here. After this step, I realized I needed to rewrite the entire ending for Jonas and Olivia. If you have huge scenes that need to be changed which will take the book in an entirely different direction, or you need to get rid of or fix a character you noticed was there for no good reason (noticed in Step One) go ahead and do that now.
2. To eliminate the need of having to reprint everything again, just write these things on the backs of the pages or on extra notebook paper--unless it's a really big change that involves thousands of words--then stick to the computer. :) This is the time to fix big plot changes, flat characters, tension, reactions, emotions, etc.
3. If you had to rewrite a lot in this stage, you may want to go back to the beginning steps and hit those sections with the previous colors of editing, just to make sure the new parts get the same quality of editing.

Step Five: Take a purple pen and read through your manuscript, this time searching out your descriptions. Not enough? Purple pen to the rescue. Too much? Cross some out. Not written to your satisfaction? Melodramatic? Cliche? Cheesy? Purple pen. Anything that has to do with descriptions tackle now.

Step Six: This time, with a pink pen, check your dialogue. Mark the passages with too little dialogue, and the places with an overabundance. Mark where you lose track of who's speaking, or if too many sentences start with "I". All your dialogue problems should be fixed in this step.

Step Seven: Read through your book again, this time with a green pen. You're going to check now for places where you could use 1 word in place of 10, where words are repeated too closely together, where you use the word in the wrong context and that sort of thing. This is getting more into the details, and by now you probably have a rainbow-inked manuscript, but don't worry--you're close to the end!

Once you finish Step Seven, you're going to have a book full of different colored markings, sticky notes, and scribbled memos. This is the time now to go through your novel on the computer, fixing all the things you marked in the manuscript. By the time you're done, your book will be much better and should be ready for the line-by-line editing stage.

Don't worry if this color-coded editing process takes a long time. That's ok, as long as you don't stop for months in-between stages. (That can make you forget things about the book that you need to keep in mind while editing). Each step may take anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks, depending on how much you need to fix, how long the book is, how much time you have to work on it at once, etc. That's the beauty of this method though-- because it is smaller steps covering the whole novel, rather than trying to remember everything to look out for and crawling through the book, it is super adaptable to whatever schedule works for you. It not only gets editing done in logical steps, but you won't have to worry that you've forgotten important details from chapter two when you're trying to edit chapter forty-seven. 

If you use this technique, I would love to see it! Post your colorful manuscript on your Instagram with the hashtag #fearlesscolorcodedediting for a chance to be featured on our IG story spotlights! 

Stay Fearless!

Victoria

Pockets of Time {Focus on Jesus + Life Update}

My next verse to learn for our Focus on Jesus Scripture Memory event is a long one, so it may take me a few weeks to really get it remembered.

We'll still be adding another verse to the mix in a couple of weeks, so I suppose I better find some extra pockets of time for studying between jobs.

Speaking of which, it's time for a bit of a life update.

I know I'm due (overdue, really) to deliver to you another short story. As much as I've tried to pen a few, my mind hasn't been cooperating for such things lately. I'm hoping to be able to get one written in the next few weeks.

You see, I've been working hard on a full-length story for Camp NaNo last month, and the story isn't finished yet, so I'm still plugging away at it. The research has been random, the plot pretty fun to play with, and the characters surprising at times. It's a blast hanging out with this crazy cast of folks, and I can hardly wait until you get to meet them too. Of course, I've got to straighten them out a bit first. First drafts can be pretty rough.

November Review {part one}

Late again, I’m afraid. The holidays and recovery from the busy week have caught up to me, apparently. I’ll try to do better next week, y’all.

The next few weeks here at Writing to Inspire will be a recap of my November. I'm eager to hear about yours too, so please share in the comment section as you're able.

NaNoWriMo

November’s writing challenge, National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo), was wonderful for me. I started out editing several chapters of an old favorite, but then I discovered writing crawls in the NaNo forums.

Writing crawls usually contain different tasks within a story format, and each task is writing related. For example, you might be challenged to write 300 words in 15 minutes, to sprint to 100 words, or to write for 30 minutes without taking a break. Some of the crawls even incorporate stretch breaks, snack times, and exercises to keep the back, wrists, and neck from getting too tight from being hunched over the computer (or pad of paper).

NaNoWriMo Has Arrived!

My new computer is working great. The transition came just in time too, because this month is NaNoWriMo. Now, I'm editing on paper this year, but that doesn't mean I don't use my computer. I still have to log in my word count. And if I need to look up something in the manuscript I'm working on that might be found hundreds of pages apart, I can quickly open the computer document and do an easy search. Plus, there's research that needs to be done along the way to make sure that special layer of atmosphere satisfactorily saturates the reader in the world my MCs (main characters) are living in.

The story I'm working on is one that's been in the works for over a decade, first as a screenplay and more recently (since 2012) as a manuscript. I would, of course, love to see both the book and movie versions come to a reality that readers and viewers could enjoy at their leisure. But this writer's got more work to do on them both first.

Things I might be researching while I edit this baby:

In the Office

Hey, friends!

I'm in the waning days of an editing deadline at the moment, so I'm in my "office" with my nose practically glued to my computer.

Great for production on chapters to be edited for a client, but not so great for my blog.

Unfortunately, I've run out of time to come up with something creative and fun for you today. Once I get off this deadline on Wednesday, I'll try to spark up some inspiration to post an extra piece later this week.

I'll be thinking fondly of you guys throughout the week.

Thank you so much for your patience and support.

Hugs,
Andrea

Things I Miss While On Deadline

Note: There is some fun news at the end of this article, so stay tuned through the very end.

Have you ever wondered what sacrifices editors make in order to make sure the books you’re reading are as polished and accurate as possible?

This is not a comprehensive list at all, as I’m only speaking from my own personal experience.

Here are a few things I miss when I’m on an editing deadline.

1. FAVORITE CLOTHES

Laundry tends to pile up a bit more when I’m on deadline, because I like to stay in the editing zone instead of make the time to do a load or two of washing. So my favorite tees, jerseys, and comfiest comfy pants often end up in the bottom of a mountain of clothing to be laundered once I’m off deadline… and I end up wearing some of my least favorite things in that final week of work. Bonus! I’ve rediscovered some neat t-shirts I picked up on vacations over the years.

How Much Editing Does a Book Really Need? - Guest Jody Hedlund

Not so very long ago, I read an article about the editing that goes into the making of a book. I found it interesting and thought you might appreciate this behind-the-scenes look too. Please welcome my guest, author Jody Hedlund.

How Much Editing Does a Book Really Need?

by Jody Hedlund

I just finished major edits on a book that’s releasing next summer (2019). It was a tough edit and took me a couple of weeks of full time work. Needless to say, when I got to the end, I was drained.

However, even though I’m done, I’m still in the early stages of editing and will have a lot more to do before the book hits shelves.

Here’s a brief overview of the editing process that most of my books go through:

Edit #1 (Self-Edit): After writing the first draft, I self-edit the book before turning it in to my publisher. Depending upon how much time I have (before it’s due to my publisher), I like to let the book sit (simmer) for a few weeks to a couple of months before I self-edit so that I can gain some perspective before diving back in.