That fine line between art and product is difficult to draw, but it’s essential to protect your sanity. It’s not news that artists are highly creative people, typically with a teensy bit of mental instability (it comes with the territory). I mean, doesn’t everyone have a bit of the crazy when our imagination comes into play? When you were a child, those shadows wouldn’t have turned into monsters without your brain being on the fritz. And that’s exactly why when we create something we are inherently attached to it. We love it. We hate it. But overall, it is a piece of us.
In order to get your writing out in the world though, you need to separate yourself from the art and view it as product. Your book is ...
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Excellent advice. A bookstore owner said the same things about "packaging" a book to make it attractive outside and inside.
ReplyDeleteYes! It's a product and you need to put your best foot forward.
DeleteAll books need to be edited. Where people baulk is at the cost. It is not cheap but it is vital. And the worse shape the manuscript is in, the more it will need an edit and the more it will cost. I find edits range from three minutes per double-spaced page, very rare, to 12 minutes, also quite rare, and average around six minutes per page which means a 200 page, double-spaced, 12pt. type, will take about 20 hours at least. Editing rates range from $50 - $80 per hour and so a minimum cost will be $1,000. It is money well spent but it is no small amount for many people and so the more work they can do to ensure that their manuscript is in good shape, the better. Having said that, there is a limit to what can be done, depending upon the writing skills involved.
ReplyDeleteThere is a limit, but I have seen certain authors improve tremendously with professional eyes on their work. That may not mean they should publish, but they are writing better. And, yes, it is an intense job. Editors walk the fine line between making the book better and staying within the author's idea.
DeleteHi Jess and Annie - can quite see where you're coming from ... when something stops you reading - bad grammar, poor vocabulary, lost time line even ... it sort of puts the reader off ...
ReplyDeleteThanks for a great informative post .. cheers Hilary