Another Author's 2 Pence Series

Do you wonder what goes into editing, or how to look at your writing the way an editor or teacher would? Do you ever wish an editor would just tell you what's at the core in editing?   This editor's now doing just that!   Learn how to identify the types of editing and what goes into a good edit, so you can make your essay, article, or book the best that you can make it—and find out what to look for in an editor, when you need help to take your work to the next level.

Are you struggling to deepen your scene? Do your readers ask why the main character did something? Do your stories feature too many major characters for the story's length? Those are all problems that a solid understanding of the pillars of PoV can help or even outright fix, for your intended audience. If you know what problems you’re prone to, you can choose to write with the precise PoV that minimizes or completely avoids whichever major problem (or, often, problems) that you’re struggling with. Point of view is the foundation of solid writing. Forget grammar and spelling—as long as what you intended to say is actually on the page, you can fix those things later. But point of view? Mess up your point of view, and your book will be a mess. Books with messed-up points of view aren’t necessarily unreadable. Strong story can trump even weak point of view, but it’ll affect your story’s audience, and it’ll affect your story itself. A weak point of view may even be what you intended, could be what suits your story best…but it probably isn’t. It’s like when you’re trying to figure something out without actually knowing what you’re doing. You can end up accidentally accomplishing exactly what you wanted. More likely? You end up with something that isn’t quite what you intended. It’ll suffice. Maybe. Point of view is the same way. You can function as a writer without using it on purpose. But you can use it to make your story and characters that much stronger and deeper—and you can feel more confident about whatever you’ve chosen. Because whatever point of view you use, somebody isn’t going to like it. And if your PoV is solid, your fans will praise you for those very things others complain about. Learn PoV before the critics come a-calling, so when those naysayers dive-bomb you, you can smile politely and remind yourself that there are many, many ways to present a story, and you picked the method(s) you used on purpose. Use of point of view can help your story’s voice, relatability, and memorability. Sound too good to be true? By paying attention to and making good use of point of view, I went from being utterly unable to apply the grammar rules (and hardly writing at all) to working as a freelance writer and editor (and having a short story published) in less than five (5) years. Am I saying you’ll take as long as I did? No. Am I saying you’ll improve as quickly as I did? No. I’m saying point of view can be a “magic bullet” for a lot of things, which can help you improve more quickly as a writer. Now, “point of view” doesn’t help everything. This book is not going to tell you how to find your target audience and write a mega-seller. This book is not going to tell you which point of view would best suit your writing development, because I’ve not seen your writing and haven’t a clue. I can give you some guidelines to help you figure it out, but I can’t just tell you the single magic bullet for what you need. Sorry. Writing doesn’t work that way. This book is going to tell you the various components of point of view and the effects they have, so you can evaluate your own writing and target audience and select what suits you. This book can even have real-life consequences, too, if you let it—but that’s something to discuss inside. So come explore what point of view is and the 5 pillars of using it for little more than the price of your usual latte.

Essays—and particularly research papers—can make or break your grades in your classes. If only there was some method, some way, to work smarter, not harder, and do better on those essays without so much time… Well, there is. This book will teach you tactics for tackling your essays efficiently, giving you a road map to follow so that you have everything you need as you need it. I figured these things out when I was in school, myself, dealing with intense workloads, multiple part-time jobs at a time, and a health problem cocktail that meant I spent most of my time tired, woozy, nauseous, in pain, or any mix of the above. All-nighters were literally impossible for me, and even attempting one had consequences for days afterwards. I had to be efficient, to get and keep good grades. Much of tackling things efficiently stems from organizing what you’re doing, and that’s where the improved grades come in. For years, I’ve been sharing my organization tips with students I know. For years, those people have told me to write my tips down because their grades have improved even from implementing the few they could remember. This book is me finally doing what they’ve asked and writing my tips down. Try my tactics for yourself, and tell me if it doesn’t make writing an essay as easy as making a pizza. (Pizzas actually are easy to make, even if you’re like me and can’t eat rice, egg, pork, tomato, or most cooking oils. Even eggless gluten-free pizza is possible, without sacrificing texture or flavor—but that’s off-topic. And has instructions in the book.) If you follow my suggestions, you should both improve your essay grades and reduce the amount of time you spend writing them. Which of us couldn’t use a little more free time? Each of my points along the organization road map can be applied in multiple ways. Track down the specific methods that work for you, rather than only for Honor Roll Joe. So come on in and learn. Your GPA might just thank you.