I have been writing paid reviews and doing book blurbs for a while now. Most books I review are ok to good. A few are even great. But this morning I got the book I have been fearing since I started doing reviews. It is poorly written. There are multiple grammatical errors. The formatting is wrong. The use of ellipsis is out of control. The author is nebulous, nameless, and claims to write for an association that doesn’t exist. I suspect it was written by AI. It’s a clear “don’t read” book. Here’s the problem, not for me, but for the author: it is already published. Self-published, yes but still published. We are allowed to send comments and recommendations to the author. I mostly don’t because my review usually says what I have to say about the book. But I am going to give the advice here so new writers can ignore it.
- Pay someone to edit your book. A real editor. Not your sister or best friend. Not your high school English teacher. Yeah, it’s going to cost you money. You may not have to have the entire book edited. You can try just having the first few chapters edited, so you can see your repeated problems. This could help in many cases. It definitely would have helped crazy ellipsis man.
- Learn how to use basic punctuation. I love the Harbrace College Handbook but there are many good reference books. Spell and grammar check is not enough. Crazy, ellipses man used the ellipses kind of correct but the fact his he shouldn’t have been using them at all. They weren’t appropriate in the context of his text and grammar check won’t tell you that. You can overuse some punctuation. If you have never had a formal grammar class, it might be time for one. There are plenty of them online and some are very reasonably priced. Bad grammar, punctuation and formatting can ruin even the best book. Always, always remember, you see what you think is there, not what is actually on the page.
- Find Beta readers. These are people who will read your work, in parts or as a whole, and give you honest feedback. Again, don’t use your sister, your best friend or your high school English teacher. You can cultivate honest feedback groups. It takes time but it is worth it. You can pay beta readers, too. Again, they don’t have to read the entire work. It’s great if they can read the whole work but we aren’t made of money.
- Stop using AI, please. Just stop. Writing is hard, I know that. It’s supposed to be. AI writing is crap and your book will be crap. You can not become a good writer by using AI. Writing is more like sports where we learn and get better through practice. You can’t AI pitch a ball. You can AI write a book, but it will be crap. You’ll also lose your readership.
- It might be time to take a writing course. There are all levels and all types of writing classes. Local libraries and bookstores are a great places to find writing classes. The local colleges might have a non-credit class. If you want to commit to a writing program, there both formal and informal writing programs. You could see if pursuing a degree might be right for you. We are all fed the myth that writing is a “talent” and you don’t have to “learn” it. I’m going to bust those myths. Yes, there are some people who naturally write better than others just like there are people who sing better, dance better, do math better, etc. But talent has to be developed to be used well. Writing has to be learned and practiced. It is a skill. It is also an academic discipline. Everything that comes off your fingertips, no matter how brilliant you think it is, may not be ready for public consumption.
- Yes, everyone tells writers to do this, and I am surprised how resistant new writers are to this. If you write mysteries, read mysteries. A lot of them. If you read romance, read romance. Audiobooks count but I do encourage you to read off the page, as well. You need to understand how text looks on a page. Your reader is going to be reading, silently, and taking your writing at face value. Learn to make sure it is read the way you intend it to be. See how other writers do that by reading their work.
I can recommend:
The Making of a Story by Alice Laplante. It might be out of print, but you can buy it pretty cheaply on sites such as Thrift Books.
The Portable MFA by the New York Writers Workshop. And no, contrary to its claims it is not the same as any MFA program you’ll take. An MFA is a professional, terminal college degree but you can start here.
Save the Cat! Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody
I’m also available to work with you on your book. No, I’m not cheap but my prices are probably a lot more reasonable than some others. No, I won’t wait until your book is published for payment. No, I will never guarantee your book will be published. The cheapest way to hire me is to get a bunch of friends together and I can run a series of workshops to plan, write and revise your work. Reach out if you are interested. Our first conversation is always free.