Time Off Before Edits

Since my last post, I traveled to New England to take in the fall colors and visit some scenic areas such as Acadia National Park in Maine and the White Mountains in New Hampshire.

Mark Twain House

I even made a stop at the Mark Twain house in Hartford, Ct., and Stephen King's home in Bangor, Me. 

Before I left on my short getaway, I sent my manuscript to my editor at Wings ePress. When I returned eight days later, I signed a contract for the third book in the John Ross Boomer Lit series. 

Stephen King's home

For those interested, the novel is tentatively scheduled for release in May 2019. The title? New Horizons. More about the book later.

She also had first edits for the novel and some recommendations to consider in my inbox.

Believe it or not, I haven't opened either document on my computer. She said there was no hurry, and I took her at her word. I needed to put some more distance being me and the manuscript, especially since I was preoccupied with other things at the time (I'm not the multi-tasker I used to be). 

I need a clear head when I delve into edits. I want to be as objective as possible when seeing edits and reading comments.  I want to view the manuscript as an editor, instead of as the author. I want to be in the mindset of editing the copy as if it were written by someone else. 

I've also got to provide the publisher with information to give the graphic artist an idea on how to approach the book cover. And I also have to write promotional blurbs, book dedication, and excerpts for marketing on websites. 

So there's a lot of work to be done in the coming months. I'll probably tackle the edits the first of next week since (with credit to Johnny Nash) "I can see clearly now" to move forward.

Until the next time . . . 

(Visit Michael Embry's blog at https://www.michaelembry.blogspot.com)