Oh crumbs, second round of edits
Yes, it’s head down time, as the second round of edits for my next book, Oh Crumbs, landed in my inbox this week. The first round is all about the story, making changes that give Abby and Doug’s journey more punch. For example for this book I removed a character (no, not my hero, though Doug probably wouldn’t have complained. Just tensed his jaw and walked quietly away). I also added a chapter to give the reader more insight into Abby’s crazy family life (she’s been big sister and mum to her three sisters since she was 12).
But in this second round of edits it’s more about checking the sentence flow and picking up those words I use far too much. I don’t seem to have a favourite that runs through all the books. Instead I get fixated on a different word for each of my books. The first book I wrote, Too Charming, was all about the eyebrows. Far too many were being raised, quirked or twitched.
A Little Christmas Faith I remember picking up on an awful lot of slumping. Whether it was onto the bed, a sofa or a chair, all of my characters were a chiropractors worse nightmare.
For Oh Crumbs, the word of the manuscript seems to be clutching. She clutches her handbag, her stomach, his arm. Well, she did. Now she’s going to do something else. Perhaps simply hold onto one of them from time to time.
Finally, this round of edits is about spotting the mistakes. Spell check is great, but when you write moth and mean mouth, it sadly isn’t clever enough to pick up the rather vital difference. At least it’s vital when he’s trying to kiss it.
