As a developmental editor, I see many of the same issues in novel and memoir manuscripts. The good news is that none of these issues are deal breakers for your WIP. Here are the four most common problems I find in manuscripts…and a few tips to fix them.
We writers often think dialogue should be the easiest aspect of storytelling. After all, we talk all the time IRL. Therefore, conversations between our characters should be a no-brainer. Right? Wrong! As an editor, I find dialogue to be one of the biggest hurdles writers face and they don’t even realize it.
My absolute favorite books–fiction or nonfiction–are ones that transport me to another place. Or another time and place. James Herriot’s Yorkshire. Ignatius J. Reilly’s New Orleans. Twain’s Mississippi.
I confess. I am a pantser. I know. I can hear all you plotters out there. Life is easier when you’re a plotter.
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