I Edited 51 Novels Last Year. These are 9 Things EVERY Writer Should Know.

[jeffmcmahon]

Something tells me that you have been a teacher at some stage in your life. If not, then I feel you would make an excellent one. Well done, mate.

[cjpreach]

My first book had an audience of ONE. A 10-year old boy. A professional writer critiqued the book, and the results were UGLY. But his mother later informed me that my poorly-written book was the first book he had ever read from cover to cover, due to a learning disability. That was 28 years ago, and it still brings me joy.

[joshuam]

i like that you tell the writer what they are doing well instead of just dumping all the bad on them watch this very popular book editor bragging how he tears the writer apart because that's the only way they will get better

[mungoslade]

writers who hire editors probably take feedback well. i ran a writers group for 4 years and i'd say it's 50/50 at that level

[TheChannelOfDR]

This does indeed motivate me to continue writing...

[DanCreaMundos]

don't write expecting to become a millionaire or have a lot of fans, write to make a difference in the world, it doesn't matter if you affect the life of 10 or 1 million people, it matters if you managed to make the life of at least 1 person better using only your words. That is what a successful author is. If after that you get rich an famous, even better if that's what you wanted, but don't make it your main goal or you'll be painfully disappointed, writers who can have those 2 things and are still alive are less than 1%

[jeffreychandler]

it's so affirming to hear that structure is the hardest thing because in my scientific writing I'm made to feel like such a shitty writer because I "can't do basic structure" when I SWEAR my structure is actually fine.

Hearing that the structure needs work, but it's okay, everyones structure needs work, is so nice to hear.

[dameanvil]

0:00 💡 Writers often misjudge their book's weaknesses, focusing on elements they excel at while overlooking major issues.
1:31 🤔 Writers tend to underestimate their own strengths, often needing reassurance about their talents.
2:01 🔄 Authors frequently underestimate the extent of revision required, needing psychological readiness for substantial editing.
2:42 📚 Authors often overlook point of view issues, which significantly impact narrative coherence and reader engagement.
3:32 🧠 Most writers handle criticism well, being open to feedback and eager to revise.
4:46 😊 Writers tend to be optimistically hopeful about their book's success, often envisioning grand outcomes.
5:45 💡 Execution is key: A strong concept is valuable, but the effective implementation is what truly defines a book's success.
6:47 🏗 Structural issues are common and challenging for writers to spot, necessitating external feedback for improvement.
7:52 🌟 Many talented writers exist, each with a unique story to tell, so writers should embrace their individuality and not feel intimidated by competition.

[asquirrelplays]

I'm glad you took the time to talk about #2. So many "writers" out there that have gotten at least 1 book out love telling you that "the first thing you need to learn is that your writing sucks". And then they go on about how much your editor is gonna mark up your stuff. I mean, on one hand I get it, but it's such a crappy way to deliver the message and so many people seem to love doing it. Gets a little aggravating after a while.

That said, I have a deep appreciation for editors who take the time to highlight the things you did well. Learning from your mistakes is of course a great way to go, but not only is it nice to hear the "you did this well", it's also a learning experience. Nice to know when something didn't just "barely squeak by" and instead actually performed really well.

I'm new here and not sure why the video randomly cropped up, but I'm glad it did.

[philiplombardo]

I’ve been a professor of linguistics and English for several years, and I finally decided to start writing my fiction novel. This past semester, I worked during my spare hours in my office and wrote many pages. I found that the production of language, the linking of all of the ideas logically and conceptually together for the various parts, and making the text fun, clear, and interesting page-after-page can be quite a collective challenge… yet, a welcome challenge! Thank you for your videos. I’ll be checking out more of them so I can stay better on track…

[madcapsules]

Thanks! I needed to hear some of this, because... man, we can get stuck in our own head sometimes (and that can be a dark and scary place)!

[shebreathesingold]

You sound like someone I'd like to hire. Of course, I'm writing a multi-book series and don't have the money, but I appreciate this kind of insight. It's still very helpful.

[datahigh]

So annoying that authors don't just tell people this... I mean it makes sense cuz it's easier for them, with less competition...
1. Write the entire book through a narrator's perspective, this should be your longest version by far, maybe even 300k words for an intended 100k word final version, it will be a way to identify the most important descriptions and create a leaner final book in the end. This is the most vital step by far because all you're doing is just explaining, so it doesn't have to be perfect and obvs will change anyways, it's like outlining to the most extreme extent.
2. Write the same book through a secondary character's perspective, consider doing it for multiple secondary characters, but like from the love-interest's perspective, or the main villain's, for examples... this way you can create more complete characters, you can justify more alarming actions they might take from the reader's/MC's perspective because they'll have deeper motives, conflicts of their own, etc.
3. Write the entire book but each scene is from an involved character's perspective other than the MC's, again maybe even multiple perspectives per scene.
4. Write the book again, from the perspective of the MC...
Probably the most efficient way is to complete each step to completion prior to moving on, but it's whatever you think works best for you...

[Bakarost]

Thank you for your postivity. The hardest thing about writing is marketing.

[annaissodone]

i'm a writer and i know if someone read my work and gave me with criticisms that are not straight up bashing my book/plot/characters i would be so seated to hear what they had to say! feedback is so crucial and there's really not enough of it sometimes.

[djoseph]

This is such a great and encouraging video. Thank you for sharing it. As a writer who believes my story telling far outclasses my ability to write good prose, I needed to hear these things. Have a great week!

[AuthorKyrieW]

I've listened 100+ writing videos on Youtube and your channel is my new favorite. Loved this insight, thank you!

[lauralee]

God i needed the revision talk. Ive had to scrap SO MANY WORDS

[andrexavier]

Im in deep shock! Never saw the kind of advice youre giving in your videos around. Please,

[duckdialectics]

People take writing a lot like magic, they romanticize it too much, writing is not different from painting and music, most of it is practice, having a wide horizon of references, experimenting, and so on. As a teacher, I am often surprised by how often you see people actually writing (or trying to) long texts, but know of and do a total of 0 basic writing exercises. I also feel that the illustration community is MUCH more open about the process of learning and creating than the writing community is (which people like you are doing a great job trying to improve).