Author Archives: Polishing Your Prose

About Polishing Your Prose

Larry M Edwards is an award-winning investigative journalist, author, editor and publishing consultant. He is the author of three books, and has edited dozens of nonfiction and fiction book manuscripts. Under Wigeon Publishing, he has produced six books. As author, "Dare I Call It Murder? A Memoir of Violent Loss" won First Place in the San Diego Book Awards in 2012 (unpublished memoir) and 2014, Best Published Memoir. The book has also been nominated for a number of awards, including: Pulitzer Prize, Benjamin Franklin Award, Washington State Book Award, and One Book, One San Diego. As Editor, "Murder Survivor’s Handbook: Real-Life Stories, Tips & Resources" won the Gold Award in the 2015 Benjamin Franklin Book Awards, Self-Help. For a sample edit and cost estimate, contact Larry: larry [at] larryedwards [dot] com -- www.larryedwards.com -- www.dareicallitmurder.com -- www.larryedwards.com/wigeonpublishing/

Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 9. Kill Your Darlings

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Ninth element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) KILL YOUR DARLINGS “Kill your darlings” does not mean you have to kill off your favorite characters (although it may). This … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 8. Information Dumps

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Eighth element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) INFORMATION DUMPS Reader feeder This typically occurs in dialogue when one character tells another character things that other character already knows, … Continue reading →

Posted in Editing, Publishing, Writing | 2 Comments

Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 7. Plot

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Seventh element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) PLOT This, too, may seem self-evident, but I assure you, for some authors it is not: A plot should be logical, … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 6. Characters

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Sixth element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) CHARACTERS Create three-dimensional characters; avoid stereotypes and cartoon characters. I know this may seem self-evident, but all too often I see … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 5. Point of View

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Fifth element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) POINT OF VIEW Point of View (POV) confounds many writers, but it is critical to a story, so you as writers … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 4. Narrative Mode

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Fourth element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) NARRATIVE MODE Narrative Modes: first person, second person, third person. Most fiction is written in third-person (he, she, they, them), but … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 3. Narrative Voice

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Third element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) NARRATIVE VOICE Show, don’t tell—use active voice, not passive. I know you hear this all the time, but it doesn’t seem … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 2. Content

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

Second element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision(Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) CONTENT All content and characters should have a story reason for being included in the book. If it doesn’t have a … Continue reading →

Posted in Editing, Misc., Publishing, Writing | 2 Comments

Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision — 1. Structure

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

First element in this series: Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision (Please read the Introduction, if you haven’t already.) STRUCTURE How is your story organized, or not? Restructuring for clarity of story arcs and character arcs. By structure I … Continue reading →

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Kill Your Darlings: The Art of Revision

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Polishing Your Prose

INTRODUCTION This multi-part blog series grew out of my presentation to the San Diego Writers & Editors Guild on May 20, 2019. Drawing on my years of experience as an editor, I discuss structure, plot, content, narrative voice, characters, point … Continue reading →

Posted in Editing, Publishing, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments