Editing for increased book sales

Extract from Write it!

Engage, enthuse and inspire – as a writer this is what you aim to do, get this right and your readers will not only stay with you but they will come back for more. They will want each and every one of your books; they will recommend your work to their friends and, as real fans, will support you on your journey to success.

For any book you need to allow at least as long for the editing stage as for the writing stage. You will make three passes of your work, each with a different purpose. This helps you focus only on what you should be doing and therefore speed the whole process up. Do not be tempted at this stage to do a major rewrite or add additional information. If you do you will take considerably longer to complete your book as you may need to go back and look at your structure. If you have ideas as you go through makes notes in your notebook and then either use them to write a second book or, at a much later date, use them to update your original book and publish as a new edition.

There are at least three stages to editing; the first is to ensure you are writing using words and phrases that hook your readers. You want your readers to invest their time in you, to trust you, to believe in your knowledge and, ultimately, because you have made a positive difference to their lives, purchase future titles. Do this and you will watch your sales rise.

The second is to check and correct any typing, spelling or grammatical errors. Mistakes say one thing to your readers “I am an amateur.” If you want to be considered a professional then your book needs to be error free. One sure fire way to turn off your readers is to introduce spelling errors or include a misplaced apostrophe.

The third is to ensure consistency of formatting and remove any formatting that may not be displayed when your book is converted for publication. If you publish for ereaders the reader can choose the font size and other formatting features so any work you do to make your book look professional will be lost; keep it simple.

Power words and emotion

To ensure your readers keep coming back for more you need to write sentences and use words that speak to the reader; words that draw on their emotions, dreams and fears.

Work on one paragraph at a time, read it aloud, does it flow, does it send the right message. If not – rewrite it.

Look at each word; does the word add the right amount of emotion and intensity? Will your reader feel that this book relates to and is relevant to them?

Here are some examples of words that mean almost the same thing but give very different messages:

Erased/eradicated/obliterated

Big/vast

Flawless/perfect/excellent

Hard/difficult/challenging.

Note that the words have “almost” the same meaning, change the word and you may change the message so read aloud again. You may find it useful to have a thesaurus and dictionary to hand. Whether fiction or non-fiction your aim is to add passion to your writing; if you believe in what you are saying then so will your readers.

Tell a story, even in non-fiction, if you write a guide to a local town you might write something like this “standing in the narrow alleyway I could almost feel the vibration of the soldiers’ footsteps as they passed through on their way to such an unpleasant death.” Two points here; could you use a more emotional word than unpleasant – painful, predictable, dramatic, untimely, tortuous - and have you done enough to hook the reader to find out how they died?

Spelling and grammar

Most spelling errors are actually typing errors and you just need to correct them. Do be aware of commonly misspelt words and ensure you are using the correct spelling, for example - their, there, they’re.

Use a dictionary to check spellings and usage.

It may be useful to print your work and check the paper copy. This can make it easier to see spelling errors that you may have missed on the screen. Highlight errors and then return to the computer to make changes. You will print your work when you have completed your book to undertake a final check.

Formatting – keep it simple

Follow these simple rules:

 - One space after a full stop

 - For emphasis only use bold, underline or italic

 - Do not use tabs

 - Use a soft return if you want an extra line space (if publishing an ebook).

At this stage you have a completed book that is ready for those final elements required before publication.

Happy writing.