I get it. Trust me, I do. Patience may be a virtue, but it’s not a gift many of us have been blessed with. I know I’m one of the most impatient people in the world. I want what I want RIGHT NOW. I don’t know if it’s cultural or simply ego, but impatience can plague the best of us.

I know my writing career was probably delayed about a decade because of it.

So I beg all of you not to fall into that trap.

I get it. I do. We have stories to tell. Important messages. And we want to share them with the world. NOW! We don’t want to take the time to do what instructors at conferences call “the essentials.” Seriously, in an era of self-publishing, why wait?

The biggest reason: because you can kill your career before it starts.

No, wait . . . don’t poo-poo me just yet. Yes, that’s a dire statement. But there’s something you need to imprint on your brain right now. Two somethings, actually.

• You are a better writer than you imagine; you are also a far worse writer than you imagine.
• Writing is a solitary activity; publishing is a community effort.

This has been true for generations, and remains true today, even in a time when we can type “The End,” and have the book for sale on Amazon that afternoon. And part of working in a community is understand the expectations of readers and publishers alike. That means research, accepting the advice and guidance of others, and learning the tools of the trade. And THAT will be the theme of most of these blogs.

The first one? Microsoft Word.

Like it or not, this is one of the key tools of the writing craft. Even with all the new programs and platforms that help you plot, Word is the workhorse program for almost all publishers, even the ones that are Mac based. Here are a few tips, which will help your relationships with publishers, beta readers, freelance editors, etc.

• Go beyond the basics. Almost anyone can open Word and start typing. Take the next step and learn how to insert page breaks, set margins, chose fonts. DO NOT DEPEND ON WORD DEFAULTS.
• Learn how to use the Track Changes feature. This is especially essential for many publishers—and most freelance editors—these days. Although some will send edits in pdfs, most still conduct at least the first round of content edits in Track Changes. If you do not know how to use this feature, you put yourself at a disadvantage with an editor. While a few will work with you in another way, some simply won’t. If you don’t know how to use Track Changes, they’ll tell you to either learn it or give up having any control over the edits in your work. You do not want that.
• Keep formatting simple. Don’t try to make your manuscript stand out with all the great layout functions within Word. Most of these won’t transfer to a layout program like InDesign, and they have to be stripped out anyway. Your job is to write. Leave the page design to someone else. Use the same font and type size throughout. If you plan to include graphs and charts, it’s usually OK to embed them in a proposal, but be aware that they’ll need to eventually be submitted as separate, high resolution files.
• Use the spelling and grammar checks.Yes, I know it’s tedious and makes you crazy. But it’ll also slow you down so you can see your work on an intimate level.
• If you have questions, seek out tutorials or coaching.Tutorials for Word are everywhere, but your best option for help is probably sitting next to you in a workshop at Blue Ridge – a fellow author. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. This is yet another reason writers conferences are essential to authors today.

If you plan to self-publish, PLEASE seek out a freelance editor or copyeditor to help you. We are ALL our own worst proofreaders because our brain knows what’s supposed to be on the page. So we’ll read right over crucial errors.

Take your time. Perfect your manuscript to the best of your ability and use all the resources available to you. In the long run, the patience will be worth it.

Ramona Richards is the associate publisher for New Hope Publishers, and she has been an in-house editor for Abingdon Press, Thomas Nelson, Rutledge Hill Press, and Idealsmagazine, and has freelanced for a dozen other publishers. The author of eight novels, three books of devotions, and numerous magazine articles, she is a frequent speaker for women’s and writers’ groups, and has presented at numerous conferences across the country. Her latest book, Murder in the Family, will be released in October from Lighthouse Publishing of the Carolinas.

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