Writing Creative Fiction for Children
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Editing
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There is nothing worse than a good story which is badly written. Bad spelling, wrong word use and improper use of punctuation will put any editor off, right away. Before printing off the final copy I alway check, double check and check again.
Although my spelling is quite good, I still make silly mistakes. (no prizes for pointing out any mistakes on this web!) And my puctuation can be a bit poor. So my policy is to make use of someone you know, could be a friend, family member or teacher, if they are good at spotting spelling and grammer mistakes. My ever suffering mum is excellent at this (she should be a proof reader) so she gets the pleasure of having to read through all my stories. She always finds something. Anyway I would suggest this as a good idea, before submitting any manuscripts.
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Getting to the point - cut out any unnecessary blurb. Are the first few paragraghs to the point, or do they ramble? The first sentences should grab the reader's attention and make them want to read on. If something ends up not being really relevent to the story's progression then cut it out. Be critical of your own writing. I tend to leave mine for a week or so and then go back to it. I can then be more objective.
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The better presented your manuscript, the more chance you have of being taken seriously. If your work is sloppy, the editor will think you do not care enough about your work.
An excellent book to read on this subject is The Nuts & Bolts of Writing by Michael Legat. It can be bought from
Amazon Books
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