Samhain Publishing Ltd. Weblog

An Interview with Samhain's Executive Editor Laurie Rauch.

Several weeks ago, many of the Samhain editors spent time at Hilton Head with Crissy Brashear and the main office staff. While the editors have spent years getting to know each other on the editor loop and in small groups at conventions, this was a wonderful opportunity for us to meet and spend time together in person. I can’t tell you how good it was to get to know everyone a little bit better. To further that fun, I’m on a quest to interview all the editors at Samhain (and, as a warning to Marty, Marty also!) over the next year or so.

For the first interview of many, I’d like to welcome Samhain Publishing’s Executive Editor Laurie Rauch.

How NOT To Get Automatically Rejected 101

This blog gives a little peek into one facet of an editor’s job. It applies not only to Samhain, but to probably almost every other publisher/editor out there. The Rejection Letter.

The Dreaded Synopsis...and a Way to Help Write them.

Why is a synopsis so important? Well here at Samhain, we use them for several purposes. Today I’d like to talk about one of those purposes and then move on to an interview with author, Denise Vitola. The interview covers a bit of world building and how to write that often dreaded synopsis. Even better, at the end of the interview is a way to get her free publication on How to Write a Fiction Synopsis That Will Sell.

As an editor, I look at the synopsis before reading the story. Why?

Making a List and Checking it Twice

One thing that everyone can do to polish a manuscript prior to submission is to have a checklist. My checklist has several categories: Plot, Characters, Setting, Dialogue and Misc. To conserve some of the space in this blog, I’ve taken my list and turned it into paragraphs. My checklist is really a true check the box checklist. In two instances, there aren’t check boxes; there is a grid system that I fill in.

'As's and 'But's...

No, I didn’t pick this topic for the title alone! The day we were asked to blog, I was busy picking out repeated words and phrases in a book I had bought the previous evening. By the time I had hit Chapter Three, I had begun to realize the characters always had the same way of picking something up and the dialogue was filled with tags that told me how something was said rather than letting the characters speak for themselves. Then came the “as”s and “but”s… I feel like I need to add “Oh My” to that for some reason. The number of repeated words in this book (which shall remain nameless and I’m happy to say is not one of SP’s), is astonishing. I’m not sure if I picked it up because I’m an editor or because there are so many of them. The number of “that”s is off the chart.

What I am talking about are not called filter or filler words, this is about plain old repetition. I have heard these words referred to as slipper words—because you feel comfortable using them. And everyone does it. I re-read what I write at least 3 or 4 times because one scan is specifically for repeated words and phrases. I tend to love “about”. I’m not sure why it has crept into my writing. In speech lately, I’ve noticed I say “yeah” a lot.