Laura Antram Editing

self-editing

Checking for errors

If you keep going back to a sentence or paragraph of a manuscript or post, it’s…
Quotes within quotes

Sometimes you need to use quotes within quotes in fiction. This happens when directly quoting what…
Comma splices

What’s wrong with this sentence? I love cake, my favourite flavour is chocolate. It’s a comma…
Confidence

Confidence is situational and varies from person to person. For example, when I worked in early…
Style sheets

When working with fiction, style sheets are used to ensure consistency throughout the manuscript. If there…
Brackets/parentheses in fiction

I’ve been reading a nonfiction book for pleasure and noticed how it uses brackets, parentheses for…
Rhythm in writing

The main thing I love about learning to tap dance is the teacher explaining how you…
Manuscript drafts

If you are an independent author, unless you’re working to set deadline, you get to decide…
What a beta reader or proofreader looks for in a manuscript

I know handing over a manuscript that you’ve spent months or, even years, working on can…
Taking breaks for inspiration

Does this sound familiar? You’re having a perfectly normal conversation when you stop mid-sentence with the…
Subject- verb agreement

One of the items on my proofreading checklist is subject-verb agreement. What’s wrong with this sentence?…
Manuscript overwhelm

Does this sound familiar? You open a manuscript. Feel overwhelmed. Close the manuscript. That feeling of…
Email feedback for writers

I’ve made my peace with the fact that it can take me anything from thirty minutes…
Characters and backstories

If you can’t relate to a character, can you understand them? Sympathise with them to an…
Novel Study by Kristen Tate review

Novel Study by Kristen Tate analyses ten novels for different narrative elements which authors use to…
Skills and traits for beta reading, copyediting, proofreading and self-editing

Completing a course is invaluable, and here are the skills and traits I’ve found useful for…
Proofreading or self-editing checklists

It can be helpful to use a checklist when proofreading or self-editing a manuscript. First, ask…
Dialogue tags and action beats

I was asked a question about dialogue tags recently, so I’ve written a post about dialogue…
What’s beta reading?

Beta reading is the initial reaction to your manuscript from a reader. Beta readers read through…