Lora Doncea

Attention-Grabbing Writing

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Attention-Grabbing Writing

by Lora Doncea

In every genre, editors can help authors enhance their writing to hook readers. Typically authors have their content established, substantive editors smooth it out and verify consistency, copy editors make it grammatically correct, and proofreaders catch all the sneaky errors. But today, that’s not enough. People are inundated with reading options, have little free time, and are often too stressed to concentrate. Editors can add color and zing to help an author snag their readers’ interest.

Try these tips:

  1. Replace common wording with vivid descriptions. 

[Fiction example]

Instead of: Three guys who looked like gangsters and were probably dangerous drove through the neighborhood in a dark sports car looking very suspicious.

How about: A dark sports car drove stealthily through the neighborhood, the streetlights flashing on three men slouched low, their shaved heads branded with sinister tattoos.

  1. Get to the point and make it clear.

[Instructional example]

Instead of: When you start designing a website, it’s important to think of how it will look to viewers because you want them to explore your site and it needs to be easy for them to go through.

How about: When designing a website, make sure it’s eye-catching, easy to navigate, and intrigues your viewers so they feel compelled to explore it.

  1. Avoid using the same words or phrases too many times.

[Autobiography example]

Instead of: I was so afraid that someone would find out my dad was so mean and drank so much that he beat us, so I stayed away from the other kids at school and didn’t make any friends. I was afraid of the teachers, too. I was afraid they’d see the humongous bruises on me. I was afraid they’d ask questions and then report me to CPS. I was afraid most of all they’d take me and my little brother away from my mom forever.

How about: I was always afraid that someone would discover that my drunk dad beat us. I kept my distance from the kids and teachers at school so no one would see the dark bruises I carefully hid and report me to CPS. I was terrified that my little brother and I might be snatched away from home and never see our mom again.

  1. Make lists short and easy to read.

[Magazine review]

Instead of: Some of the most incredible features of the log cabins in this quaint mountain resort are: they are all built to look like Lincoln Log cabins with the rounded log sidings and green tin roofs, they have large cozy fireplaces made of natural large river rocks, they have beautiful pine cathedral ceilings and pine wood floors, they are surrounded by large gorgeous pine trees and stunningly beautiful scenery, you can walk down secluded mountain trails that look amazing all year round, go for a horseback ride where you can catch glimpses of amazing wildlife, or go fishing all day in the peaceful lake nearby. 

How about: This quaint mountain resort features Lincoln Log cabins nestled in the majestic pines with river rock fireplaces, natural pine cathedral ceilings, leather furniture, and rustic decor. Just step outside to enjoy a variety of activities! Take a walk down beautiful mountain trails, go for a horseback ride to catch a glimpse of wild mustangs, or fish all day in the peaceful lake.

Bottom line: as editors, let’s not just correct basic errors, let’s help writers captivate their readers!

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

How to Judge Writing Contests

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How to Judge Writing Contests

by Lora Doncea

If you are asked to be a judge for a writing contest, take time to consider the opportunity seriously. It requires much more than just editing the piece or giving your impression. You need to carefully score the writer on several key areas, each one appraising a specific skill set. 

Key points to consider:

1. Judge in your area of expertise.

It may sound easy to read a few pages in a genre you’re not familiar with, but you need to critically evaluate the writing. If you are not familiar with the specifics of a certain genre, it’s better to decline and let someone experienced do the judging.

2. Always be respectful.

You will be anonymous as a judge, but don’t use that cloak to cut someone down. Your scores and words will impact a writer. I will never forget submitting my first novel in a well-known competition. I poured my entire soul into my book, I used two editors, and I made sure it was perfect. There were three judges. Two gave me very high scores and were complimentary, but the third one shot me down. That judge actually ridiculed some of my lines, was sarcastic, and even mean. It crushed me. Since I had two judges who gave me high scores, plus this judge wasn’t professional, I knew it wasn’t a reflection of my writing. However, I was left with those ugly barbs in my heart—plus that person completely eliminated my chance of placing in the contest. I still remember those cutting words to this day … and I never wrote a book again. I started to several times, but I lost all of my passion after that hurtful experience. Don’t be that judge. Always be respectful to the writer.

3. Communicate clearly.

If you find errors or areas that are weak, don’t just knock down the writer with a low score. Communicate clearly what the problem is and offer a solution of how to fix it. For example: “The secondary character is more interesting and has more action than the main protagonist. You may consider altering the story to feature the fascinating secondary character. Or you should develop the main character to have a much stronger presence. I would xxx …” Adding professional, clear notes to your scores serves two purposes: the writer will know why they got a low score (how else will they know what you were thinking?), plus you can help them develop their skills by sharing your expertise with them.

4. Be objective.

Even if you personally like one entry over another, this is not a comparison contest. Treat each entry as the only one. Score it based on its own merits.

5. Give compliments.

Be generous with compliments! Everyone needs to know when they are doing well, so build up this writer who has worked very hard and is putting themselves out there to be critiqued. Tell writers all the things that they are doing well—don’t just point out their flaws. And always end with an encouraging note to them. 

You may not realize it, but you can truly have a powerful impact on a writer by being an excellent judge.

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Eliminating Frustration

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Eliminating Frustration

by Lora Doncea

Frustration seems like an inevitable part of life, doesn’t it? I used to think so. Eventually I learned I could eliminate most of my frustration and stay peaceful. 

As editors and proofreaders, we are required to be extremely precise in our work. However, our biggest strength can also be our biggest weakness if we stay in our perfection persona and expect others to rise to our personal standards. Having unrealistic expectations will lead to frustration. 

Here are some things I do to short-circuit frustration. Hopefully they will help you, too!

I prepare for the worst. 
When starting a new project, going to meetings, driving the freeways, making phone calls to resolve problems, dealing with computer issues, etc., I accept that I am entering unpredictable territory where I am out of control. I prepare myself to have a good attitude even if I deal with incompetent or rude people, experience long wait times, go through problems that might take weeks to resolve, etc. That way I can proceed patiently no matter what comes up. Of course, when things go smoothly, it’s a delightful surprise. Either way, I eliminate frustration.

I only require perfectionism of myself. 
In our field, we are required to follow every editing rule according to strict industry standards. It can be frustrating when people insist on keeping incorrect writing when they’ve hired us as experts to fix their errors. To eliminate my frustration, I do a professional job on every project. If the writer rejects my changes, I don’t take it personally or try to prove I’m correct. I don’t want my name as editor to be on something filled with errors, but it’s out of my hands. By only requiring perfection of myself, it is easier to work with people, and I can maintain a good attitude no matter how they respond.

I pray for supernatural intervention.
We all have stressful areas of life that we are stuck in, and frustration can build to volcanic proportions. In my life, persistently trying to change things failed. Praying fervently didn’t seem to help, either. I eventually realized I was telling God that He should fix things my way. Finally, I humbled myself and told God that I would endure trials that I couldn’t change, and I only prayed for strength and wisdom. When I gave God full control, He astounded me by intervening in incredible ways. 

Do I still have frustrations? Yes, but they don’t control me. I take them all to God. I may deal with hardship, pain, and problems, but now I maintain a good attitude. People see Jesus in me, and I’m able to support and encourage others. My frustrations have greatly dissipated, and I am at peace. If you are struggling with frustration, prepare yourself to patiently deal with challenging people and situations, ask God to show you areas in your life that you can adjust, and ask for His help when you are helpless to change things. You will soon discover how peaceful and enjoyable life can be!

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Action Verbs Instantly Stimulate the Brain

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Action Verbs Instantly Stimulate the Brain

by Lora Doncea

Here is an intriguing fact. The human brain is instantly stimulated when we read action verbs—more than any other words. We unconsciously react to “jumped” and “ran” more than verbs such as “went” or “pondered.” We respond even less to nouns. Too many non-visual words can slow our reading and comprehension. Here are two scientific studies on this topic (they are technical but very informative):

Concepts Are More than Percepts: The Case of Action Verbs
“PLTC activity for action verbs reflects the retrieval of modality-independent representations of event concepts, or the grammatical types associated with them, i.e., verbs. … Moreover, their response was higher for verbs than nouns, regardless of visual-motion features.”

The Time Course of Action and Action-word Comprehension in the Human Brain as Revealed by Neurophysiology
“These results suggest that the early activation seen for action-words in the ERP reflects an essential part of the action-word recognition system.”

This is an automatic brain response, so writers and editors should intentionally utilize action verbs to capture readers’ attention.

Here are a couple of quick tips:

1. Replace dull verbs with vivid action verbs
Instead of: “She decided to try to get away from the man in the alley by hitting him and then crying out for help.”
Reword to: “She punched the man in the face and tore down the alley, screaming for help.”

2. Put verbs at the front of a line, not at the middle or end
Instead of: “A brownish-black bear who was enormous and terrifying came out of the woods and rushed straight toward the boy.”
Reword to: “An enormous bear crashed through the woods and rushed straight toward the boy.”

3. Keep verbs with their subjects
Instead of: “The two cars almost—if the drivers didn’t slam on their brakes—collided.”
Reword to: “The two cars almost collided—but the drivers slammed on their brakes just in time.”

4. Write the verb’s intended purpose—that is what we will remember
Instead of: “The DEA didn’t want to forget the man’s face.”
(The brain registers “forget,” which is not what we want the DEA to do.)
Reword to: “The DEA determined to remember the man’s face.”
(The brain registers “remember.”)

5. Remove all unnecessary words to snag readers with the verb
Instead of: “After a long, freezing cold day filled with drizzle and fog which clouded the mind and made thinking difficult, the editor dashed into the warm coffee shop to work.”
Reword to: “The editor dashed into the warm coffee shop to work, unaffected by the freezing cold weather.”

Subconsciously they will be hooked, and your writing will make an impact, literally, in their brains.

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Readers Are Blind—Editors Give Sight

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Readers Are Blind—Editors Give Sight

by Lora Doncea

One of the most prevalent problems I see in fiction is that writers forget that readers are blind and deaf to the worlds the writer envisions. Readers have to create the scenes using only the words they read, and writers often give them very little to work with.

Example of first lines in a story:

“Get in there—now!”
“I won’t!”
He aimed his gun at her forehead. “I’ll kill you!”
She flung her body into his. “No, you won’t.”

Who are these people? Where are they? What is the scenario? Here’s what I envisioned as the writer:

“Get in there—now!” Six-year-old Billy ordered his little sister into the fort of cushions.
“I won’t!” Suzie yelled, hands on her hips.
He aimed his neon-green squirt gun at her forehead. “I’ll kill you!”
She flung her body into his. “No, you won’t.”

Is that what you imagined? Probably not! I didn’t give you enough information to see the scene accurately.

In real life situations, our brains instantly capture these details:

* Where we are, what time of day it is, what season it is
* Who is in the vicinity
* Height/build/approximate age of each person
* Body language
* Skin color
* Hair color and length (facial hair on men)
* Eye color and facial features (when close enough)

These details need to be given to the reader exactly as we’d see them in real life.

Example:

The Arizona sun had sunk below the mountains hours ago, but its furious heat still simmered on the sidewalk. During the summer, Janie waited till night to get her mail, but she still broke a sweat walking to the community mailbox. Her flip-flops slapped the pavement as she pulled her long hair off her neck.

She turned the corner by the streetlight and abruptly froze. A few yards away, a burly man with dark hair and a thick beard leaned against the silver mailbox. Her gut clenched a warning. People often said that with her slight build, she looked more like a teen than a twenty-five-year-old. He took a slow step toward her, and her heart raced. What to do?

A familiar male voice yelled from behind, “Janie, wait up!”

She turned, exhaling in relief. Her neighbor Max caught up to her, grinning, the sheen on his dark athlete’s body glistening.

“Hi, Max.” She glanced up at him, then whipped around—the stranger was gone.

As soon as possible, we need to describe what Janie looks like. She wouldn’t describe herself in her own POV (except I snuck in her age and build), but at the start, we need a clear visual of her.

It’s also critical to prepare readers for the type of voice they’ll hear when someone speaks. In the example above, “A familiar male voice” prepares us to accurately hear the next words. It’s too late to write voice inflections and if it’s a male or female after the words. “I don’t know who you are or what you want,” the old lady shrieked. Too late—I heard a male voice.

Editors: Help writers by inserting all of the critical details readers need to envision each character and scene accurately. When readers are given pertinent information, the story comes alive!

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Finding Your Niche

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Finding Your Niche

by Lora Doncea

After two decades of computer programming and college teaching, I switched careers to be a freelance book editor. When I did, I was excited to discover all of the opportunities available. I jumped into content editing, copy editing, proofreading, book formatting, graphics, creating websites, and mentoring novice writers. Whew! I had training and experience in all of those areas, I enjoyed them all, but it was obvious I couldn’t juggle everything. I had to focus on my strongest abilities.

Once I found my niche, I worked diligently to develop those skills to a professional level—and my business blossomed.

I still pursue my other passions, and I am able to help authors who have questions in those areas. (Then I direct them to the professionals!) But my primary goal is refining and promoting my most proficient skills.

How can you identify your personal niche? Here are two questions to get started:

1. What skill can you develop to a professional level?

There is only so much time and energy you can invest in developing, maintaining, and using a skill at a competitive level. So focus on your strongest talent. It may not be what you enjoy the most, but to have a successful business, you must have a professional-level skill to promote.

Once you determine that skill, cultivate it daily. Sign up for blogs and join groups of experts to learn from others. Buy books and take as many classes as you can. Research the latest trends and use all of the latest tools. You need to excel in your niche.

2. Do people need what you have to offer?

You may be excellent at something and truly enjoy doing it, but there may be too much competition in that area. To make a profession out of your talents, you need to consider which skills are in demand. Look for gaps that you can fill. Again, sign up for blogs and join groups to see what people are looking for. Search job boards and network with others.

Maybe you have a unique skill set or experience you could capitalize on. Have you lived in a foreign country and know the language and culture? Have you worked in a specialized industry and know the lingo and technical terms? Take advantage of these types of experiences to promote yourself as an expert in a unique area. You can have two areas of expertise as long as you develop your skills to a proficient level in both areas.

Most of all, ask God what His plans are for you. He designed you with one-of-a-kind abilities to help others. If you don’t know where you fit in, He will guide you.

Discovering your specialty may be trial and error for a little while, but don’t give up. Ask God to help you identify your personal niche, develop it to a professional level, get connected in groups, promote yourself, and your hard work will pay off. After all, it says in Proverbs 16:3, when we commit our ways to the Lord, He will establish our plans.

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Are You Overwhelmed?

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Are You Overwhelmed?

by Lora Doncea

When we are physically, mentally, and spiritually strong, we can accomplish almost anything. However, there are times in life when we are completely overwhelmed. The responsibilities, demands, and problems of life seem impossible to keep up with. What can we do to regain our strength?

In Psalm 61, David describes a time when his heart is overwhelmed. As king of Israel, he had to deal with more problems and responsibilities than you or I ever will. Yet he knew the secret of getting back up, no matter how beaten down he felt.

“Hear my cry, O God;
Attend to my prayer.
From the end of the earth I will cry to You,
When my heart is overwhelmed;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
For You have been a shelter for me,
A strong tower from the enemy.
I will abide in Your tabernacle forever;
I will trust in the shelter of Your wings.”
(Psalm 61:1-4 NKJV)

Feeling overwhelmed is mostly a problem of the heart, not an external problem. Yes, people and circumstances can devastate and upset us, but we can deal with them when our heart is strong in the Lord.

If your heart is overwhelmed, do what David did:

  1. Cry out to God. Over and over. Ask for help every minute if you have to. God is listening, He cares deeply about you, and He will answer you. He is willing to help you with everything, every second, in amazing ways.
  2. Ask God to protect your heart. David asked God to lead him to a high and solid rock, a place of shelter, a strong tower, shelter under His protective wings. His heart needed to feel safe. Your heart needs to feel safe, too. Spend private time with God every day in a “safe place” where you can freely pour out your emotions, hear His words of guidance, and receive His healing.
  3. Ask God to strengthen your heart. David was completely confident that God would strengthen him and lift him up.

“In the day when I cried out, You answered me,
And made me bold with strength in my soul.”
(Psalm 138:3)

“The Lord upholds all who fall,
And raises up all who are bowed down.”
(Psalm 145:14)

Do you feel overwhelmed? Don’t look outward, look inward—it’s a heart issue. Look upward—call out to God. He will answer your cries, help you, and strengthen your soul. With God’s help, you can successfully handle every physical, mental, and emotional situation in your life. In your “safe place” with God, you will discover that even in the midst of trials, you can rejoice in God’s goodness and faithfulness. David wrote Psalm 145 as a joyful song of gratitude relaying God’s goodness to all who call on Him for help. Make it your theme song, too!

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora’s varied life experiences help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer, a college teacher, and a Bible study leader. She spent years oil painting and loves photography. She recently exchanged life in the big city for a cabin in the mountains where she savors gorgeous scenery, diverse wildlife, and peaceful times with family and friends.

Working Successfully with Different Types of People

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Working Successfully with Different Types of People

by Lora Doncea

In our work, we encounter a wide variety of people with diverse personalities. The ability to work with different types of people well is an extremely valuable skill. Here are some tips I’ve learned over the years.

The most important thing is to sincerely ask God to help you with every project. He knows what both you and your client need and the best way for you to work together. He will give you success whenever you rely on Him.

There are practical steps to take after that.

If you have established a good rapport with someone, don’t assume they will continue to respond to you in the same way. I’ve worked with people for years, completely confident in our interactions and friendship. Then, out of the blue, they abruptly changed their attitude toward me—acting defensive or disregarding my edits. It perplexed me. After working through the misunderstandings, we eventually worked things out, but now I approach familiar people with the perspective that we are all changing constantly. We need to be flexible to accept changes and smoothly make adjustments. (Then that same grace will be extended to us when we need it.)

When working with someone new, it is beneficial to find out everything you can about their experience, writing style, and personality. Any clues you can gather will help you figure out how to develop a good rapport. Always be respectful. Even if they are a challenge to work with and you’re ranting to your spouse or pet about your frustration, don’t let it leak into your edits or communication. Be professional and kind. As you get to know someone, add funny comments or smiley faces to your edits. Suggest fun ways to remember how to avoid repeated errors. An editor often finds it rewarding to slash and change and rearrange someone’s work—but it’s not fun for the recipient. No one likes to be scolded. Find creative and gentle ways to correct others. You want people to enjoy working with you.

We’ve all had to work with a person who is extremely difficult, and nothing we do improves the situation. In that case, know when to cut bait. Finish your contract, forgive them in your heart, then kindly refuse to work with them again. The stress that builds inside of you can leak negativity in every area of your life. You want to enjoy your work and your life. Ask God to provide you with more compatible people to work with. If you are forced to work with a challenging person, the best thing to do is continue to be respectful, professional, and kind. You will maintain your personal integrity, and God will reward you.

In life we’ll work with an endless variety of people. Professionals use godly wisdom to make each relationship as beneficial and enjoyable as possible. Thinking of the people you work with now, what steps can you take to make things even better?

Lora thoroughly enjoys editing fiction and nonfiction books for Christian authors. She views editing as a ministry first, partnering with authors to make their writing polished and successful. She also writes a blog of “Savvy Writer Tips” to help writers spot and fix common problems. Read them on her website: EditsbyLora.com or on Facebook: SavvyWriterTips. Lora utilizes her varied life experiences to help her when editing. She’s been a recorded Christian musician, a computer and web programmer in the business world, taught college courses on computers, led Bible studies, spent years oil painting and doing photography and videography, traveled, lived in big cities and small mountain communities, and loves to learn and experience new things.

 

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