A LESSON LEARNED

My husband was an “I can do it” person and tackled many home repairs–resulting in unforeseen difficulties.  I believed that he should have had a working knowledge before starting any task.

In writing my first novel, I prided myself on using proper grammar, sentence structure and choice of words.  I reviewed every chapter, carefully checking grammar and punctuation.  It took almost one year to complete.  Then, I sent it for publication, and ordered a few books for my family and friends at the same time.

A proof was sent, and I approved it, confident I had done a good job of editing. The books arrived.  It was exciting to see my name printed in bold on the glossy cover, and to know my story unfolded within the pages. I opened the book, and was shocked when I found misspellings, commas where they did not belong, and incorrect hyphenated words, on many of the pages.

Sometime later, recalling the errors in my first novel, I diligently used the features in Word to check spelling and grammar in editing my second book. Again, I was satisfied with the corrections. But I wanted to be certain it was ready for publication, so I asked a friend to proofread the manuscript, and was perplexed when she discovered more mistakes.

Difficult as it is, I was forced to admit that I was not capable of writing without errors. I realized the fault did not lie in the program from Word.  And it did not lie in the friend who read my draft.   The fault is mine and mine alone.  Why? Because I believed all that could be done, was done, and never re-read the proof before publication.

I, who believed, I was proficient, needed professional help! I found it in the following Websites.

1. MASTER WRITER. For Songwriting and Creative Writing. Need a collection of words for every occasion, happy, sad, triumphant, weak, strong, phrases, rhymes, sayings, and much more. No matter whether you are writing a song, poem, novel or screenplay, this will help you. This was the first software I downloaded. Master Writer offers a free Trial.  Try it!
2. AUTO-CRIT: Editing software for Writers. It takes the guesswork out of the editing process.  Their or There, lie, or Lie,–it’s all there to help you become a better writer. Sentences too long or too short–words repeated too often?  Auto-Crit is the only software that customizes your work to a specific genre, whether it is Sci-Fi, Mystery, Young Adult, or Movie.
3. PRO-WRITING AID: An Editing tool for Academic, Business, Content, Technical, Web, and Fiction Writers. Upload your document, and the summary report denotes overused words, readability, grammar errors, clichés, diction, and improvements to your style of writing. Tell Pro-Writing Aid whether it is for Technical, Creative, Business or General, writing, and this software advises how to improve your style such as use of passive and hidden verbs.

Happy Writing,

Paula