Tag Archives: professionaldevelopment

Is an editor with a website a more attractive proposition to an author than an editor without one?

🎉 It’s my website’s second birthday. And it’s got me thinking … While my professional platform on LinkedIn pre-dates cherryedits.com by three years, it wasn’t until I got my website that I felt legitimate. 🌐 Two years ago, I reached the this-is-not-a-dress-rehearsal phase of my professional life. Buying the domain name, building the site, puttingContinue reading “Is an editor with a website a more attractive proposition to an author than an editor without one?”

‘How is it you’ve not had your fill of words after your day job, Claire?’

It’s leaving teaching that did it. I’ve read SO MUCH MORE since leaving teaching. I’ve always read for pleasure, but there were times in the past that I couldn’t focus. It’d take me six weeks to read a regular novel that I’d picked for myself. (As opposed to what I was teaching in class.) TheseContinue reading “‘How is it you’ve not had your fill of words after your day job, Claire?’”

Will you be having a break this Easter, or is it business as usual?

📍 I’ll finish the edit I’m on by Friday, then it’s a change of pace for the next two weeks. 🐰 My son is off for Easter. Whether I work while he’s off is up to me. Experience tells me that it’s not a great time for me to be doing focused work. That’s whyContinue reading “Will you be having a break this Easter, or is it business as usual?”

POV: Improve your writing by doing more of it.

☺️☺️ Just to be sappy a moment… I love seeing writers improve over time. I am lucky enough to work with some authors whose creative wells seem bottomless. They are always writing. There are always more stories to tell. And I get to read them. And when you’ve seen someone’s early stories, then later ones,Continue reading “POV: Improve your writing by doing more of it.”

Come in. The water’s fine. How working with an editor can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be that way.

I reckon signing up with an editor must be like looking at the sea and deciding whether you want to dive in. It could be amazing. It might be awful. I shared with you recently that the next six — now eight! — months are looking really decent for me work-wise. All fiction. Perfect. AllContinue reading “Come in. The water’s fine. How working with an editor can be scary, but it doesn’t have to be that way.”

How 2022 was the year that changed everything. My editing journey.

It’s the end of the year and I’m going to be self-indulgent and reflect on the fact that this was the year that changed everything. Early in 2022, I had a financial story session with Mahmood Reza. We worked out that if I scaled up the editing work I’d been doing part-time, I would beContinue reading “How 2022 was the year that changed everything. My editing journey.”

The best non-fiction I’ve read this year: ‘Dialogue’ by Robert McKee

Ah, this was much harder to decide. But here’s my top NON-FICTION read of the year. (Though I’m not enamoured with your cover, Mr McKee.) I’ve also read McKee’s popular ‘Story’, but I found this one better. It’s less pretentious. More actionable. And thoroughly entertaining. It seems I love learning from non-fiction books with aContinue reading “The best non-fiction I’ve read this year: ‘Dialogue’ by Robert McKee”

The best way to learn is through stories. A review of The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark

The best way to learn is through stories. The Glamour of Grammar is not a textbook. It’s a story of language from one who loves its bones. You will remember so much more about language because the lessons here are attached to tidbits, anecdotes and analogies. I wholeheartedly recommend the audiobook. Clark narrates his ownContinue reading “The best way to learn is through stories. A review of The Glamour of Grammar by Roy Peter Clark”

Is it farmers’ market or farmers market? Assassins’ guild or assassins guild?

What does a farmers market have in common with an assassins guild? Well, I consulted this MW article about the former’s apostrophe (or lack thereof) and wondered whether I could apply the principle to the latter…https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/is-there-an-apostrophe-in-farmers-market-punctuation-possessive “Style guides try to make a distinction between possessive phrases and those that are merely descriptive. Since a farmersContinue reading “Is it farmers’ market or farmers market? Assassins’ guild or assassins guild?”