#editortips for 06.27.12

@smoulderingsea: Know what kind of story you're telling. Is it action? Adventure? Romance? Shape your story goals accordingly; don't wander.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: New writers often think they have to explain everything or reader won't get their vision. As you learn, you learn to back off.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Reader and author perspective never align 100%. What matters is that you give enough for readers to make the story personal.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Setting is important, but if you spend all your characterization on your setting, actual characters will seem bland by contrast.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: You are never too good to communicate with your readers. You make the story. They make or break *you.*  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Please don't tell me your writing process in your query. I don't care how the words got on the page. I care if they're good.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Don't sub all your stories at once. Rejections can teach you what isn't working; learn, then adapt and try again. Don't bombard.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: If everyone followed sub guidelines, agents and editors would likely be able to respond to subs much more quickly. Hinthint.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Hard to accept, but sometimes it's just not the right time for your book. The market may have passed, or may not have developed.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Your crit partners and betas aren't just there to further your writing career. Give back. Be constructive. Help them, too.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: You absorb creative influences subconsciously. Make sure you aren't accidentally copying someone without realizing it.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: When you treat your published author friends as nothing but potential stepping stones, you can ruin friendships permanently.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Building a friendly social media relationship with an agent or editor won't guarantee acceptance. Business and fun don't mix.  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Write what matters to you. Write what makes you feel strongly. If you don't care about your story, why should anyone else?  #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Don't be afraid of the story you want to tell. Don't restrict it because of peer pressure or society. Be bold. Write bravely.  #editortips

About #editortips:
#editortips is a daily rash of tweets from an only partially crazy editor, chock full of random chocolatey morsels about writing, editing, and querying vaguely disguised as helpful pointers and/or really bad humor. I tweet as @smoulderingsea, and try to post with some consistency every weekday at 6PM CST. Weekends optional, depending on if I’m spending yet another Saturday night editing because my social life consists of Netflix and analyzing the psychology of cultures as portrayed by the evolution of language.