#editortips for 08.31.12

@smoulderingsea: Unless it's really well-done and impactful, a dialogue opening generally makes me tune out for the rest of the story. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: An awesome premise isn't enough without strong writing to hold it up. Study your craft. Hone your writing. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Even if you're a pantser, try to ask yourself what the goal of each scene is before you write it. Make it count. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Sending read receipts on query emails is just a teeny bit obnoxious. I know you're anxious over lost email. It's still annoying. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Passed: past tense of "pass(v)," moving forward. Past: period in previous time; beyond; over with/done. Not the same word. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: No matter how much you like that beautiful turn of phrase from another book, reusing in your book is still plagiarism. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Don't have a deadline? Pretend you do. Sometimes it's the only way to make writing a consistent habit. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Write as if you'll lose a body part for every unnecessary word. You'll trim the fat very quickly. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Don't decide to hate a book because you're jealous of the author's success. The book didn't do anything to you. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: Publishing isn't a race. Neither the tortoise nor the hare is better. Don't compare. Just write, edit, submit, write more. #editortips

@smoulderingsea: You are never ill-equipped to write your book as long as you have the will to sit down and just *do* it. #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 designing cyborg body parts for cute kittens.