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I couldn’t even explain properly what I was looking for other than “everything please”. I knew very little about editing, I still don’t. It was such fun to read through these editors’ profile and past experience, and know I could pick any one of them - if they’d have me that is.
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But Ricardo was there to help and after an exchange of “what’s your book about”, “why don’t I make some recommendations” and “get in early because these people are very good, and very busy” he sent me a list of five editors that I might like. I was far from ready for an editor, I was just lurking. I loitered a while, with intent, while finishing my draft, and in my inbox popped Ricardo: We’re here to help. A smorgasbord of book publishing professionals who edited successful books in a genre similar to mine stared back at me. I read about Reedsy on The Guardian newspaper’s website. But Google is not so friendly as to offer: "For the editor who has edited everything by Sophie Hannah, click here." Who would you choose? and why pick that one? The editor you would trust would be one that has edited books in a genre similar to yours, preferably successful books that you know, and for extra bonus books you love. When you know nothing and nobody, it’s not easy to find an editor. Of course it’s not just Penn, but it is through her that I understood that this was a step that was not to be compromised on. Among the myriad of fascinating tidbits she offers every week, one thing she comes back to is the importance of editing. There is so much helpful information out there and my next addiction was Joanna Penn’s The Creative Penn podcast. The self-publishing space is filled with generous people. I got stuck because I hadn’t sufficiently plotted myself into 1,666 words a day but still, I made a mightily impressive start, then went back to my podcast to map out the rest. I didn’t complete the novel, nor did I write 50,000 words. Google being my friend, I next found out about Nanowrimo, the national writing month initiative where basically you sign up and write a novel in a month, or at least 50,000 words of it. But back then, and this is a couple of years ago now, they may as well have been Swahili. Nor had I heard of pantsers, plotters, inciting incidents, plot points, hero’s journeys, etc, and now these terms are part of my language and I think of them every day. It’s strange to type those words and reflect that a couple of years ago, I’d never heard of the concept of Show don’t Tell. I started at the beginning: Episode 1, Show don’t Tell. The Creative Writers’ Toolbelt by Andrew Chamberlain. So I went on a search and low and behold I found it. They’re terrific because you can learn something, AND clean your house at the same time. I was hoping for a “join the dots” style model, something along the lines of “kill someone in chapter 1” and “throw in a suspect in chapter 3” then link ‘em up in chapter 2. Having decided that I would write a novel, I figured there must be structures out there that I could follow, something akin to the three-act paradigm that is used in film narratives. And of course probably like anyone who has ever wanted to write a novel, I thought I could write one because I love reading them. Ironically, I didn’t use to enjoy writing very much, but I have always loved stories, and the idea of them. I read them all the time, I am addicted to them, and find them to be great stories. More specifically, a psychological suspense novel, because I love them. So we decided to pick one each, and get on with it. Over a glass of wine - or ten, let’s be honest - my friend and I were lamenting the fact that it’s so easy to put something into the bucket list, but almost impossible to get it out again. It was a conversation about bucket lists that got me started. You can read about how that happened here. If "writing a novel" is still on your bucket list, you'll find some good inspiration and advice below!Įdit: Just 6 months after publishing "Until I Met Her", Natalie Barelli got signed by Amazon Publishing's imprint Thomas & Mercer.
The bucket list narratives professional#
An IT professional writing a psychological thriller might have seemed like a pipe dream, but persistence led to a book which by all accounts is a real page-turner. Natalie Barelli harbored a dream that's all too familiar for our readers - writing a novel.