books

Quotes in the Spirit of Christmas

Lynette M Burrows

My Monday Motivation and Inspiration post today is dedicated to the holiday I celebrate at this time of year. I invite those of you who celebrate other holidays to read these quotes in the spirit of Christmas and feel free to submit quotations about your preferred December holiday in the comments.  Christmas Eve was a night of song that wrapped itself about you like a shawl. But it warmed more than your body. It warmed your heart…filled it, too, with melody that would last forever. –Bess Streeter Aldrich, Song of Years Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. –Clement Clark Moore, The Night Before Christmas   It was the beginning of the greatest Christmas ever. Little food. No presents. But there was a snowman in their basement. –Markus Zusak, The Book Thief     One can never have enough socks. Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn’t get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books. –J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone Thousands of lights were burning on the green branches, and gaily-colored pictures, such as she had seen in the shop-windows, looked down upon […]

How I Found the Right Editor

Lynette M Burrows

It was more than luck. Creating a book takes a team. I spoke about how I chose my cover artist. How I found the right editor for My Soul to Keep was to search for the right one several months before I needed one. It took some work, some due diligence, and some patience. But it paid off. Which Type? The first step in my journey to find the right editor was to research the different types of editors. It can get confusing. When you search the internet there are folks who say there are four types, five types, nine types, and more! But for most freelancers, it boils down to four general types. Developmental editors who work with you on the structure and arc of the story. Copy editors examine your finished story for consistency, grammar, and flow. Line editors address the writing style, language, and content on a sentence level. Proofreaders are the nit-pickers who look for typos and misplaced words or punctuation. Each writer’s needs, every novel’s needs, are different. I had a mentor who had helped me with developing the story. But my weaknesses were grammar and consistency. So I needed a copy editor. But there […]

I Was Alone But Not Alone

Lynette M Burrows

My book, My Soul to Keep, launched yesterday. It was a special moment. But as I reflected on the hours, days, weeks, and years I worked on this book, I realized something important. I was alone but not alone. So many things go into writing a book. All the books read, the friends roped into endless conversations, writing group members who tolerated endless rewrites, beta readers, editors, proofreaders, artists, and ARC readers each contribute to the story. I’m going to take a moment to say thank you to all who had a part in this. A Little Emotional I’m a little (okay, more than a little) overwhelmed by the friends and family who celebrate this book with me. I’m delighted that my very first review was a five-star review (it’s on Goodreads if you want a peak). Now you might rightly assume that my emotional outpouring has to do with pride. Yes, I have a healthy amount of pride in accomplishing a book. But what I am most grateful for is all the people who helped me get to this place. I could not do it alone, even though I must write alone. The support, the camaraderie, the encouragement I […]