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Self-editing your fiction manuscript

31/8/2015

 
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As part of the Claire Keegan fiction clinics autumn series, this September I will be teaching a course on self-editing your fiction manuscript. Some places are still available.

Course description
This two-day course will cover:
  • The correct use of punctuation, including apostrophes, commas, colons, semi-colons, ellipses, hyphens, dashes, exclamation marks, slashes and quotation marks.
  • How to lay out your fiction manuscript, e.g. paragraph indentation, section breaks and page breaks.
  • How to format character dialogue and avoid common dialogue errors.
  • How to style your fiction manuscript, e.g. when to use italics, chapter headings, etc.
  • Identifying and correcting common errors editors find in fiction manuscripts, e.g. comma splices, homophones, dangling modifiers, incorrect capitalisation of common nouns/proper nouns, and overuse of clichés, adverbs and the passive voice, etc.
  • How to recognise style errors such as tautology and pleonasm.
  • How to avoid timeline errors and plot inconsistencies.
  • An overview of editing your work using Microsoft Word’s track changes function.

Course details
Course dates: 12–13 September 2015 (10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day)
Venue: The Millrace Hotel, Bunclody, Co Wexford
Tuition fee: €200
To book: please email ckworkshops@yahoo.com

Other courses in the Claire Keegan fiction clinics autumn series include:

Fiction Workshop
19–20 September
Millrace Hotel, Bunclody, Co Wexford
Deadline for receipt of manuscripts: 9 September
Tuition €300
This workshop will focus on works-in-progress (short stories or excerpts of novels) submitted by participants. Manuscripts are distributed to every participant in advance and read with care by all. Claire Keegan will spend between 3–5 hours on each text, and then examine and discuss every text with the group during the weekend. Discussion likely to include the structure of a narrative, paragraph structure, time, tension, drama, melodrama, statement, description, suggestion, conflict, character, point of view, place, time and setting. The aim, always, is to help each author with the next draft. While most participants like to submit a manuscript, this is not a requirement.

Fiction Workshop
3–4 October
London
Tuition £350
This workshop will focus on works-in-progress (short stories or excerpts of novels) submitted by participants. Manuscripts are distributed to every participant in advance and read with care by all. Claire Keegan will spend between 3–5 hours on each text, and will then examine and discuss every text with the group during the weekend. Discussion likely to include the structure of a narrative, paragraph structure, time, tension, drama, melodrama, statement, description, suggestion, conflict, character, point of view, place, time and setting. The aim, always, is to help each author with the next draft. While most participants like to submit a manuscript, this is not a requirement.

Claire will announce details of more courses for October and November in the coming weeks. For more information on these additional courses and on any of the above, or to join the Claire Keegan Fiction Workshop mailing list please email ckworkshops@yahoo.co.uk. All places are offered on a first come, first served basis. 


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    Mary McCauley is a professional editor and proofreader based in Co Wexford, Ireland. In this blog she shares tips and information on all things writing and editing related.
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    All Letters from an Irish Editor blog content is copyrighted and may not be reproduced without written permission.
    © Mary McCauley Proofreading 2012–2021
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