Reference Your Work

I'm popping in here to write about a thought I wanted to share. 

When I had a book critique done, the editor doing the critique criticized me for having dictionary definitions in my work. She said it was the sign of immature writing. I took them out. 

What do think about that comment? 

The decision to include dictionary definitions is entirely yours. In the end, the impact of integrating definitions hinges on how seamlessly they enhance the overall quality of your writing.  However, it is advisable, at the very least, to enclose direct quotes in quotations and provide proper citation or footnotes to acknowledge the sources.

The same goes for Bible verses. But be aware, some of today's publishers prefer writers paraphrase the meaning of a Bible verse rather than fill their manuscript with direct quotes. 

If you do quote a Bible verse word for word, please also apply the proper quotation marks and add the reference.  

Here are examples of how to show Bible verse quotations (notice the brackets and the punctuation). In the ebook that included these, in the opening remarks, I posted this statement: 

Scripture quotations marked are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission.  All rights reserved worldwide.

Whenever I used an alternate version of the Bible, I added the version in the quote as in this example: 

 

“And your ears shall hear a word behind you,

saying, “This is the way, walk in it, when you turn

to the right or when you turn to the left”

(Is. 30:21 ESV).

 "As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa 55:9).

Edit Until...

Writing is the easy part. You sit at a computer or pull out your journal and spew your thoughts. But if you want to share or publish your writing, editing is necessary. Blog posts can get away with a little less work, but articles take more editing. 

When I edit something I've thrown together, I first try to decide where I to go with it. It has to serve a purpose. It has to ask and answer a question. There needs to be flow. The sequence has to make sense. 

(That being said, I've gone back over some things I've written and published and much later see it could have flowed better. We are always a work in progress.)  

Cut Words

Cutting unnecessary words is an important edit. When I write eBooks, not only do I cut the unnecessary words I notice, I go to lists of words I've saved that professional editors say to cut (you can find lists online). I do a word search on various words or phrases and cut them out drastically.

It's always a good idea to give yourself time between edits even if it is simply minutes. 

I edit an article, leave it to work on another, and return to it later. I do this on and off until I can read an article through without making a change. Then I know it's ready. 

Of course, the perfectionist in most writers keeps seeing more to change. When this becomes problematic, I just call it quits. I say it's good enough, and I send it in to the editors.