Magic Words Editing | Shawna Hampton

WRITERS: This advice comes up a lot, but apparently not everyone has heard it.

A character cannot smile or shrug a word.

STOP: "You're an idiot," she smiled.

DO THIS INSTEAD:
"You're an idiot," she said with a smile.
"You're an idiot." She smiled.
"You," she said, smiling, "are an idiot."

I bet. Just a few years before Toward the Within, peak DCD.

DEAD CAN DANCE!! 🙀 I can only imagine how awesome that was. So jealous,

We are thrilled to announce that our NEW Large Language Model will be released on 11.18.25.

[Exit King.]

I once again want to remind all writers: When you’re starting a new chapter in MS Word, do NOT press the return key until you reach the next page. Use Insert > Break > Page Break instead. Your editors, copy editors, & typesetters will thank you!

Copyediting malpractice is real, full stop.

A Quick Guide to Dealing with Errors in Editing - Right Touch Editing It’s tempting to think that hiring an editor means your manuscript will be completely free of errors. But no editing job is perfect.

No edit is perfect—and that's okay! I explain why a 95% correction rate is excellent, how to evaluate remaining errors, and what to do when they're discovered: zurl.co/jcdXD #WritingTips #WritingCommunity

And this is why I noped out of Substack right as I was getting my newsletter there off the ground. Any media channel I don't control directly is fodder for these tech bros' fever dreams.

Image with black background and in white letters it reads "DEI Boldface. All caps. We reaffirm the principles of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Learn more about our commitment. The-efa.org/diversity-equity-belonging. And EFA logo that reads EFA Editorial Freelancers Association. The-efa.org

The EFA is committed to standing by DEI; we re-affirm the principles of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Learn more about our commitment: The-efa.org/diversity-equity-belonging #DiversityEquityInclusion #DEI #InclusionMatters #EquityForAll #DiversityMatters #Freelancers #EquityInAction

And no, genuinely top-tier copy editing can't be done by "AI," because, like with translation, there are subtle bits an LLM isn't going to pick up on, because it's not actually intelligent. There's more to copy editing than just grammar. A good copy edit can make a story better. Brains are required.

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

10. Oh yeah, haha, I forgot to mention my book needs to be edited in a week. That won't be a problem, will it? I mean, it's only 150K, how long can it take? Just run it through AI.

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

9. What do you mean I can't watch you edit in Google Docs?

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

8. In this book, I decided to capitalize every other word. Have fun!

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

7. I decided for this book I wasn't going to use quotation marks, commas, periods, or any punctuation at all really. Enjoy!

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

6. I know you're halfway done, but I decided to completely remove a storyline. Here you go!

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

5. I know you're halfway done, but I decided rename my main character. Here you go!

Things to say to reeeeally piss off a copyeditor (in multiple parts):

4. I know you're halfway done, but I decided to add a 20,000-word prologue. Here you go!

AAAHHH!!!! *screams in GENX with glee* AAAHHH 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

I'll leave up the link in case someone with Windows cruises by and needs them. Good luck!

Oh! Sorry. I just saw that you're on a Mac, so those instructions won't word. Apologies. What a shitshow.

It's utterly ridiculous, shady, irritating, and downright evil.

Try this. It removed Copilot completely from my version of Word, even the ribbon tab and document icon. answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffi...

Just gonna drop this here . . . 😁

The Grave Of Octavia Butler, Writer Who Once Prophesied LA Fires, Still Stands In Altadena Cemetery The grave of Octavia Butler, whose novel "Parable Of The Sower" predicted fires engulfing Los Angeles, still stands at a Altadena cemetery.

A sliver of good news from the fire in Altadena.

www.blackenterprise.com/grave-octavi...

Who is your celebrity “Birthday Twin” (born same day as you)? Answer with pic or gif only.

With a rec like that, on the list it goes . . .

👋 Now that Bluesky will be one of my only social media "homes" for a while, hi there! I'm a:

✍️ Freelance book editor
✨ #fantasy #sciencefiction #horror lover
🧠 AuDHD
🖖 Star Trek > Star Wars
🐾 Cat fanatic
📝 Slow writer
🎵 Lazy musician
🏃‍♀️ 13.1 runner
🧙‍♀️ Witchy woman
📍 St. Louisan

#writers
#editors

That's so awesome! 🥳

🙏 All because I have wonderful clients like you. 🤩