You want to publish your book.
I did, too. It happened, and the more I learn, the more I realize having an English major doesn't prepare you to be a published author.
Here's what they don't teach you in school about what it takes to survive in the...
More wonderful elaborated notes from the fourth program from Bay to Ocean Writers Conference 2016: "Polishing Your Work for Publication," by Ally Machate.
Why is polished work important?
The competition is STIFF and editors are overworked, underpaid, and short-handed. They're looking for a reason to say no before they even read the first word of your story. It's important to always be professional at the highest level you can be so they have every reason to say yes to you. Make it your mission to make their job easy to say YES to you. Editors want projects where they can see the finish line and spend less time nurturing a work.
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In 2013, 30,000,000 manuscripts were rejected and only 100,000 were accepted by publishers, according to Bowker, which provided ISBN numbers for books. An ISBN is an International Standard Book Number. All published books need one, including self-published books. (To my knowledge, Amazon does have an option to publish without an ISBN, but I don't recommend that because 1) it's unprofessional and 2) there's no way for your book to stand out in the sea of books.)
Here are the most common problems she (Ally) sees in manuscripts:
1. Unnatural dialogue and voice.
Read your novel aloud to yourself, record it to listen back, or have someone else read it to you. This will help you notice mistakes you might overlook when you read silently.
Even in nonfiction, your narrative voice is your voice. Do people really talk that way?
Use contractions, especially in dialogue. Italicize if you really need to avoid the contraction for purposes of emphasis.
Formal vs. Informal dialogue: Does your character talk this way? Different characters should speak differently based on their origins, dialects, education level, and even speech impediments. Dialogue is a great way to show diversity in your story.
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2. Too many adverbs.
Consider how you can convey emotions through your writing, instead of through the use of adverbs. (ie. He yelled angrily vs. He yelled until his face turned purple.) Usually in writing, an adverb is a glaring red flag that you as the writer need to use a stronger verb.
