Ever wonder how much editing costs? The cost of editing is by far the question authors ask me about most often. I feel a little like I’m giving away a trade secret by talking about this, but in reality, the average cost of editing can be found on many sites, and it’s almost impossible to predict because (as you’ll soon see) there are so many variables to consider. If you are interested in how editing costing works, read on!
Most editors that I’ve met price a project based on four factors:
I would love to complete a MFA (Master of Fine Arts).
I’ve heard both the good and the bad about aspiring writers pursuing an MFA, but that hasn’t dissuaded me. What has dissuaded me is the cost and the time.
I was recently chatting with a writing friend who is working away at her MFA. I was lamenting about how now is not a good time for me to complete an MFA, and she gave me a great idea: “Why not do your own mini, mostly-at-home MFA for a fraction of the price?”
I’ve created a budget-friendly, mostly-at-home MFA program below. Of course this is no substitute for the real thing, but I hope this pared down MFA is useful those of us who can’t complete an actual MFA just now, or those who don’t plan on completing an MFA but want to continue improving their writing career.
While reading a recent blog post by Penelope Trunk, I found my way to this article from Forbes: 3 Reasons You Should Quit Social Media in 2013. It was a relief.
Here’s my dirty secret: I’ve wanted to quit social media for months.
I’ve been thinking lately about the value of social media for writers. Is the return really worth the time you take away from your writing? For new, non-agented writers (like myself), is it worth focusing on social media to build a platform, or should you just be focusing all of your energy on becoming a better writer?
It seems Twitter, Facebook and blogs have become mandatory in the ‘getting published’ process. When I talk to new writers, they are usually trying to learn to write, learn to tweet, learn to set up a Facebook fan page and produce amazing blog posts that get hundreds of views. Oh, and get published.
I started writing in a journal when I was in grade 3. One of my teachers took my parents aside on parent-teacher night and suggested that they get me a notebook so I could write my ideas down. I think this came about because I wasn’t paying attention in math class, but it in hindsight it was likely one of the events that lead me to writing.
I journaled daily for years — until my mid-twenties, in fact. I have boxes full of journals of all shapes and sizes stored in a basement somewhere. There are the pink, sparkly ones of high school days, filled with “I love so-and-so’s,” and lots of stickers, the angsty tirades of my early 20s, the day-to-day scribbles of my early 30s. I reduced my journaling to a few times a week as I grew older, and recently, I stopped.