Authors published by big houses consist of seasoned professionals with solid followings, along with (a few) talented new voices each year . . . yet every one of them has not just an editor, but an editorial team.
If experts benefit from objective eyes and editorial insight, what makes you think you should go it alone?
Great content, regardless of genre, remains the most important element of a successful book. And in today’s market, where anyone can publish quickly—there are currently 48.5 MILLION books for sale on Amazon and nearly 9 million titles available on Kindle—it’s more important than ever to publish well.
That makes a good editor an indispensable member of any author’s team.
After all: to write is an act of creative engagement. To ask people to pay for a product you publish is an entrepreneurial activity.
But the good news is editing begins much earlier, and entails many more benefits, than emerging authors realize.
The Writing Cycle
a little bit about
What’s more,
it means you don't have to write and revise your book alone.
If you follow the stages of The Writing Cycle, you will succeed.
I know. Not only am I an author myself, I've edited dozens of books published with indie presses and large houses,
The Writing Cycle evolved out of my desire to help writers get better books into the world, with less isolation and more artistic results.
If you develop your manuscript with a professional, sound structure will save YEARS of wasted drafting?
If you need encouragement along the way, accountability can help?
If you hire a line editor, elements of craft or grammar may no longer prevent you from publishing with pride?
StAGE 1
What if I told you :
DREAM up your story with inspiration from the BLOG + FREE resources.
StAGE 2
DEVELOP story structure with proven methods.
StAGE 3
DRAFT new material in Accountability Groups.
START HERE
START HERE
StAGE 4
POLISH & DELIVER a better book with line-editing.
START HERE
START HERE
Reach out
Desert-born word charmer, novice dog-dominatrix, and founder of The Writing Cycle.
I’m an award-winning short fiction writer in Phoenix, Arizona, who helps writers and wannabe-writers get better books into the world by equipping them with craft to elevate ideas into art.
I grew up in I grew up in old Phoenix, where sun-ripened grapefruit fell from trees and rotted along sidewalks.
I spent summers on tarred beaches before escaping to Kenya, Seoul, and finally an MFA in monsoon-soaked Tucson,
where I sipped tequila late into nights with classmates, many who would go on to become acclaimed writers of our age.
Over the course of my life, I’ve spent nearly fifteen years teaching college creative writing,
worked as editor of literary and commercial publications, and managed editorial for one of the world’s largest women’s web properties.
The longer I taught, the more I recognized that personality could never be extricated from the things (and ways in which) we create.
Personhood imprints distinction and relatability on the page. This inspired me to undertake study in trauma psychology, MBTI certification, and creativity coaching with America’s foremost expert.
I came to realize that while I was a good writer, I am a transformative editor and coach.
So if there is a story in you just waiting to be written, let me guide you through each
stage of the writing cycle, from inspiration to publication.
Reach out
WHY
The
Hardships including blood cancer, complex trauma, and traumatic bereavement taught me to create amidst chaos, and make meaning in whatever context life provides. I do this by identifying my sense of purpose: to communicate authentic experience and harness the power of stories.
Writing is one way I achieve this.
Helping writers shape meaningful stories is another. After all, worlds are made by words.
Most aspiring authors have a knack for story: avid readers who captivate friends in conversation, they harbor a tale they’ve waited a lifetime to tell.
But even gifted storytellers find themselves at a loss when faced with challenges such as limiting point of view, or controlling past-perfect tenses in flashback scenes.
Writers who haven’t logged ten thousand hours studying craft lose heart in the face of such setbacks. They forget voice is the very thing that adds value.
By contrast, the need for assistance may not enter others'’ minds until they've been at work on a project for years. At that point, many are “over” writing, impatient to move on to the publishing side of things. (After all, it's more fun to choose cover art than diagram story structure.)
But both are mistaken. A meaningful book should neither be rushed, nor abandoned.: it's worth investing in. Choose to elevate your art. After all, you’ve put your heart into it.
THE REAL DEAL
But let’s talk about you . . .
'm the editor for you, if you’re ready to:
Dig deep into your purpose, for a project.
Shape your story.
Convey your signature style on the page.
Emphasize the inner journey.
Translate ideas into successful story structure.
Clarify your book's trope, timeline, and theme.
Leave with a professionally-edited manuscript.
Transition from aspiring to professional author.
Reach out and tell me about your book.
To learn more about The Writing Cycle, take a peek at
Professional bio:
CAROL TEST holds an MFA from the University of Arizona, where she served as editor-in-chief of Sonora Review. Her stories have been nominated for a Pushcart prize and two Glimmer-Train Short Story Awards for New Writers,, her debut collection for The Flannery O’Connor Award by the University of Georgia Press.
She has taught creative writing through The University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Phoenix and Mesa Community Colleges, and The Virginia G. Piper Center for Creative Writing.
Her work has been published in journals including Night Train, Red Rock Review, The Normal School, The Coachella Review, Monsoon Voices, The Review Review, Pilgrimage, and Other Voices, among others. She is the recipient of Arizona Commission on the Arts awards and scholarships to Sewanee, Bread Loaf, and DISQUIET. Her memoir is forthcoming in 2024.
During quarantine, she took up poetry to explore the loss of her youngest brother during the COVID-19 pandemic. You can listen to those poems through the Piper Center for Creative Writing, or check out Carol’s fiction in The Coachella Review.
