Product Description: A nitty-gritty how-to book about editing. Howard-Johnson gives writers the information and tips they need to get their work ready for submission. It's practical and detailed.
Frugal on Content but Not in Price Good book but mixed feelings. Here's my take on the pro's and con's of the Frugal Editor.
The Format of this book: It is noted that it is a 208 page book, but it's actually 192 pages (which includes table of content and about 40 pages of acknowledgement & intro pages, index, and a 30 page appendix). Subtract from that, 29 blank pages and 6 pages of paragraph length chapters and you have a 158 page book (with about 95 pages of actual content) for the listed price. Now in her book, the author states that formatting standards of what side a chapter should start is the culprit of white pages (because chapters should begin on the right side). However, this standard gets overused, so the format stretches a small book into a roughly 200 page book. This is a huge pet peeve of mine. As it seems lately, many self-published books are using this tactic. I don't mind purchasing a 90 page book filled with excellent information as long as it is priced right.
On the plus side, she does include shaded boxes to highlight important tidbits or summaries of information, which I found extremely helpful, especially for the visual learner.
Now for the content. On her website/blog, she promotes how this book goes into the Flesch-Kincaid Readability tool. Something that I was really interested in knowing and it is what finally prompted me to purchase the book (because her cheesey cover did not sell me). But the only info. her book delves into is on how to access it. She does NOT offer any concrete interpretation on what the Flesch scores mean and how to specifically use it. She does, however, send you to a link of audio files she produced on using the Flesch for an additional cost, of course. Albeit, you can't even purchase that audio because it is not even available on the websites listed within the book. For me, that was slick advertising and left me really disappointed. Thankfully, I own another book by James V. Smith, "The Writer's Little Helper" which goes into the Flesch tool quite a bit. I was just looking to find more innovative ways to use it thru the Frugal Editor book, but I was left empty handed.
A main premise throughout this book is on the utilization of Microsoft Word's Find and Replace tools and how to search for redundancies in terms of adverbs, gerunds, and the such. I found these sections very helpful because it never occurred to me to use this tool in such a way. If you are not familiar with this, then the purchase of this book will make it worthwhile.
There are a few sections on grammar that the Frugal Editor delves into with enough explanation to help you implement the author's points within your editing. But then there are many other sections where she just wraps it up with a very brief summary of a few lines and sends you off to various website links. Although, some of these sources were excellent, for nineteen dollars and having about 35 blank pages within the book, the author could have summarized better and offer more examples on the topics she touched so that one could utilize her book as a usable reference. I didn't need to pay nineteen dollars for a list of website links for grammar usage tips when a Google search would cost me nothing.
On the plus side, the Frugal Editor does contain an extensive set of appendixes and some were very beneficial such as a website that offered free searching tools of adverbs, prepositions, passive words, word & phrase frequency. Then there is another similar tool for about a hundred dollars on a U.K website for a Concordance Tool that does the above, as well as indexing and other tools. I wasn't aware of these tools, so just finding out about it within this book did help to lessen my other gripes.
The author also included sample query letters and cover letters although meant to be helpful, had no connection with the editing purposes of this book. Just seemed like "helpful" filler - a nicety.
All in all, the author seems very likeable and enthusiastic especially about her books. She has an extensive professional background and seems to be a respectable member of the community. Her advice is not to be taken lightly. I really liked what she had to say about the editing process and had only hoped that she would have dispelled more of her experience and background into her book as she does in her audios (she has an extensive list of audios - each about 60 minutes long, but I found no way of purchasing many of them). Perhaps a future updated edition of this book is due soon (Hint). Perhaps incorporating some of her audio book files into a future edition of this book will make this a solid reference to own.
If you can find this book elsewhere for a lot less, then I definitely recommend purchasing it.
A book for all writers Should you be your own editor?
The Frugal Editor will answer this question while giving you an insight to editing. In the end, it is up to the author, whether or not they want to self-edit their manuscript. Carolyn will give you information and links to information while also giving you some tools in Microsoft Word, albeit, pre Vista and Word 2007.
With a bit of internet searching, you can find the subtle differences, I did. Word 2007 will also save your work in a format that someone using an earlier version will not be able to read. You will learn this also as you become more familiar with Word 2007. Hint: save your docs as Word 97-2003; that way people using earlier versions of Word will be able to read your docs easily.
In The Frugal Editor, Carolyn gives you a wealth of information gleaned over the years by trial and error. It is easier to learn from someone that' been there and done that than fight it yourself. I know I have, and I welcome the information to help me save time and energy by reading this book and visiting some of the links. Unfortunately, as the internet is, links don't seem to last. I found a link here and there that didn't work; that being said, I found more than enough links that did work for me to bookmark many sites for further perusal.
No matter what level of writer you are, The Frugal Editor is a must read, whether novice or pro, you will gain something. I plan on telling my writer friends about this book. I found it fun and informational at the same time. As a freelance writer, The Frugal Editor, can be, and, should be, used if you are considering writing of any type.
Do yourself a favor, pick up a copy and read it. You will not be disappointed, and you might just learn something new about writing in the process.
A must have for killer manuscript writing As an author and being involved in the publishing world I highly recommend this book to all those wanting to break into the market, those already in the market, and those afraid to step into the market. Carolyn dispels all myths, gives encouragement, and certainly filled the book with tips and techniques to get past road blocks and fear. Concise, easy to read and follow, "The Frugal Editor" is a must-have book in the writer's library to create those killer manuscripts. I just know it will get dog-eared from use within a very short time, and as a writer you will easily have your foot into the door of successful publishing.
Informative and Entertaining Carolyn Howard-Johnson's "The Frugal Editor" is an eye-opening journey into the often tedious realm of editing. Carolyn's book is both informative and entertaining in the way she presents the technical subject matter as she interjects bits of wit and humor throughout. Her explanations for solving common writing problems were informative and detailed. Even readers with a professional knowledge of Microsoft's Word program will discover great editing tools designed to assist authors in their quest for a perfected end product. As an author, I found "The Frugal Editor" an enlightening read and a valuable reference book, and one that should be used by everyone looking to perfect their writing skills.
The Frugal Editor I want to thank Carolyn for writing this book. I have several degrees but this does not make me the best editor for my own writing. This book has helped me to be a better writer, and hopefully make it easier for that final professional editor.
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