revision - Bookology Magazine

Tag, You’re It! (Part 7)

April 13, 2025 by Barb Rosenstock

In the past six months, we’ve talked about the business of book publishing and the basics of drafting story. Now it’s time for more information on the all-important work of fixing that story, also known as revision.

To Rhyme or Not to Rhyme

June 15, 2024October 15, 2023 by Vicki Palmquist

If you’ve ever dipped a toe into the children’s book publishing world, you’ve probably heard cautionary tales about writing in rhyme. In short, most insiders say, “Please don’t rhyme.”

Rev Their Engines

March 9, 2021May 21, 2020 by Lisa Bullard

Sometimes, despite cramming plenty of action and conﬂict into my writing, it still falls ﬂat. I want the words to leap oﬀ the page and grab readers by the throat, and instead they ﬂop around gasping for breath. Fortunately, there’s a straightforward revision trick that can rejuvenate such writing: a verb check. I start by going through the piece and underlining or highlighting every verb.… more

Overdrive

March 9, 2021December 5, 2019 by Lisa Bullard

There’s a quote about sculpting, attributed to Michelangelo, that I often paraphrase for students when I’m talking about the art of revising: In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action. I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it.… more

Waiting for My Editor, part 5

May 15, 2019 by Lynne Jonell

Waiting for my editor ... Okay, she's busy and can't get to it. Meantime, I can't just wait around ... a new book is knocking at my door.

Waiting for My Editor, part 4

March 14, 2021April 18, 2019 by Lynne Jonell

I'm not just being WHINY here (well, maybe a little). But I have a FIRM DEADLINE for the finished book.

Waiting for My Editor, part 3

March 14, 2021April 3, 2019 by Lynne Jonell

Waiting for my editor: hours turn into days, days into weeks, weeks into months ...

Waiting for My Editor, part 2

March 20, 2019March 20, 2019 by Lynne Jonell

Another good thing about waiting is ... um ... it BUILDS CHARACTER.

Waiting for My Editor

March 14, 2021March 6, 2019 by Lynne Jonell

Good things about waiting for my editor to respond ...

Revisions Part 5

March 7, 2021August 22, 2018 by Lynne Jonell

In revisions, Lynne Jonell explores the serendipity of following her editor's suggestion, even though she wanted to resist.

Stopping by the Diner

March 9, 2021December 7, 2017 by Lisa Bullard

My dad has a passionate hatred of olives on, in, or even in the general vicinity of his food. He’s convinced their mere presence contaminates anything else on his plate. So when he eats at his favorite small-town diner, he’s always careful to tell the server that he wants his dinner salad without the black olives they usually include.… more

Three Tips for Writing Teachers

September 21, 2017August 22, 2017 by Vicki Palmquist

Teachers often feel frustrated when the revisions students make to their writing aren’t improvements. And so they ask me how to help the children make their manuscripts better. I wish I had an easy answer for these teachers and for their students, but here’s the truth: Revision is messy. It’s fraught with detours. Even experienced writers struggle with the process, and sometimes our efforts are complete and utter failures.… more

Knowing My Own Mind

August 29, 2017July 27, 2017 by Vicki Palmquist

There are times when I don’t know my own mind. Worse, there are times when I think I know my mind perfectly well and then find an entirely different mind on a later visit to my opinions. Which feels almost as though I have no mind at all. Some time ago one of my favorite writers came out with a new novel. I had been waiting for her next book for years, so, of course, I signed up to have it pop into my electronic reader at the first opportunity.… more

What’s Best for the Story?

March 14, 2021March 15, 2017 by Lynne Jonell

Editing the first draft ... there are some inconsistencies, for sure.

Miles to Go

March 14, 2021March 1, 2017 by Lynne Jonell

Yep, I've completed the FIRST DRAFT, but the book isn't done YET; there are miles to go before I sleep.

In Draft

January 3, 2017December 7, 2016 by Vicki Palmquist

“He was always chasing the next draft of himself.” American critic Dwight Garner, in the New York Times Book Review on February 16 of this year, was describing the childhood of Henry James. An expandable list comes to mind, some of our memorable figures moving toward the next draft of themselves: Anne Shirley, Holden Caulfield, Jo March, Jody Baxter, Arnold Spirit, Jr.,… more

Driving Past Effingham

March 9, 2021June 8, 2016 by Lisa Bullard

A surefire revision tactic: reading something out loud ensures that students will hear mistakes they have never noticed before.

Moseying

March 9, 2021May 26, 2016 by Lisa Bullard

My favorite road trips focus more on the discoveries the journey holds than on rapidly reaching a destination. You might call me a moseying kind of person. Every fall, my mom and I load my nephews and niece into the car for one of my favorite meanders: a visit to the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum. In the years it has taken for the oldest of the kids to go from babies to texting teenagers, we have perfected the art of stretching the Arboretum’s Three-Mile Drive into a several hours’ ramble.… more

Changing Course

March 9, 2021June 18, 2015 by Lisa Bullard

by Lisa Bullard My family didn’t camp when I was a kid. So a few years ago, when a friend asked if I wanted to go on a camping trip to Arkansas, I said, “Sure. I’ve always wanted to try camping. It will be fun.” I assumed there would be lots of yummy toasted-marshmallow moments. You know what they say about making assumptions, right?… more