I write this post while wearing fingerless gloves – a sure sign, if one were needed, that November is about to nudge October out of the way. It was fortunate it was still warm mid-October when I spent a weekend on the Isle of Wight. It’s one of my favourite places – beautiful countryside, lovely beaches and great food.

What I’ve been working on

I started the month with a proofread of a book that collected the author’s research on a lost medieval village. It was complicated, with lots of place names and specialist terms and end notes, but it was fascinating. I finished the month with a fantasy epic, which contained many of the traditional elements: a struggle between good and evil, large-scale battles, death-defying escapes, a Dark Lord, magic, orphans, a wise mentor, ancient beings, mythical creatures… There was even a dragon. I bloody love dragons.

What I read for fun

We Are the End, by Gonzalo C. Garcia, is a complex book in terms of themes. I read it as a snapshot of the life of a man who has depression. It’s challenging, moving, and darkly funny. The main character, Tomás, is sympathetic and relatable, even when he’s wishing people who make him uncomfortable would die. That’s a testament to the skill of the writer. And I admire the unusual design of the book – some text is upside down, there are squiggles that disappear off the page, whole sections of text are crossed out.

I’ve read a few of Matt Haig’s books over the last few months, and I couldn’t help but pick up a copy of The Truth Pixie. It’s a beautiful book, with a lovely story, wonderful illustrations (by Chris Mould), and an important message. It conveys many truths, one of the most crucial being  ‘… you’ll never know happy unless you know sad’. It would have been of great comfort to me when I was a child – it was a comfort now that I’m a supposed grown-up. Being an editor is a great excuse to read whatever I want – I can’t edit children’s fiction unless I read children’s fiction.

I’m halfway through Tombland by C. J. Sansom. It is, as with the rest of the Shardlake series, beautifully and engagingly written. Matthew Shardlake is such a well-constructed character that I can’t help but find his difficulties and pain deeply upsetting. It’s like reading about horrible things happening to a friend. I will need to read something a bit lighter after this one, I think.

Blog posts

I published two posts on the Black Cat blog this month. The first was a slightly tongue-in-cheek post about why you shouldn’t choose me as your editor. It has a serious side, though. I think it’s important that an editor is not only a good fit for the project but also for the client. And I think it is important to set realistic expectations. The second was to encourage fellow editors to join in with Society for Editors and Proofreaders (SfEP) local groups. It focused a lot on the benefits to editors, but there are benefits for our clients: an editor who spends time with other editors is continually learning, is exposed to different methods and experiences, and has access to a network of brilliant publishing professionals.

I’ve shared quite a few blog posts on Twitter. They include a superb bit of microfiction,  great advice on submission rejections, and reasons to write fiction of different lengths. Sarah Grey wrote a wonderful blog post on inclusive language, which was published by the SfEP. It’s not just of value to editors – writers should read it too. We all want to ‘welcome readers into the text and keep them reading’.

Looking ahead

I’ll be having lunch with the lovely West Surrey and North Hampshire SfEP local group in early November. It’s our last lunch meeting of the year, but we will be having tea and cake in December to celebrate the festive season. Mini will be back at Black Cat HQ mid-November, while her dads enjoy a holiday in the sun. I’ll spend the rest of November enjoying the peace and quiet after a week of doggy chaos.