The Black Cat monthly round-up: February 2020

March 4, 2020 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, CIEP, editing, February, fiction, LBF, proofreading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

The end of February sees the end of the Society for Editors and Proofreaders and the beginning of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading, of which I am proud to be a member. It would not have been possible without the hard work of many within the organisation. I look forward to continuing to serve as a local group coordinator.

What I’ve been working on

Despite cutting down my workload for February and the immediate future, I still have quite a list of completed projects to report. I finished working on the indie mystery thriller I star Black Cat Editorial Services_ February round-up ted in January, and I completed the critique of the time-travel adventure I had on my desk. I have a real love of critiques now – it feels wonderful to really dig into a manuscript and help the author realise its potential.

The rest of the month was taken up by three proofreads – of very different novels. The first was contemporary new-adult fiction, presented in the form of a diary. The second was a satirical crime thriller, and the third was a multi-generational tale of a single family.

Looking ahead

The beginning of March brings the first meeting of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading’s West Surrey and North Hampshire group. We’ll be talking about tracking and accountability, but I hope to organise a chartership celebration for us later in the year.

At the time of writing, the London Book Fair is going ahead despite concerns about coronavirus and multiple exhibitors cancelling their attendance. I’ve made the difficult decision to do the same – I was so looking forward to it. But my mum has just been discharged from hospital and it would be deeply irresponsible of me to put her at risk.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: January 2020

February 4, 2020 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, critique, editing, fiction, January, proofreading, reading, SfEP Leave a comment

January started with a meeting of the West Surrey and North Hampshire SfEP local group where we discussed our goals for the year. New websites, membership upgrades, and client-base expansion were popular aims. I was heartened by the level of positivity and optimism on display. I count myself lucky to be surrounded by such a driven and generous group of editors.

What I’ve been working on

I finished my Christmas-time edit of a satirical crime novel and the new year brought me two non-fiction proofreads. One was a book of reflections on Japanese culture (which gave me a final shove to start learning a bit of Japanese) and the other was a guide to privacy legislation. I was back to fiction for my next proofread: the second instalment of an indie mystery thriller. I’m still working on a critique of a time-travel thriller predominately set during World War II – I like to spend lots of time mulling critique manuscripts over, so I expect to have it on my desk until mid-February.

What I read for fun

I had a lot on my plate in January, so I haven’t quite finished my only for-fun read. Naomi Novik’s Temeraire – a fantasy alternative-history novel in which there are many dragons – somehow manages to be joyful and yet completely heartbreaking.

Looking ahead

I’m going to cut down on my workload for a few months, for personal reasons, but I’m planning to maintain this blog series and my coordinator work.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: December 2019

December 31, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, December, editings, fiction, highlights, proofreading, reading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

Black Cat Editorial Services_ This is the second December for Black Cat Editorial Services and the business continues to go from strength to strength. My project-tracking spreadsheet tells me that 2019’s projects had a combined word count of 3,066,923. That’s nearly a million words up on 2018, which seems incredible and slightly ridiculous.

It has been quite a year – much of it hard work and some of it tiring and frustrating. But there have been many highlights. In September, I completed the Society for Editors and Proofreaders’ Introduction to Fiction Editing course. In August, I was the guest on the Alliance of Independent Authors’ Twitter chat (#IndieAuthorChat). In July, I became an Advanced Professional Member of the SfEP – something I had been working towards for four years. In June, I approved a typeset version of my book review for the SfEP’s Editing Matters magazine. In March, I attended the fiction editors’ mini-conference in London, and a few days later I went to the London Book Fair. And in February, I led a continuing professional development session for the West Surrey and North Hampshire local SfEP group.

I am fortunate to have many wonderful colleagues, clients and friends, and I am very grateful for all of your support.

What I’ve been working on

I completed two fiction proofreads in December – one a split narrative, time-jumping, mystery thriller, and one a work of gentle, humorous commercial fiction about a village taking on a Trump-like figure. I’m currently in the middle of a copy-edit of a satirical crime novel – it’s kept me nicely busy over the festive period.

What I read for fun

So, I finally ran out of episodes of BuzzFeed Unsolved and returned to reading (after a one-day binge of The Witcher). The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern is amazing. Its delicately woven narrative threads, beautiful imagery, and charming characters really made it a wonderful read. I spent most of Boxing Day reading A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab. The world-building is pretty darn good, and I appreciate a secondary protagonist who has many, many shades of grey.

Looking ahead

I’m planning to attend the SfEP (soon to be the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading) conference, and I aim to be back at the London Book Fair. In the short term, I’m looking forward to the first lunch meeting of the year with the West Surrey and North Hampshire local group, where we will be talking about our goals for 2020.

Here’s to a happy and successful new year for us all.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: November 2019

December 2, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, critique, editing, fiction, November, proofreading, reading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

November was a chaotic month. It started with disruption caused by the laying of a new floor and concluded with a poorly cat. One new king-size mattress and a not-inconsiderable vet bill later, Oscar seems to be back to his usual self.

What I’ve been working on

Black Cat Editorial Services_ November round-up I finished the critique I started in October, of a psychological thriller, and was delighted to have provided exactly the sort of help and advice the author was looking for. I moved on to the copy-edit of an enjoyable and light-hearted children’s mystery novel.

My first November proofread was of the second edition of a best-selling management and self-improvement title. It was the first time I’ve worked on a new edition of a previously published book, and it was a bit of an eye-opener in that there was plenty of work for me to do. The second proofread was completely different – a well-edited and unconventional science-fiction novel. It was an interesting experience (and another first) to work with a PDF that had been produced using Vellum.

What I read for fun

I have to confess I have no completed for-fun reads in November. I read The Fiction Editor, the Novel and the Novelist by Thomas McCormack in an attempt to inform my editing practice, and it was definitely not fun. There are more informative and less frustrating books on fiction editing out there (On Editing by Helen Corner-Bryant and Kathryn Price is one of my favourites).

I did read a few chapters of Erin Morgenstern’s The Starless Sea and it is brilliant so far. The main problem is I’ve become a bit over-fond of watching BuzzFeed Unsolved in the evenings instead of reading…

Looking ahead

I’m quite excited for the last SfEP local group meeting of the year: our festive social, which is a morning meeting for tea and cake at a local garden centre. The last lunch meeting of the year, in November, was well attended and the discussion was, as usual, helpful and generous.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: October 2019

November 4, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, critique, editing, fiction, proofreading, reading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

There’s no social stuff to report for October – it has been a very work-heavy month, but I have managed to get in a lot of for-fun reading to balance it out.

What I’ve been working on

I started October with a non-fiction proofread: a work of political theory addressing (some of) the current issues in British government. I don’t envy authors of this sort of work – the situation is likely to have moved on before this book is even published.

It was a bit of a relief to be able to sink myself into some fiction for the rest of the month. I took on one children’s fantasy-fiction novel and one young adult fantasy-fiction novel. Both authors had succeeded in creating compelling magical worlds – a particular skill when one was set in a different galaxy. Alongside these edits, I have been working on a critique of a psychological thriller from a first-time author. It’s a real privilege to be trusted with an author’s manuscript and asked to give my assessment of it. My aim is to give the author the tools and confidence to achieve her goals for her novella.

What I read for fun

Black Cat Editorial Services_October round-up Three for-fun reads this month, and one of them was more than 800 pages long – I think you can tell I didn’t get out of the house much.

Semicolon is an excellent book. I am a fan of semicolons and Cecelia Watson does a lovely job of explaining why writers should embrace this elegant little mark. She also digs into language snobbery and grammar pedantry with a sense of humour and ear for good writing.

My first fiction read was Murder Most Unladylike by Robin Stevens. I’d read lots of positive reviews of the series and I wasn’t disappointed. I thought the framing device of the book being the case notes of the Wells & Wong Detective Society (two third-formers at an English boarding school) was a great one. The narration from Hazel Wong is engaging, humorous and, at times, moving.

My second fiction read was an epic: Samantha Shannon’s The Priory of the Orange Tree. It deserves all the praise that has been heaped upon it. For a book of that length to grip hold and not let go until the very end is a huge achievement. It’s a fantasy world where women lead and same-sex relationships are unremarkable. I didn’t realise just how refreshing that would be.

Blog posts

I published a blog post inspired by one of our recent West Surrey and North Hampshire SfEP local group meetings. There are lots of good resources out there for editors and writers, and I’ve collected five of my favourites and details on how you might be able to access them for free.

On Twitter, I shared an article from Luna Station Quarterly about not killing the dog. Tracy Townsend has summarised a lot of my thinking on the subject, and as a reader it always disappoints me when an author uses it as a lazy way to signpost ‘evilness’.

Kia Thomas wrote a great post about editing with kindness, which I think every editor ought to read and take on board. I like to think I am a kind person in general, but it’s something I have particularly focused on while writing up the critique I mentioned earlier.

Looking ahead

Early November sees the last lunch meeting of the year for the West Surrey and North Hampshire SfEP local group. We’ll be chatting about how to make the most of our professional websites (it feels a bit weird to type that for a blog post for my professional website).

The Black Cat monthly round-up: August 2019

September 2, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: August, books, CPD, editor, fantasy fiction, fiction, proofreader, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

Black Cat Editorial Services_ August round-up(1) One of the best things I did during August was to take part in FutureLearn’s How to Read a Novel course. It’s a great introductory exploration of key parts of modern fiction: plot, characterisation, dialogue and setting. The concepts were familiar to me but Dr Alex Lawrie is a wonderful guide through the frameworks and examples presented in the course. Fiction writers, and editors, could do worse than spend a few hours working through the material and thinking about how to apply it to their own practice.

What I’ve been working on

I’ve been fortunate to have four books on my desk this month. I started with a children’s fantasy-fiction novel, set in Scotland, and followed it with a novel about a European woman starting a new life in India. Finishing off the last two books will take me into September. One is a fascinating non-fiction book about cricket in the early twentieth century; the other is a fiction novel about bereavement.

What I read for fun

I read two brilliant books in August. The Way of All Flesh, by Ambrose Parry, is a Edinburgh-set historical crime novel. I was drawn right in. It’s a good example of how to use two point-of-view characters to cover the same events, of how to use their overlapping perspectives to enhance the reader’s engagement with the story. Children of Blood and Bone, by Tomi Adeyemi, is another strong example of using multiple point-of-view characters. It’s glorious, epic fantasy-fiction, with superb world-building and female friendship at its core. I do wish, however, that the characters didn’t exclaim ‘Agh!’ or ‘Ugh!’ quite so often.

Looking ahead

This time last year I was nervously looking forward to attending the Society for Proofreaders and Editors’ conference. I’m not making the journey this year but I’ll be following the Twitter hashtag (#sfep2019) to keep up with the goings-on. I will be taking part in September’s meeting of the West Surrey and North Hampshire local group. We’ll be talking about marketing and finding work (always a hot topic for freelancers). Then I will be off on a short holiday to celebrate my birthday.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: July 2019

August 1, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: book reviews, books, editing, fiction, proofreading, reading, SfEP, writing 1 Comment

The monthly round-up_ July 2019 I was somewhat startled to realise that this post will mark a year of Black Cat round-ups. That means Black Cat Editorial Services has been in operation for more than a year – and what a year it has been! I’ve worked on 30 projects, and read (for fun) 30 books. I went to the SfEP’s conference in Lancaster. I attended the London Book Fair and the fiction editors’ mini conference. I joined ALLi and now regularly take part in their Twitter chat (#IndieAuthorChat). And I wrote a book review for the SfEP’s Editing Matters magazine (which technically means I’m a published writer!). Thank you to clients, colleagues and friends for all your support.

Professional news

All of the above has helped me to become an Advanced Professional Member of the SfEP. To reach APM level was one of my major professional goals, and I am still extremely pleased to have achieved it. APM is the top tier of SfEP membership. I had to prove I have more than 1,500 hours of editorial experience, show evidence of recent professional development, and provide two references from satisfied long-term clients.

What I’ve been working on

I proofread two very different memoirs this month. The first was a deeply personal account of a difficult childhood and mental health issues. The second was a snapshot of the author’s charity work and related success stories. I finished July with a novel about escaping from Germany at the height of World War II.

What I read for fun

I managed three for-fun reads: one non-fiction and two fiction. Rutger Bregman is becoming a well-known figure and I’d highly recommend taking a look at Utopia for Realists. It contains some big ideas – ideas some may consider radical – but it is written in an accessible and engaging manner.

My fiction reads were Almost Love by Christina James and Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb. I was slightly disappointed by Almost Love: there’s a good story in there, but it needed a bit of a trim, in my opinion. And the text in the print edition is way too small: Sabon 9/10.5 is a no from me. Assassin’s Apprentice is a classic of the fantasy genre, and rightly so. I found the world-building particularly impressive (see the cutting of hair when in mourning) and liked the framing device of Fitz starting to tell a history of the Six Duchies.

Looking ahead

I have been asked to take part in #IndieAuthorChat as a guest on Tuesday 6th August at 8pm (BST). We’ll be chatting about proofreading for indie authors: what it involves, when it should be done, and what the value is to self-publishers. Do join us!

The Black Cat monthly round-up: June 2019

July 1, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, copy-editing, fiction, June, non-fiction, proofreading, punctuation, reading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

Black Cat Editorial Services_ June round-up I almost can’t believe we are halfway through the year already – where does the time go? I’m pleased that my workload has remained steady, and that I managed to find some time to enjoy the much-improved weather at the end of the month.

One of my June highlights was being asked to approve the typeset version of the review I wrote of On Editing – I’m not ashamed to say I was quite excited to see my words nearly ready for print! I think the review will feature in the July/August edition of Editing Matters.

What I’ve been working on

I finished off the fantasy-romance edit I started in May. The author was delightful to work with and I hope she finds great success with her novel. I also completed the second part of the short-story collection I began in May – it was great to see the themes coming together and the realisation of the direction of the piece as a whole.

I was then on to two fiction proofreads. One a modern-day revenge thriller and the other an action thriller set during the Second World War. I followed these with the proofread of a long and complex non-fiction book on how our brains absorb visual information. It’s good to do something different every now and then, but this project reminded me how much I prefer to work on fiction.

What I read for fun

I managed one book this month: The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman. It has a great concept and the story rolls along nicely. It did make me think, however, about the art of using punctuation. The correct use of punctuation is, of course, important, but I think those little marks need to be wielded with style and sensitivity. For example, if the reader has to stop and re-read the sentence to make sense of what the dashes are doing, that’s a problem. If the reader (I admit this may be specific to me) is thinking about how ugly the punctuation combinations are, they aren’t absorbed in the story anymore. The punctuation should help the words flow by, should clarify and reinforce meaning, and all while being unobtrusive.

Looking ahead

Early July sees another SfEP local group meeting. We’ll be talking about our favourite books and other resources when we are working or training. I have a few go-tos (hello, newly re-branded Lexico) and it will be interesting to find out what other editors recommend.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: May 2019

June 3, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: books, copy-editing, dogs, editors, fiction, May, proofreading, SfEP, writing Leave a comment

Mini and Ella having a snooze after a walk.

Welcome to the May round-up. I had another full-on month – I’m starting to think this is the standard now and I should get used to it. I’m getting on well with Toggl, and I have found it has significantly increased my productive time.

We had a good time at Black Cat HQ, with Mini visiting for a week or so mid-May. Her dad had swanned off on holiday, again (this time to Spain). Mins is an absolute sweetheart, and Ella always loves having her here.

One of the other highlights of the month was the SfEP local group lunch meeting. It’s always an enjoyable few hours, but this was a particularly lovely meeting. We had a couple of new faces, but the atmosphere was still warm, friendly and unguarded.

What I’ve been working on

May started with the proofread of the memoir of an economist and former banker, which was straightforward enough. Alongside that, I copy-edited the first part of a varied and thoughtful collection of short stories. My second proofread of the month was a crime novel set in London and dealing with issues of sexuality and gender. And then I got stuck into the edit of an epic (in length as well as content) fantasy-romance novel. I don’t usually work on romance titles but the quality of the writing and the strength of the fantasy elements enticed me to make an exception.

What I read for fun

I mentioned in the April round-up that I would be writing my first review for the SfEP’s Editing Matters magazine. Well, I read the book and I wrote the review. The book I tackled was On Editing by Helen Corner-Bryant and Kathryn Price. I won’t spoil my review but I loved the book and I’d highly recommend it for fiction authors and editors.

The Princess Bride Black Cat Editorial Services_ May round-up(1) by William Goldman was my only fiction read this month – yet another classic I really should have read already (I have recently bought a whole load of classics to try to address this failing of mine). It is, of course, brilliant, and if you love the film you will love the book. Perhaps the most striking thing, for me, is the framing device of Goldman editing the work of the fictional author S. Morgenstern. It took me a while grasp the complexity of the whole thing – Goldman narrates as a fictionalised version of himself, weaving a story within a story. If you are thinking about using a framing device in your work, you should check out Goldman’s stunning, intricate example.

Looking ahead

I have a couple of projects to finish off for the beginning of June. I’m hoping to put aside a few days to start working through the SfEP’s Introduction to Fiction Editing course. I aim to do at least one training course each year to support my continuing professional development. I love working on fiction, I have heard good things about the SfEP’s course, and I had a discount voucher to use up – it seemed the obvious choice.

The Black Cat monthly round-up: April 2019

May 1, 2019 By Hannah McCall in Monthly round-up Tags: ALLi, blogs, books, editing, fiction, proofreading, reading, SfEP, writing 1 Comment

April is the start of a new financial year for me, and I’ve implemented a few changes. I’ve decided to get serious about tracking productivity – I’ve signed up for Toggl so I can record the time spent on projects and related tasks, and it should make clear how much of the working day I waste scrolling through Twitter or playing with the cat. Now I’ve settled into the Black Cat Editorial Services brand, I’ve set up a spreadsheet to track enquiries I receive and where the enquirer found my details. I’m hoping to work out where my marketing efforts are best focused – at the moment it looks like joining the Alliance of Independent Authors (ALLi) was a good step.

What I’ve been working on

I worked on four projects in April. I completed the proofread of a fiction novel about an unsolved murder and moved on to the biography of a Spanish composer. I followed the biography with some historical fiction about life and politics in a small Welsh town, and finished the month by proofreading a collection of accounts about the authors’ relationships with God and their religion. I absolutely love how diverse my work is.

What I read for fun

OK, I’m putting this here because it was enjoyable to read, even if I approached it as a source to inform my editing practice: Writing a Novel by Richard Skinner. Skinner is a creative-writing teacher at the Faber Academy, and it shows. I highly recommend this quite slim volume – it’s full of excellent advice and techniques, and its tone is positive and encouraging.

I managed one fiction read for this month: The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon. (I seem to keep coming to popular series late.) For a long book – 452 pages – it rattles along at a decent pace, and I was swept up with it.

Blog posts

I shared a few blog posts this month. The first was Denise Cowle on why the Grammar Police aren’t cool. I agree with her – and particularly on her point about being kind. Aeryn Rudel, writer of the Rejectomancy blog, has been writing and posting excellent microfiction of late, and his blog post on the benefits of producing such pieces is very interesting. I think he is spot on about it being a brilliant way to practise self-editing.

I’ve been taking part in the new Twitter chat (#IndieAuthorChat) organised by ALLi (Tuesdays, 8pm UK time) and it has been very enjoyable – I’d recommend joining in. One of the best things I have picked up from it is Alison Morton’s tracking grid, which she has kindly shared on her blog. It’s a simple, straightforward way to keep track of a novel’s timeline and summarise the events that have occurred.

Looking ahead

The West Surrey and North Hampshire SfEP local group is meeting mid-May, and I’m looking forward to catching up with the other members. And as if my editing work wasn’t enough, I’m undertaking my first book review for the SfEP’s Editing Matters magazine – I’m a bit nervous about it but I think it will be fun.