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Carolyn Howard-Johnson

Endorsements:

"In this invaluable (and yes, accessible and engaging, too!) resource, Carolyn Howard-Johnson masterfully elevates an oft-misunderstood practice into the critical component of writing that it is. Don’t turn in anything until you turn to this book.”~ Peter Bowerman, author, The Well-Fed Writer series

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The Frugal Editor Is Available as a Kindle Book. What a Great Start! Order Yours with the Widget Below:

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You will find at least one promotion, writing or tech tip on every page on this site. Sometimes you'll find, two or three! Happy browsing and collecting!

And here's the Frugal Editor's companion, Ta Da!

"After wading through half a dozen cut and paste marketing books, I found it refreshing to read Carolyn Howard-Johnson's down-to-earth approach to book promotion. The Frugal Book Promoter is the real deal, easy to read and easy to apply." ~Tom Barnes, author, actor and hurricane hunterr.

From Index to Sidebars, You'll Want to Read Every Bit of the Frugal Editor

Click Here to see Frugal Editor reviews.

Click here to see the Frugal Editor's contents and author biography.

      Click here for Carolyn's first person essay, "Beating Time at Its Own Game." 

Note: Because The Frugal Editor's most praised chapters are on the agent- and publisher-getting process, you'll find a Q&A a la Ann Landers on landing an agent by scrolling down past the excerpt on this page.

Excerpt

Have you ever run across a gremlin?

From the Introduction of The Frugal Editor. I chose this so that readers could see that, though this book is full of nitty-gritty essentials on everything from choosing and editor to grammar horrors frequently seen by agents and editors, it's light and entertaining reading.

(c) Copyright 2007

Teachers interested in reproducing portions of this book at no cost need only contact me. 

If he were only the guy in the Lamisil ad with purple warts on his head I wouldn't worry about him. You know, the one who causes toenails to yellow, the one you try to eradicate at the risk of executing your liver. According to the commercials, that gremlin is easy to avoid. Simply ask your doctor for Lamisil.

 If you imagine the gremlin as the guy you had nightmares about when you were a kid, the one who hid under your bed and cleverly disappeared when your parents peeked under to search for him, well, he hasn't reappeared in decades. If he is the chap who showed up in fairytales so we wouldn't get bored, we authors might welcome him as inspiration for a short story.

 But no. He is the dirty, lowdown creep who will make the passive tense  reappear in your manuscript after you've edited it twice, maybe three times. And he has relatives. Enough of them to plague every writer in existence. You won't be able to see them, won't know where they come from, but you'll know they have been at work when your book appears in print. Telltale signs will crop up in typos, grammar errors, widows , and other ugly formatting problems, and so I worry about them a lot. You should, too.

 I can't tell you how to eliminate these gremlins. After all, there are homicide laws. But I can tell you how to make their lives harder. You recognize they exist and then purge any inclination you might have to let someone else bring them to justice. For as real as these gremlins are--regardless of how often we're told they're "only imaginary"--there is a myth that's passed on to us as honest-to-goodness truth. That's the story authors believe about editors and publishers.

 We writers believe the stories because it's convenient to think that magical personages hired by publishers make books come off the press in immaculate form. Perfect. Pristine. That can happen, but I've come upon an occasional typo in books that are published by revered names in our industry. Worse, a few exist in my own books--more in some than in others. Some showed up before I knew I had to take charge of my own books' destinies. Some showed up after I knew that, but didn't know much about my part in editing . So, you can trust my hard-won experience when I tell you it behooves an author to do the very best she can--on her own--to eradicate the gremlins' work. If these guys get one up on Random House and Farrar, Straus & Giroux, other publishers and authors are easy touches.

So, how to do what seems to elude the best and brightest of word warriors? That's what I'm here for. I can't possibly cover all the possible tracks that gremlins leave, but I can pass along antidotes for what I see most frequently in the critique groups I facilitate and the classes I teach.

 Some of this information will seem pretty basic, but you need to know the gremlin's secret. His motto is, "When authors and editors are looking for the big stuff, I'll diddle with the puny mistakes they're not likely to see." Of course, this guy is devious. He's not above going after more humiliating errors like using apostrophes  in plurals. He knows your weak moments, your tired moments.

This book isn't only about what to watch for. It's also about how to make the editing  process easier. You’ll find lots of information; some that you will refer to time and again is in the sidebars. The sidebars are not listed in the Contents. Mark them by creasing your page corners (you can tell I believe in making a book your own) or use your index.

 You'll also learn both manual and electronic techniques for digging errors out of your copy and keeping them out.

The most important part of the process is getting over the idea that someone else will do this for you or that it doesn't matter. It matters big. When you submit queries to agents. When you submit proposals to publishers. When your publisher submits a galley for you to examine and authorize. So bear with me. Make the guidelines in this book part of your working habits. You'll need several tricks up your own sleeve to keep all the gremlins at bay.

The Frugal Editor is complete with a helpful index and appendixes.

Carolyn Howard-Johnson's promotion campaign for the Frugal Editor won New Generation's Award for Marketing and the book was a finalist in the how-to category.

Agents, Agents--Questions About Agents! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Question

I have a client who has pitched her book to several agents and publishers at once. She has received at least a dozen requests to see the full proposal; some asked for the manuscript. An unknown agent (not listed in the AAR website or in the Writers Market) is interested in having her sign an agreement for a 1-year exclusive to try to place the book with a publisher.

How much time should we give the other agencies to respond? Should we write them to let them know that we have an agent asking for an exclusive? Knowing how difficult it is for an unknown first time writer to get an agent, let alone a publishing contract, I don’t want to lose the agent’s interest while waiting to see if someone better comes along. Any advice?

Please keep me Anonymous to protect my client.

Answer from Carolyn

Yes, if you've done your homework and are pretty certain the agent is on the up and up in spite of the lack of listing, write to the other agents. Tell them you have another offer. Say something like "I hope to hear from you by XXX, for I feel that we are the best fit. But you can well guess that I am also eager to proceed with the publishing process." 

A letter like that can only give your client credibility and might spur the others to make a decision in her favor. Remember, good agents know well how to get an auction going among publishers. They will not be offended if you use a similar skill on them. But one must always come from a position of authenticity.

BTW, one year is a long time. You might want to try to negotiate that: Say, "I would feel more comfortable with a six month trial." You might also ask if she has any specific contacts that she feels might be interested and who they might be. That may be pushing it a bit but considering this agent has no apparent credentials, a question like that may be a good precaution.

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