What are your dreams for your book project? And what are you doing to make those dreams come true?

There is one truth common to all writers who care enough about their topic or their story to put in serious time and effort: we are writing not only for ourselves, but to be read by others. Self-expression alone is not our goal. And since reaching out from one mind to another can be difficult, we need to think about what we’re doing. In a word, we need technique.

Good technique doesn’t restrict writers but frees them, helping them say what they mean without fuss or flourish. And such writing endures: “The Voyage of the Beagle” is still an enjoyable book today, for Darwin wrote as clearly and plainly as he knew how. So do the best nonfiction authors of our own time: scientists such as Edward O. Wilson and Jared Diamond, journalists such as John McPhee and William Langeweische - even a humorist such as David Sedaris, who can only smudge the border between laughter and pain if he has first drawn it with precision.

I mention these big names only as examples. My real point is that even a simple how-to book by an unknown author can and should be well-written. It’s not that much harder to do, it’s more enjoyable, and you’ll likely sell more books.

How a freelance editor or “book doctor” can help

Many people think of an editor as someone whose tedious job it is to clean up after authors, fixing mistakes in grammar and punctuation and so on. My work is quite different. I’m what’s known as a developmental editor, or sometimes a book doctor. As such, my focus is on bigger issues. Typically, there are two key points in the writing and publishing process where you’d want to call on someone like me:

Creating the book proposal. A good proposal doesn’t just describe a book idea, it sells it. It’s not the right words so much as the right answers to the questions that agents and editors will ask.

Drafting and revising the manuscript. For first-time authors especially, it’s often a good idea to get editing help before you turn the completed manuscript into your publisher.

For more on both these aspects, see my Services page. There I describe exactly what I do and why you might want to hire me. You may also want to check out both my free writing guides and my blog of writing tips, Whole words, whole sight.