Death on the Coast
Today I am pleased to be able to
participate in the blog tour for Death on the Coast by B A Steadman. My thanks go to Sarah Hardy and Bloodhound Books.
About
the Book
Can DCI Dan Hellier decipher the twisted mind
behind the ritualised burning of homeless men on Devon’s beaches before more
people are sacrificed?
When images from the burning appear all over social
media, Hellier realises that he is dealing with a cult and a mystery that will
leads back to the Irish Troubles.
Hellier will battle a bitter man who has plotted
revenge for more than twenty years, without a care for the lives he will
destroy.
Guest
Post
Today on
my blog I am joined by B A Steadman who has an interesting topic to discuss with
you my lovely readers.
Why an editor is so important
There
is a peculiar moment between finishing a novel and waiting for it to be
returned full of the changes and edits I will need to make in order for it to
be enjoyed. I’m suddenly free of the necessity to produce a couple of thousand
words a day. The story has matured and gone through major changes and some
re-writing over the last few months. And now, for a few short weeks, I can do
nothing. It’s liberating. A sense of achievement. The editor at Bloodhound Books
will beaver away while I enjoy the gorgeous summer weather and plot the next
one. Then the doubt sets in. Just how much will need to be changed? Should I
have left that scene in, or taken that character out?
These
questions are why the role of editor or any critical reader is vital in the
production of a novel, which of course, is about far more than writing a good
yarn. Without that detached view, connections which may seem obvious to me,
having lived with the characters for so many months, may not be clear to first-time
readers. I’ll think I’ve explained
everything but find that lots of it exists only in my head, not on the page.
Also
writing at speed can mean the repetition of phrases and words or clichés that I
overuse which will jar with a reader, whereas to me they are second nature (there’s
another one) and I don’t see them. Sometimes the flow of the story is impeded
by too much back story. Sometimes I like a new character and go off on a
tangent writing a scene especially for them, that then has to come out. This
time, for Death on the Coast I took out a whole character. I’ve saved her for a
future book but she just wasn’t needed in this one.
Through
the editing process, the book becomes tighter and more readable. It is,
however, not ‘top-down’. Editing is a two-way dialogue between two experts, you
are the expert in your story and characters, the editor is an expert in
polishing the rough diamond, but in the end, the writer has to agree the
changes!
Now for those of you that may be budding authors out there and thinking of publishing a book, maybe the above topic is of interest to you. It was interesting to me and I have no intention of publishing a book, don't think I have it in me to write one!! I'll just settle for reading the fabulous books the rest of the lovely authors slave over for us readers to grab that few minutes relaxation, away from the family to wind down from the days stresses and strains or work and family life, or maybe you are one of those that is quite happy to curl up with a book and leave your other half to watch the football and are quite glad that we have the World Cup on at present, but hopefully some of you are cheering on England and hoping that we can go the distance!
About
the Author
Bernie taught English for many years
but only dabbled in short fiction and poetry until a few years ago when she
took to writing full-time. She completed her debut novel, Death
in the Woods when she escaped the classroom and could finally stop
marking essays. This was the first in the West Country Mysteries series
featuring DI Dan Hellier and his Exeter-based team. There are now three in the
series, Death on Dartmoor and Death on the Coast completing
the series.
Bernie lives in a small village in
East Devon and her novels are set in and around the ancient Roman city of
Exeter, which has seen its fair share of murder and mayhem
over the centuries. The books explore the beauty of the area, but demonstrate
that even in the most charming of settings, terrible events may occur.
When not glued to the laptop, Bernie
is a keen yoga fan and enjoys walking and cycling in the Devon countryside with
her husband. They share their home with two large, black cats which came from
the animal sanctuary where she is a volunteer and trustee.
Social
Media Links
Website: http://basteadman.com/
Twitter: @BernieSteadman
Check out the rest of the blog tour
with these fabulous blogs:
My thanks to B A Steadman for joining me on my blog today and discussing
“Why an Editor is so important”, the publishers Bloodhound Books and also Sarah Hardy for my spot on the blog tour.
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