How to Blog a Book

Inspiring You to Build Visibility, Boost Authority and Become an Author Post by Post

Inspiring You to Build Visibility, Boost Authority and Become an Author Post by Post

  • Home
  • About
    • Vote This Blog One of Writer’s Digest’s Annual 101 Best Internet Sites for Writers
    • Resources for Nonfiction Authors and Bloggers
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Service
  • The BOOK!
    • Table of Contents
    • Page One
    • NEW! Revised and Expanded–2nd Edition–of How to Blog a Book
    • How to Blog a Book (Revised and Expanded Edition) BLOG TOUR
    • Previous Virtual BookTours
  • Services
    • Blog Services
    • Coaching
      • Blog and Blog-to-Book Coaching
      • Author Coaching
      • Writing and Book Coaching
  • Courses
    • The Productive Writer Course
    • Inspired Creator Community
    • High-Performance Writer Group Coaching Program
    • Turn Your Blog Into a Book Production Machine
    • Build a Business Around Your Blog
    • How to Blog a Book Audio Course
    • How to Blog a Book eCourse
    • How to Blog a Book Audio Recording
  • Contact

March 22, 2012 by Nina Amir 3 Comments

Why a Booked Blog Manuscript Needs Editing

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • Print
  • More
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Compiling a blogged book manuscript from all those posts you’ve previously written can be a big job—especially if you didn’t do a good job of organizing your blog with categories and tags. If you did, the manuscript may have come together pretty easily. However, as I mentioned in my last post, all you have now is a bunch of posts lumped together into the framework of a book. It’s not a book. It’s hardly a manuscript. Let me explain why.

A true first draft of a book will flow easily from chapter to chapter, section to section, paragraph to paragraph. What you have compiled does not do that…yet. The reason is simple: The posts you previously wrote, while well-written, and published were meant as stand-alone pieces of work. That’s why you now have to create flow. You have to write into the spaces that exist between them. In other words, you have to create transitions between the posts that create the illusion that all that content was written at the same time and belongs together.

In fact, it does belong together. The subjects all can be woven together. But that takes some work. So, let’s talk about that process, which is called revision and editing.

The first part of the process should really be the work you do. You sit down with that manuscript and start reading. Then you look for ways to improve your blog posts and to create that flow between the posts. This can involve:

  • Removing excessive use of lists.
  • Adding transitions.
  • Removing active links (for print books).
  • Removing mention of previous posts or next posts.
  • Editing out redundancies or any repetition.
  • Adding missing information.
  • Answering questions you feel you left unanswered.
  • Addressing readers’ comments and questions.
  • Incorporating readers’ comments and anecdotes.
  • Checking your grammar and spelling.
  • Removing blog titles and choosing the ones that work as subtitles.
  • And more…

When you’ve finished this process, you hopefully have a manuscript—the first draft of your blogged book. Now it’s time to hire a professional book editor.

Do not skip this step. Please. If you do, you will doom your book. This is true whether you plan on getting it traditionally published or self-published, but it is essential for those of you who plan on taking the indie route.

Let me touch on traditional publishing first. If you want to seek out a literary agent, you will need a book proposal. This document, along with your query letter, is, as they say, your first and only chance to make a good impression. Don’t blow it with poorly written or edited or proofread documents. Take your two best chapters (about 25 pages), place them in the proposal, and then have it professionally edited by someone who knows something about book proposals and books. That means do not ask your high school English teacher, your mother, you spouse, or your best friend to do this. Pay good money for a professional book editor and book proposal consultant (yes, like me or someone on my staff—sorry for the ad).

If you are planning to be an indie author, you do not want your book to stand out as self-published. It will if you do two things: (1) fail to have it professionally edited. (2) fail to have it professionally designed. The reason for this is simple. Traditionally published books are both professionally edited and designed. So…to have your book meet the same standards, you need both these things. That means you have to bite the bullet and pay for these professional services. No, they aren’t always cheap, but they are worth it in the long run.

Next week I will discuss how to choose an editor and what type of editor you need for your blogged book.

<<Previous Post   Next Post>>

Do you want your blogged book or booked blog manuscript

to shine like a beacon to readers and publishers?

Book editors are manuscript developers and polishers.

Call today to find the perfect editor for your
manuscript.
408-353-1943

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • Print
  • More
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • Pocket

Filed Under: Booking a Blog (Repurposing Content into a Book) Tagged With: booking a blog, editing, first draft, self-publishing

Comments

  1. Nina says

    March 28, 2012 at 12:19 pm

    You are very welcome! Thanks for reading my blog. And…by the way, if you like this blog I’d love to have you nominate it in this contest for best blogs…http://www.alistbloggingbootcamps.com/top-10-blogs-for-bloggers-contest-2012/ :~)

Trackbacks

  1. Two More Ways to Extract Book Content from Your Blog | How to Blog a Book says:
    March 22, 2012 at 9:58 am

    […] <<Previous Post   Next Post>> […]

  2. Choosing the Right Editor for Your Booked Blog | How to Blog a Book says:
    March 27, 2012 at 7:01 pm

    […] the Right Editor for Your Booked Blog March 27, 2012 By Nina Leave a Comment Once you have self-edited your booked blog manuscript, send it to a professional editor for another round of developing and polishing (or two or three). […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

About Nina Amir

Nina Amir, the Inspiration to Creation Coach, inspires writers to create published products and careers as authors as well as to achieve their goals and fulfill their purpose and potential.

Read More . . .

Follow Me!

Follow Us on FacebookFollow Us on Google+Follow Us on TwitterFollow Us on LinkedInFollow Us on PinterestFollow Us on YouTubeFollow Us on SkypeFollow Us on RSSFollow Us on E-mail

As Seen On:

social proof2

How to turn your blog into a book

Amazon.com
Barnesandnoble.com
IndieBound.com
WritersDigestShop.com

Create a Successful Author Website!

Book. Books and laptopPurchase a copy of my eBook!

Bestselling authors like Michael Hyatt and Joanna Penn use Scrivener and endorse this course! I tried Learn Scrivener Fast, too, and found it a quick, easy way to learn the Scrivener writing technology. Plus, you can use it to produce produce ebooks!
Click here to find out more!

250x250

bluehost

Writer's Digest: 2013 Best Writing Websites (2013)
This website has been awarded a Best Writing Website.
Sponsored by Writer's Digest, Writer's Market,
Writer's Digest University & Writer's Digest Shop.

TFOI Badge

Popular Posts

  • Are You Blogging a Book? List it here!
  • Can You Publish Blogged Material As a Kindle Ebook?
  • Darren Rowse on Book Deals and Discovery in the Blogosphere
  • 4 Ways Digital Marketing Helps You Blog A Book
  • Selling Your Ebook on Your Own Website vs. Amazon

Search

Categories

Archives

Copyright © Nina Amir 2023

»
«
Powered by Conversion Insights: Boost your online revenue.  
Are you a productive, semi-productive or unproductive writer? Take My Quiz To Find Out!
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.