Proof Reading

Writing a novel is a lot of fun. Creating worlds, characters and story lines gives you a freedom unlike anything else. Okay, so it isn’t all plain sailing and sometimes the ideas don’t flow but, as a writer, you know you are in the right job when you get a kick out of bringing scenes to life on the page.
However, when it comes to having your book published, proof reading is a painstaking and necessary part of the process. Proof-reading is all about checking your manuscript for mistakes. A misplaced comma here, a stray mark on the page there, a switch round of the word order to make things clearer, easier to read or to sound better. Yet, when the stuff you are reading is your own story, how easy it is to miss the errors! I found what worked for me was reading aloud while tapping every word with the point of a mechanical pencil. I marked any issues on a list and, finally, I marked up the paper manuscript and sent the pages requiring corrections back to Matador, the publisher. Then I had to do it all again after they had sent me the revised proofs! It was an intense period in my journey of publishing my book and I was relieved when it was over. And now, my book is heading off to be printed. . . hurrah!