One of the major jobs of an EDITOR is to make your words the star ... and that means YOU. There are critical steps to take now:

Q: Should a book be edited? A: Are you breathing?

Q: What kind of editing should a book have? A: There are a variety of edit styles and methods--most likely, you don't need them all.

Q: How much does editing cost? A: What type of editing do you need?

Q: How many edits should a book have? A: Most likely, less than the number of fingers on your hand.

Q: When should a book be edited? A: When would you like to have your work come together and make you shine?

Your take-aways include:

1. The importance of clarity in one's writing

2. Make it flow

3. The basics: spelling, grammar, punctuation, subject-verb agreement, etc.

4. Keeping the reader's attention. Write for the reader. Of course, if you're independently wealthy and don't care about book sales, then be completely self-indulgent, by all means.

5. Why you need an editor.

6. WHo should be the editor -- it's not your Mom and it's not your professor.

You are going to learn a lot in this edition of AuthorU-Your Guide to Book Publishing with Dr. Judith Briles and her special guest Barb Wilson, editor, partner in EditParner.com and author of fiction herself.

Get ready for another great hour with Dr. Judith Briles, The Book Shepherd and AuthorU-Your Guide to Book Publishing.