Welcome to the annotation room
Receive occasional notes on the craft, business, and collaborative partnership of bringing nonfiction to life.
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Takeaways from a talk with a developmental editing and academic publishing expert
Highlights from Laura Portwood-Stacer’s recent talk with the Academic Editing Book Club, featuring key insights on the realities of developmental editing, trends in academic publishing, and the art of crafting crossover books.
How a writer’s self-published memoir found an audience and won an award
An interview with author and client Christine Tracy on the writing process, book marketing strategy, and path to publication for her award-winning self-published memoir, Just Trust Life.
Lessons from my brief stint as a Wikipedian
What editing real-time historical events on Wikipedia can teach us about the broader writing process, the thrill of collaboration, and the importance of rhetorical precision.
You don’t need more feedback
Why seeking endless opinions on your writing acts as an avoidance tactic, how conflicting critique stalls your manuscript, and the power of finding actionable editorial direction.
Three developmental editing techniques that will pull readers into your argument
How to maintain consistency across a book-length manuscript. Discover three practical developmental editing techniques to resculpt your transitions, summaries, and evidence for maximum impact.
On (finally) attending AWP
An honest look at what happens when you finally stop putting it off and attend the AWP conference.
AI & writing: challenges and opportunities
How is AI changing the author-editor relationship? A developmental editor shares practical strategies for layering human voice into AI text while maintaining transparency and trust.