A Working, Learning Writers Weekend
- Sep
- 22
- 2013
- Posted by Tammy Ditmore
- Posted in Editing, Events, Publishing, Writing
I came to the Central Coast Writers Conference to serve on a panel of editors to help teach would-be authors a few things about writing and publishing. I hope that I did that in some small ways.
But as usually happens to me in these situations, I feel like I’m the one walking away with reams of new knowledge.
It was a privilege to serve with Bonnie Britt, Cindy Chatham, Jeanette Hanscome, Jordan E. Rosenfeld and Susanne “C. S.” Lakin, all talented editors with years of experience and wisdom they were willing to share so freely.
I was grateful that so many writers were willing to share their work with me and chat for a few minutes about how they can bring their stories to life. I talked with a 12-year-old writer and an 87-year-old writer, and I spoke to writers who wanted to chronicle true stories of real-life tragedies and triumphs and to writers who were creating tales of talking animals and secretive species on another planet.
This 29th annual conference was expertly orchestrated by Judy Salamacha, and I was fortunate enough to get a few minutes to chat with Judy and get a glimpse of her passion for the craft of writing and for this long-running conference. A phalanx of volunteers worked tirelessly to attend to the hundreds of minute details that go into making a program like this a success, and seeing how hard they worked made me grateful to play a small part.
Rebecca Rasmussen’s opening speech about “Why We Write” was delightful–especially since she had to admit that she didn’t really know why but that she knew she would continue to do it. And Joel Friedlander’s closing session reminded us all that we do judge a book by its cover, which is a very important detail to keep in mind when you are creating a cover for the words you have so carefully crafted.
I love writing and editing and the work I’m doing at eDitmore Editorial. But most days I’m working solo in my office, with only email contact with the outside world. So it’s a treat to get out and meet people face to face who are passionately interested in active voice and point of view and parallel verbs.
And after a weekend of close-up encounters with so many people with fascinating stories of real life and real imagination, I return to my work with a new determination to help bring those stories to life, word by word.
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I can’t believe my good fortune to have found Tammy to edit my nonfiction book. I had narrowed down my editor search to ten; then I took advantage of their free sample offers. Nine of the editors were okay. Tammy’s edit, however, really showed her strength for detail and content development. I was absolutely wowed. She suggested, for example, how to improve the Introduction’s hook, added sentences that clarified a paragraph’s thought better, and deleted unnecessary words. She also mentio… Read more
Tammy Ditmore is an excellent editor. My writing improved grammatically, in structure, and clarity under her skilled eye.
I had a book manuscript that had a thorough edit by a copy editor, but there were many changes made and I wanted another set of eyes to look at it carefully. So I hired Tammy Ditmore to do a “final” proofread and flag anything that she found awkward, confusing or ill-fitting. That is a difficult job—to look both for errors and to comment, but that is what I needed. Tammy took it on and did a great job. Tammy also understands a schedule and finished the work on time—even ahead of time. Thank … Read more
Tammy Ditmore was the consummate professional. She was very humble in dealing with me and tailored her editing style to fit my specific needs. She was prompt and punctual with deadlines and was very open to communicating with me. I would hire her again in a heartbeat.”
Tammy is just amazing. Before my book made it over to Tammy, I had used two editors — one a well-known author in NYC. I was unhappy with the editing, and basically Tammy was my last try before I just set my book to the side. Not only did she totally understand my “voice,” but she reconstructed, added, and melded in ways I would have never considered. Use her, trust her. She’s the best!
I appreciate Tammy’s willingness to ask questions when appropriate, flex on deadlines, offer sound advice, and rewrite sentences or sections as needed. Her command of substantive and copy editing make Tammy an asset to any project.
Tammy Ditmore edited my book, The Quest for Distinction: Pepperdine University in the 20th Century. It was a huge assignment, requiring skills that set her apart from most professional editors. She recognized the key themes of the manuscript immediately and proceeded to examine each paragraph, actually each word, in light of those themes. The result was a briefer, more coherent manuscript that will be read with greater interest and understanding.
Tammy’s approach to editing was like telling a story to someone who listens very well and offers suggestions only when something is confusing or grammatically incorrect (or embarrassing).