My Annual Review Chat
- Sep
- 26
- 2015
- Posted by Tammy Ditmore
- Posted in Editing, personal reflections
Business owners are commonly told that they should set aside time at least once a year to review their business, to take a look at where they have been and set a course for where they want to go. Following this good advice, however, is often harder than it should be. Who has time to sit down and think about such things?
Fortunately for me, I have Liz Dexter’s LibroEditing Small Business Chat to prompt me to perform my own annual review every year. eDitmore Editorial Services was first featured in Liz’s regular blog chats with small-business owners in 2012, and Liz has revisited me every year since to find out how my business is going. That annual email from Liz gives me the kick in the pants I need to sit down and look at where I’ve been for the past 12 months and contemplate where I want to be in the next 12.
The review of my past year was published on LibroEditing today, and it comes at a really appropriate time for me as I feel like my business—and my life—is at a crossroad. In the past six weeks, my husband and I have gone from having a full house to an empty nest. Our oldest son moved out six weeks ago today, headed for a great job in Washington, D.C. Ten days later, our youngest son moved into his dorm at Pepperdine University, eager to start his freshman year at college.
I’d be lying if I said the past few weeks have been easy for me. It’s been a struggle to get used to the too-quiet house, and I still have no idea how to cook for two instead of four. But I’m slowly learning to appreciate the empty calendar spots and the freedom it’s giving me to focus more on my business.
I spent much of the past month turning a boy’s bedroom into my office, and I have managed to create a little place that I find inviting and inspiring. And while I was working on my physical workspace, I was also working with Robbie Diggs of DiggsDesign to refresh and streamline this digital workspace. Taking those two steps makes me feel like I’m embarking on a new leg of my small-business voyage.
In addition, I’m helping to present a webinar for IBPA in the next week–something I’ve never attempted before. And I’m sitting on an editing panel for the 805 Writers’ Conference on November 1, another first for me.
Looking back, I can see it’s been a good year. Looking forward, I can see new opportunities on the horizon. Thanks, Liz, for making me sit down long enough to take in the view in both directions.
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This book has been a major effort for me over the past 15 years—both emotionally and in time commitment. Your feedback helped me give it structure. Your insightful questions encouraged me to go deeper in my understanding and intentions, which provided enhanced clarity. Your recommendations provided a professional perspective that I needed towards getting it published. Thank you so much! When entertaining any future writing projects, you will be the first person I contact.
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).