One thing that many rejected submissions to Swords & Sorcery Magazine have in common is that they contain more than a few errors. Spelling mistakes, grammar goofs, and (probably) accidental malapropisms are scattered through the text like landmines, ready to blow the reader right out of the story. Typos happen, of course, and it’s not unusual to find them even when a story has been professionally edited, but successful writers submit the cleanest, most error free draft they can. Clean copy won’t guarantee your story will catch my interest, but error filled writing might result in your submission being rejected out of hand. In the best case, I might manage to wade through it despite the unpolished writing and see a rough gem that I invite the writer to polish and send to me again.
I cannot claim to be a master of any kind of editing, but I have learned a few tricks that might help writers develop their own skills. First, give your work some time. It is very easy to overlook typos when what you meant is fresh in your mind. I have a tendency to skip over mistakes I’ve recently made. After a few days, the mistakes stand out more.
A second trick is to read your work outloud. Vocalizing each word can slow down your reading and force you to look at the words seperately, making mistakes more obvious. It also highlights awkward constructions that might trip your readers up.
Another idea is to read your sentences in isolation, possibly by starting at the end and working backward. Again, this forces you to take a look at each sentence, and each word, separately, making it easier to spot errors at that level.
Spell checkers and grammar checkers are useful, but it is important that you don’t rely on them too much. They are not infallible. Spell checkers will miss a correctly spelled wrong word. Grammar checkers are not always correct in their parsing of your writing and generally lack nuance. They are also optimized for expository or persuasive business writing, not fantasy fiction, so they will make suggestions that will flatten your tone and homogenize your style. Sometimes the right wording in fiction is technically incorrect, especially in dialog where idiosyncratic grammar can be a distinguishing characteristic of a character’s speech.
If you can, find someone who can read your draft before you submit it for publication. Another writer would be ideal, but anyone who is interested in your work and is fluent in the language in which you write should be able to help. A first reader will be able to spot some errors you miss just because they are taking a fresh look. They may also be able to make suggestions that will help you improve the story, such as by identifying plot holes or continuity errors.
Perfection is not necessary and, in a story of any length, probably not possible. Finding the odd misspelled word won’t cause me to reject your story, nor will a few grammar mistakes. I can correct those for you. It is still important to make an effort to send me the cleanest story you can. If it seems as of you made no effort to tidy up your draft, I may not make the effort to finish reading it and will more than likely reject it.
Finally, if you enjoy reading S&SM please consider joining the Patreon. Your support will help make Swords & Sorcery even better.
Best,
Curtis Ellett
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