Jake Perez

How can you get your writing to stand out from the online noise? By writing better than everybody else. And my FIRE Framework gives you a strategy to help you make that happen! Listen to my new audio blog to learn all about it!

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Editing pet peeve: the goofy obsession with the Oxford comma. Oxford enthusiasts—whom I often refer to as "Oxfordnistas"—insist that the serial comma is the ultimate arbiter of clarity and slayer of ambiguity. And they demonstrate this overstated power through a series of reductionist—albeit humorous—memes. Below on the left is one such example. Again, this meme assuredly suggests a moment where a lack of a serial comma may confuse readers. Rather than express a list of the three, the Oxford-less sentence seems to imply an appositive suggesting the exotic dancers are, in fact, Stalin and JFK. But what happens if you change strippers (plural) to stripper (singular). One good contrived strawman argument deserves another, right? On the right is the counterpoint. Here, the sentence with the Oxford comma introduces ambiguity. Is that JFK on stage three collecting singles, or is somebody else? The trick is simple: When in doubt, rewrite. "We invited JFK, Stalin and the strippers." See how this is clearly a list of three? See how I didn't need the comma to do so? Ultimately, the Oxford comma is a stylistic convention, so it is a matter of personal preference. You can also write, "We invited JFK, Stalin, and the strippers." That *also* works. Either way, stop pretending that your prescriptivist take on the Oxford comma is holy writ. #Oxfordcomma

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The Power of a Pitch "Publishing credentials, well-researched comp titles, and a bit of personalization will certainly help your case, but your pitch is currency." https://buff.ly/3Yv3wqF #writerscommunity #writingcommunity #writerslife #amwriting

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Is your manuscript ready for the world? My latest blog post breaks down the 4 key stages of book editing (and when you need each one), including: ️• How to spot a trustworthy editor (avoid shady characters!) ️• The editing timeline (is there overlap?) • Acceptable error rates (so you know what to expect) Ready to level up your editing game? Get your manuscript shining like a diamond. ✨ Read the full post and conquer the book editing process like a pro! #bookediting #writingcommunity #authorlife #amwriting #bookstagram #writersofinstagram #selfpublishing #booktok #indieauthors

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"Copyeditors use style guides to help them edit texts for clarity and correctness. Much of what’s 'correct' is more subjective than any of the grammar covered in a standard English class." Hannah Varacalli explains; https://zurl.co/ZuaU #CopyEditing #AmWriting #Language

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Each week this September, I’m focusing on the wealth of free resources available from Right Touch Editing’s Editors’ Resource Library (https://zurl.co/QSYn). This week, I’m looking at our Capitalization Policy Worksheet. ✏ ✏ ✏ ✏ ✏ ✏ As #writers and #editors, we know that consistency is key to polished, professional content. But when it comes to capitalization in titles and headings, the rules can be surprisingly complex. How do you ensure uniformity across your organization's materials? I’ve got a worksheet to help you. Here's what it offers: 1. Foundational Principles: Start with a refresher on capitalization rules common to major style guides. 2. Customizable Decisions: Tackle tricky areas like prepositions, adverbs, and conjunctions with flexible options to suit your brand's voice. 3. Special Cases: Address capitalization after em dashes, colons, and in hyphenated compounds. 4. Proper Noun Nuances: Decide how to handle those pesky proper nouns with initial lowercase letters (looking at you, iPhone!). 5. Exception Handling: Create a system for those inevitable "rule-breakers" that every style guide encounters. This worksheet isn't about dictating a one-size-fits-all approach. Instead, it's a tool to help you make informed decisions and document your choices. The result? A custom capitalization policy that ensures consistency across all your content. Whether you're a solo freelancer aiming for personal consistency or a content manager standardizing practices across a large team, this resource will streamline your process and elevate your professionalism. Ready to fine-tune your capitalization strategy? Download our "Capitalization Policy Worksheet" and take the first step towards impeccable, consistent content today. https://zurl.co/lT5l #EditorialStandards #ContentQuality #ProfessionalWriting #StyleGuides

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The publishing world has changed dramatically over time, but especially since online self-publishing became popular. Viewed by many as inferior, publishing your own work can be intimidating. However, all those myths floating around about it don’t help the situation. To uncover the truth about self-publishing, we should explore some of the most prevalent myths... https://lnkd.in/dZZUS_Dt #writing #publishing #writerslife #misconceptions #MisconceptionsDebunked #selfpublishing

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☀️ AUTHOR PUBLISHING EXPLODES Since 2007, the number of independent small press and author-published books has grown significantly—and has eclipsed the number of reported new titles released from traditional commercial publishers.     ☀️ Of all manuscripts submitted annually to traditional commercial publishers, only very small percentages are commercially published by the Big Five. Some agents’ blogs put author’s chances of landing a contract at 6000 to 1. Statistics show that only 1-2% of all manuscripts submitted annually to traditional houses are accepted.    ☀️ As a result, small presses and self-publishers have taken matters into their own hands. With the help of today’s technology, publishing books has never been more affordable. New categories of printing and publishing companies emerge every day with services to prepare and format manuscripts for reproduction or electronic distribution.    ☀️ From Manuscript to Finished Book  Self-publishing has been around in one form or another since the beginning of publishing but in recent years, self-publishing has exploded with the emergence of Print-on-Demand (POD) digital printing technologies and online bookselling. ☀️ Beginning in the 1970’s, the concept of Print-On-Demand began  to take shape with the advent of digital printing technologies. Xerox was one of the companies at the forefront of these developments. ☀️ In the late 90’s, the Internet revolutionized the publishing industry by allowing authors to connect with readers directly through websites and online platforms. The first consumer self-publishing platforms like AuthorHouse (1997) and Lulu (2002) allowed authors to upload their manuscripts, design their books and have them digitally printed “on demand”. ☀️ Finally, Amazon's entry into the POD market with CreateSpace (later merged into Kindle Direct Publishing) in 2007 significantly impacted what was possible for author-publishers, as it allowed them to easily publish their books and make them available for sale on Amazon—today the largest online marketplace for books. ☀️ By the early 2000’s the quality of POD technology improved, leading to somewhat better printing and binding options. This, in turn, has increased the legitimacy of self-published works and allowed authors to produce professional-quality books without the need for a traditional publishing deal. #books #authors #publishingservices

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Have you always dreamed of being a writer? Here’s your inspiration! I love the advice Brian Rendell offers in this post, especially the idea of maximizing your natural gifts. As a big believer in career assessment, I was thrilled to see that he tried StrengthsFinder (now #CliftonStrengths) and discovered he was high in the theme of Ideation®. Finally, as Brian explains, if you’re coming to writing later in life, you can’t expect to match the output of those who started much earlier. But you can certainly start writing now, and in the process, you can—and should—call yourself a writer.

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With the big publishing houses now consolidated to only five, it's great to see some disruptive movement shaking things up - this can only be good for self-published authors. What do you think? #FriendlyEditor #IndieAuthor #TaylorSwift #SelfPublishing

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Helpful resources from The BG Blog: Essential Parts of a Book Every Indie Author Should Know Before Self- Publishing https://bit.ly/3SvAyRl

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Hybrid publishing can be a weird world for self-publishers. Here is a list to get you started on your journey. #selfpublishing #hybridpublishers Ten Hybrid Publishers to Start You Off https://lnkd.in/gKK5MDcH

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Insightful analysis in this month's brief on special / thematic issues and their impact on publishing output. See below 👇. Also .... For more industry analysis, I recommend our "hot of the presses." Journal Benchmarking report. It provides a unique and robust analysis of the scholarly journals landscape. Taking both a historical perspective (how did we get here?) and a forward-looking view (where are we going?), we identify and explain the most important trends and drivers shaping the market. Link in comments.

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Editing episode 6 of my Writing Nonfiction with Confidence audio blogs. Nice to do something with my old sound-recording passion! I hope to upload episode 6— "What to Expect from a Nonfiction Editor: A Guide to the Editing World" —later this week on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, Youtube, and other channels. #yourbeststory

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Great article on the brilliant work good authenticity readers do. Check it out! #publishing #diversityinpublishing

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