Call 911 for Your Manuscript

Have you ever thrown your hands up in defeat after reading your manuscript and groaned, “Someone Call 911!?” Maybe you’re anxious about how your story is developing. Perhaps you’re frustrated with your characters. Or when you read the dialogue out loud, it’s boring and unrealistic.

We all get desperate for help in our writing at one time or another and it’s OK to ask for help.

I recently had a very real 911 experience with my husband. Long story short, he had a mild stroke and his right side became paralyzed. This was a complete shock as he is not that old and we did not know he had hypertension. He’d even had a recent physical. We were stunned.

I knew, however, that it was time to call 911 and my husband is currently doing intensive Rehab therapy. He’s slowly getting his strength back with the help of professionals.

If, as a writer, you’re feeling agony over a written piece that just does not seem “healthy,” go to a professional in the field—an editor, published writer, someone who you trust to give you feedback. (Some editors will request a fee for their critique so ask before you receive an unexpected invoice)

Perhaps your story line drags or your hero is not very likeable. Maybe you’re just plain stuck. An expert can help you get back on track and give constructive criticism. Don’t be afraid to ask.

Contacts from writer’s conferences are a great resource. If you belong to a writer’s group, ask a fellow member. If the first person you contact is in the middle of their own writing woes (it happens!), ask another. Get the help you need to give rehab to your story. It might be a simple solution.

Some ER visits merely require a stitch or two. Some require intense care and follow up. But as the goal for a person in physical crisis is a healthy body, a writer’s goal is a healthy manuscript—one that draws a reader from one page to the next and keeps their eyes wide open, long after the lights should be out.

Don’t hesitate to call the emergency number of a fellow wordsmith who can bring perspective and healing to your story.

Then carry on.

Elaine Marie Cooper has two upcoming releases on January 18, 2019: War’s Respite (Prequel novella) and Love’s Kindling. They are the first two books in the Dawn of America Series set in Revolutionary War Connecticut. Cooper is the award-winning author of Fields of the Fatherless and Bethany’s Calendar. Her 2016 release (Saratoga Letters) was finalist in Historical Romance in both the Selah Awards and Next Generation Indie Book Awards. She penned the three-book Deer Run Saga and has been published in numerous magazines and anthologies. You can visit her website/ blog at www.elainemariecooper.com