Magic, Mensa and Mayhem Tour: Interview with content editor Linda Anderson

Great books are often the result of more than just the writer's efforts. I was very impressed with the thorough editing job done on Magic, Mensa and Mayhem by the editors at Swimming Kangaroo. The book went through a couple of edits--one for content and one for copyediting. These editors not only found errors I'd missed after a half-dozen edits and an equal number of critiques, but also alerted me to some writing habits I had and didn't realize. They created a better writer as well as a better book.

Today, we meet Linda Anderson, who was the content editor.

What does a content editor do?

The main job of a content editor is to read manuscripts for plot--Does it makes sense? Does it have any holes?--and character development--Are these people believable? This means we get to read books before anybody else does, which is a wonderful privilege, let me tell you. We also make sure sentence structure is correct and do a little grammatical tweaking if necessary. We are supposed to leave spelling and punctuation and such to the copy editor, but I think most editors of any variety would not be willing to let a typo escape if they could help it.

What do you enjoy about it?

Just about everything. I love to read ... I read to unwind the way a lot of people watch television to unwind. I have a hard time getting through a day if I can't read at least a little bit for pleasure sometime in my waking hours. (Because as we all know, reading while sleeping is hard!) I also get a major thrill out of being able to help polish someone else's creativity. That makes me a kind of coach. Or to put it another way: I am not the one who makes the cake, but I get to put the icing roses on.

How did you get started in the job?

Take one daily reader with a preference for fiction in general and science fiction in specific, give her a several-decades' long career in writing and editing news stories, add one friend who is a budding science fiction writer with the need for a little nagging to finish his book, stir in the opportunity to volunteer to be his editor and you've got my recipe for becoming a content editor. My friend sold his book to Swimming Kangaroo and mentioned to Dindy how much he liked my editing. She agreed to give me a chance as an editor. And here I am.

Are you a writer as well? If so, how does this help your writing?

I am a writer in the sense that I've got more than 25 years' experience writing news stories, but I'm not a writer in the book-writing sense, unless you count those 54 pages of a young adult novel that I started back in the mid-1990s and never finished. Yet. So yes, content editing could help my writing enormously by exposing me to new writers and different styles, showing me different possibilities and different concepts. But of course that means I'd have to dust off that manuscript ...

What impressions did you have about Magic, Mensa & Mayhem?

MM&M was my first experience with Vern and a terrific experience it was. (I hope it was good for him too.) I loved the puns, I loved the alternate universe setting, I loved the way all the different beings were just part of everyday life, I loved the crime solving part and I loved with Vern. I also appreciated how gently the religious message was conveyed. In these days when so many Christians seem to think the only way to spread the word is to smack people over the head with it, I loved how Vern and Sister Grace did the same thing in a much more gentle fashion. Believe me, those of us with sore heads appreciate it.

Any funny stories to share about editing it?

Not really funny stories about editing it. Parts of it made me laugh while I was editing, does that count?

Vern wants to know what you loved most about him in this story.

To paraphrase the gang at Cheers: VERRRRRNNN! I have a weakness for dragons. I've been a big fan since about 1979, but when I met Vern -- who can talk, make puns AND solve crimes-- I knew I had found my dragon. I think he's just about perfect. I mean, a wisecracking detective who is also a dragon -- what's not to love? Do you think I could ever sweet-talk him into giving me a ride? Just a short one, not too high ... I tend to get motionsick but I promise to be careful.

(Vern said if she's take some Dramamine, he'd consider it.)

Magic, Mensa and Mayhem Characters Speak Out

Characters answer the question: Can you tell us what you think is the most exciting thing that happened to you?

Vern: I'll let your readers decide what's exciting. I could give you a long list of annoyances, however. Let's see: finding Coyote the Trickster at a Mensa convention, dealing with bellhops who have a sick sense of humor, bailing out an angry dwarf, listening to said dwarf belt out "Henry Higgens" while drunk, environmentalists protesting my very presence, pranking pixies, hyperactive elves... Oh, yeah, and paying for the rips I put in the hotel carpet, but that never made the novel.

Sister Grace: It depends on what you mean by exciting. I most enjoyed making some new friends, especially Shirley Stark, a fellow harpist and a Mensan. But if you mean action-exciting, I guess that would be the magical "tussle" I got into with Euterpe. No, I won't give you the details. Let's just say she was putting on airs--as usual--during Shirley's Magic in Music panel and I felt it was my duty to humble her a bit...and things got out of hand. No one was hurt, except her pride, which may as well be a living thing. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that. As you can see, Euterpe does bring out the worst in me.

Euterpe: Exciting? No. Why do you ask?

Kent the Dwarf: (Blushing) Nae. I couldn't really share that. It's all behind-the-scenes, anyway.

Brunhilde: No, that's private.

Sigfried: The bellhops ask me where Roy and tiger are. Also what's in my wallet. I strangle them.

Princess Galinda, wife of the High Elf Galendor: Well, it was only mentioned in passing, but we were on Oprah! We'd been invited to a special about "cultural differences and the modern couple."

The Magic, Mensa and Mayhem Virtual Book Tour

I'm touring this month for Magic, Mensa and Mayhem. If you're interested in the book or want to learn more about Vern; or if you are wondering what a virtual book tour is, please check out some of the stops.

If you're interested in doing your own tour, check out the Virtual book tour primer on www.fabianspace.com. Look under The Marketing Mentor for it. I am also teaching how to do it. It's a paid course, but at the end you'll have scheduled your own tour and know how to do it in the future.


1: TWEET TOUR: www.twitter.com/karinafabian

2: tour announced on www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com, www.fabianspace.com, www.dragoneyepi.net
--Interview with Jane Lebak: http://philangelus.wordpress.com
--Interview: www.thecomingevil.blogspot.com
--Live interview on Snark Infested Waters with Taylor Kent, 9:30-10:30 PM EDT at http://thesnarkyavenger.com

3: Interview with Vern on Larion Will's website: http://www.larriane.com
--Guest blog on character creation on www.kidsbooksuk.blogspot.com

4: Interview about Florida and Gater Louie scenes: http://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com
--Information about Magic, Mensa and Mayhem at New Book News, http://doylebooks.blogspot.com

5: Information and interview of Vern; http://blog.frankcreed.com/

6: Quotes from the characters of MM&M: www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com
--Interview on http://literary-equine.livejournal.com/

7: Interview at snoringscholar.blogspot.com
--Worldbuilding post and interview on http://www.amberstults.com.

10-11 EST Second Life: Meet & Greet
To get to the meeting: http://slurl.com/secondlife/North%20Bound%20Marina/227/24/25. They can then click on the link that says teleport now and that will open their software and after logging and they land in my living room. We will also have the surf boards out so that after the meeting we can surf around the marina. Also just on the other side of the marina is a Christian "night club" called Grizzlies where they can dance and mingle. Or they can just hang around and chat at my place.

8: TWEET TOUR: www.twitter.com/karinafabian
--Review at www.splashdownreviews.blogspot.com

9: Interview with the content editor: www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com

10: Interview http://unwriter1.wordpress.com/
--Talking about blog tours at http://www.sallymurphy.blogspot.com/

11: Review: www.shoutlife.com/cindysbooks

12: Plotting MM&M on Writer Wow: http://writewow.blogspot.com/
--Interview on Imperfect Clarity http://www.imperfectclarity.net/

13: Interview with Nancy Famolari: http://sites.google.com/site/nancyfamolari/

14: Book review; http://www.freewebs.com/brynnacurry The Fairy Ring'
--Book Review: http://bibliophilesretreat.com
--Interview on Mommyblog, Mama Bear Knows Best http://www.imperfectclarity.net/mamabear/.

8 PM EST: Live chat at Author! Author! http://xat.com/WordBox

15: Book Signing at Minot AFB BX 10-2
--Interview at http://joyceanthony.tripod.com
--TWEET TOUR: www.twitter.com/karinafabian -- Look for #mm&m

16: Interview with the copy editor: www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com

17: Guest post about writing funny on Ascroft, eh? www.dianneascroft.wordpress.com
--Talking about worldbuilding: Speculative Friction http://francespauli.blogspot.com

18: Book Signing at Minot AFB BX 10-2
--Review by CF Vici: http://cfvici.blogspot.com
--On blog with Karen http://karenandrobyn.blogspot.com

19: Interview and Review (Up through 26th)
--ChrisChatReviews:http://www.freewebs.com/chrischatreviews/
--ChrisChatTalksBooks: http://chrischatreviews.blogspot.com/
--Tweet Tour: reviews and mentions
@nasharpe
@JaneLebak
@Frederation
@gracebridges
@terrimain
@josephcabadas

20: interview and review http://www.frederation.wordpress.com
--Review: http://pennylockwoodehrenkranz.blogspot.com/

21: Guest column on worldbuilding: http://pennylockwoodehrenkranz.blogspot.com/
--Interview with Deb: http://debsbookreviews.blogspot.com

22: TWEET TOUR: www.twitter.com/karinafabian
--Interview: www.jennifersbookreviews.com

23: Excerpt: www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com

24: Review with Cathi Hassan: http://cathischatter.blogspot.com

25: Interview with Cathi Hassan: http://cathischatter.blogspot.com

26: Review and interview on Wayfarer's Journal Blog Review: http://www.wayfarersjournal.com/blog.htm

27: Vern interview on "Scribblings": http://tree-lady.livejournal.com/

28: Review www.snoringscholar.blogspot.com

29: TWEET TOUR: www.twitter.com/karinafabian
--Vern interviewed on snoringscholar.blogspot.com

30: MM&M Trivia contest: www.virtualbooktourdenet.blogspot.com: Note: you'll need to have read the book.

A Dragon's Eye View Newsletter Now Out!

I've started a newsletter about my DragonEye, PI universe that I love to write about. A Dragon's Eye View comes out bi-monthly and includes a short article from me, a rant from Vern, Faerie Facts and special offers. It's available to DragonEye, PI members, so sign up today.

In the inaugural issue:

* How Karina came up with the idea for DragonEye, PI
* Vern rants about human misconceptions regarding dragons
* Vern's explanation of the Faerie World (from Magic, Mensa and Mayhem, coming March 2009 from Swimming Kangaroo)
* Special offers and events

Sneak Peak:

* I am not a fire hazard. I can control my fire better than you can control your bowels, thank you very much. Also, it took me over 800 years of service to earn my fire back--I am not going to lose it because you annoyed me, forgot the title of my book, called me a dinosaur, whatever. I can deal with you in other ways.

"Christmas Spirits: From the Case Files of DragonEye, PI" by Karina Fabian

A nifty electronic "stocking stuffer" for the fantasy readers among your friends.



When FlintCorp Developing threatens to destroy the businesses and homes of Territory to build a mall and luxury condos, neither Vern nor Grace are feeling the Christmas spirit. But when Flint is threatened by the Ghosts of Christmas Past and Present, they put aside their humbug feelings in order to solve the mystery. Will they succeed before the Ghost of Christmas Future makes a lethal visit? And will their modern-day Scrooge have a change of heart?

This is my first experiment with selling my DragonEye, PI stories online. Vern, the cynical dragon private detective made his debut in Firestorm of Dragons and has garnered many fans who enjoy is witty satirical perspective. This story looks at his and Grace's first Christmas together, a tough one for Grace, who is not used to the bluster and commercialism of the Mundane world.

$1.50 for PDF Download at http://dragoneyepi.net/index.php?name=Content&pid=7