Happy Monday! It’s my birthday this week, so I’m off and (hopefully) enjoying some sunshine, good food, and a bouncy castle. Yes: I am getting a bouncy castle for my 40th birthday, because why tf not? Hope you all have a wonderful week. 💜

It's wild to be thinking of 2027, but my 2026 developmental editing calendar is almost completely booked. I have one spot left for a manuscript under 85,000 words in November, and that's that! 🤯 Still plenty of space for smaller projects but, I'd love to get that thing filled.

Dear Writer, Remember: success is a series of small wins. Love, Kayleigh

Word and I are in such a big fight right now.

Monkey Working on Computer

Alt: Monkey pushing a laptop off a desk

static.klipy.com

✨ Writing Prompt ✨ In honor of the Spider-Man release this week: Write a short scene in which your main character meets their doppelgänger or themselves from a parallel world. #WritingPrompts #WritingCommunity

YAY! An author I did a picture book evaluation for back at the start of the year reached out about the next three in the series. (I love getting to work on picture books. 😍😍😍)

A fellow editor just shared this in our Slack. What an amazing resource for authors and book professionals in the U.S. and Canada!

✨ Question of the Week ✨ What do you do after finishing your first draft? Do you rest? Celebrate? Get right back to it? #WriteSky #WritingQOTW

Y'all, I miss chocolate. Afternoon snacks are just not the same these days.

Hi Bluesky! I have an open editing spot from Aug 3rd to Aug 24th! If you have something ready for editing, let me know ASAP! ottersediting.com

Otters Editing

Welcome to Otters Editing Welcome! I’m Steph, an empathetic editor who cares about you & your writing. I’ll be your Guide Otter here to help you swim through your publishing journey…

ottersediting.com

I hate finding out someone got my info from asking AI where to find an editor.

Keep My Name Out Of Your Mouth

Alt: Keep My Name Out Of Your Mouth

static.klipy.com

Happy Monday! This is an exciting week for me: applications for my first offering of financial assistance closed yesterday, meaning I get to start looking at what came in. 🎉 I'm also diving back into my current developmental edit before I take next week off. Gonna be a busy one!

I just found out that a bookstore I love is hosting a Reading Prom the same day as a wedding I'm going to, and I'm so upset. I wanna go to Reading Prom. 😭

✨ Friday Tip ✨ Beta readers are a valuable part of the writing process, but not every beta read is the same. Knowing what to expect and the questions to ask can help ensure that you get what you need from the experience. In this week’s post, I offer 5 ways to get the most out of your beta read. ⬇️

Birthday checklist: ✅ Bouncy castle booked ✅ Dinner reservations made ✅ Cake ordered

Dear Writer, Write the story you want to read and you’ve already found one reader: you. There will be more readers waiting to read your work. Keep going. Love, Kayleigh

I listen to instrumental playlists when editing. Sometimes I'll just pick a focus playlist, but often I'll try to find one that fits the vibe of the genre. I just found a playlist of the background music from all of the Uncharted games and it's *chef's kiss*.

✨ Writing Prompt ✨ The most minor character in your story has a complete life outside of the main story, including desires, dreams, and duties. Write a journal entry from their POV on the day of your main story's climactic event. Are they even aware of what is happening to your main character?

Obviously I'm home in the middle of the day because I work from home. I'm still flabbergasted when people show up and ring my bell midday, then keep standing there expecting someone to be home and answer. Shoo!

✨ Question of the Week ✨ Where do you do your best writing? #AuthorSky #AmWriting #WritingQOTW

I once had a writer I’d connected with ages ago (back in ye olde TwiX days) reach out and apologize that they had never booked my services. It was an affordability thing, and they felt guilty for asking a basic question. So, let’s be clear: I don’t expect the writers I connect with to hire me. ⬇️

Happy Monday, folks! My cold is finally over, so this week I continue my latest dev edit. I'm also kicking off a short and sweet discovery draft evaluation for a memoir. By the end of the week, what are you hoping to have done?

Just one week left to apply!

Kayleigh | Developmental Editor ✍🏻📚@editsinthemargins.com · last mo.

What's stopping you from applying for $4,000 off your developmental edit? Applications for financial assistance (for those who need it!) have been open for a month. There's still some time left to get yours in! Get the full details: editsinthemargins.com/assistance/

👇🏻👇🏻

Helga@helganr.bsky.social · 3w ago

I would need an entire Ted Talk to explain it, but I thought my problem was "too many characters" or "too much structure for secondary characters." It wasn't. The fix was making every arc and interaction count, revealing things once at the right moment, and cutting repeated beats.

✨ Friday Tip ✨ Book bans and censorship continue to be a battle around the world, with multiple highly prohibitive bills making the rounds in the U.S. Here’s a reminder of how you can take a stand against censorship (with plenty of resources): editsinthemargins.com/post/how-to-... More ⬇️

How to Stand Up Against Book Bans - In the Margins Editing & Writing Services

There are several things you can do to defend our communities against book bans and celebrate our right to ideas and stories that represent everyone.

editsinthemargins.com

I just realized that it's probably my (very effective) decongestant that has been making me super dizzy. And now I have a tough choice to make. 😭

Dear Writer, You’re still a writer if you’ve written— over 1000 words today 100 words today 10 words today 0 words today You keep coming back. That’s what counts! Love, Kayleigh

**ALERT** Nationwide Book Banning Bill Republicans Senators have drafted S. 4925, a companion to the House's HR 7616 bill. Thank you, as always, to @heykellyjensen.bsky.social from @bookriot.bsky.social for sounding the alarm. Yes, you can do something about this. Please consider taking action.

Two AI posts advertising editing services in an editor subreddit, one offering a package that combines beta reading, developmental editing, and proofreading all at the same time. And they don't know why they got called out. ☠️