Responding to the Critics – Beautiful Evil Winter Part 2

Worse Book I’ve Ever Read posted in 2015

This unhappy reader repeatedly mentioned the editing in the original version, the reactions of the characters and the plot-line. It’s worth examining each of her concerns.

First, “..The editing was atrocious with grammatical and actual word choice mistakes…” I agree on the the editing of the original version – now replaced with a second edition. The publisher of the first edition failed me and the story with their poor editing work. The cover of the initial version, featuring a baby carriage, is no longer in print.

As mentioned in my previous blog, as of December 2018, David Aretha of Yellow Bird Editors completed a rigorous professional copyedit of this title. David, an editor and award-winning author, has written 90 books and edited more than 200 books for 30 plus publishers including Random House, St. Martin’s Press and HarperCollins. We noticed no word choice mistakes.The editing issue has been rectified.

Second, “…I found the book confusing, the characters were sometimes enraged in normal situations and very blase in very dangerous situations,..In my previous blog, I referenced an article about using levity in very tense situations to gain some distance. Here’s the link: https://www.verywellmind.com/laughter-as-a-coping-mechanism-3144664. According to author, Elizabeth Scott PhD, “..One of the main goals of finding the humor in a stressful situation is to use the humor to create distance between yourself and the stress you are experiencing. Laughing at the humorous aspects of a stressful situation can help you to keep things in perspective and remind yourself that what you experience may not be the worst thing you can possibly face…”

When waiting outside a Russian courtroom for an all-important adoption hearing, the playful banter  back and forth occurred. So glad that it did. It proved to be relaxing and calming for all concerned. I subscribe to this technique today because panic never seems to produce optimal results.

Third, “…I had no connection to the story or plot-line, the poor editing drove me crazy, … ” Re: the plot line, I actually hired a Developmental Editor to weigh-in on the plot line. Her credentials: Master of Fine Arts – Creative Writing from New York University, Bachelor of Arts – English from Yale, plus Editorial Work at Random House and Penguin. Ah, back to the editing once again. I counted five references, in your review, to the editing, now-corrected. Once again, the publisher of the original version of this novel failed me and the story with their copy editing effort; hence, the editing overhaul by David Aretha.

In summary, the editing issue has been corrected with expert help. Re; the reactions of the characters,  that’s a judgment call, but I stand behind that decision as this novel was inspired by a true story. My husband and I traveled to Russia to become parents. And I enlisted expert assistance to develop the plot. Quality counts. Grateful to have assembled a skilled team to support an award-winning reader experience as evidenced by bestselling status.