First drafts are supposed to be rough. The book gets made in revision. These articles cover how real revision works: what to cut, what to fix, and how to know when a manuscript is actually finished instead of just abandoned.
AI WritingMost plot holes in a novel are character holes: someone does something only because the author needed them to. Here's how I check finished drafts, using the methods from my Plot Handbook with AI as the checker, not the writer.
NonfictionA chapter is as long as one complete thought, and a thousand words is plenty when the thought is finished. Keep with next and real heading styles stop a manuscript from fighting you through every revision.
Content MarketingOld work makes you cringe because your judgment kept improving after the work stopped. I deleted almost 200 web pages of LinkedIn branding articles, and an early book I ghostwrote makes me wince, and both taught me what to keep…
GhostwritingYou can hate the first draft of a chapter and fix it in a week. Hating a whole ghostwritten manuscript means both sides waited too long, and the fix starts with sorting out exactly what's wrong.
Contracts and AgreementsOne or two revisions is enough when your ghostwriter delivers chapter by chapter and revises as the book goes. The contract should define what a revision is and handle new scope with a written change order.
Critique GroupsA beta reader is a test audience, not an editor. They report where the reading experience broke, not how to fix it, and that is your job. Learn to send only a
Fiction WritingYou cannot revise a draft you are too attached to see clearly. Revision is a psychological problem before a technical one. Learn to beat the attachment trap
Fiction WritingShe was happy. He was terrified. The hotel was romantic. Every one of those is the author reaching a conclusion the reader was supposed to reach.
Book ROI & Business CasePeople ask me to ghostwrite for free more than you would believe, offering exposure, royalty splits, or a vague favor in exchange for a supposed bestseller. The answer is always no. Here is what the money actually buys, why cheap…
Grammar & SpellingNational Proofreading Day promotes error-free writing, but real proofreading is bigger than typos. The dangerous errors aren't spelling mistakes, they're failures of logic and clarity. A look at what a true pass catches.
GhostwritingThe manuscript landed and the voice is wrong, the argument is yours, the structure is yours, but the prose reads like a stranger wrote it. Here is why that happens, the four root causes to diagnose before you react, and…
Book CoachingVoice mismatch is the number-one reason ghostwriting projects fail, and the questions you ask before signing decide whether the manuscript sounds like you when it lands. Here are ten questions focused narrowly on voice and style, each built to reveal…
Professional ghostwriting for executives, founders, coaches, and authors who want to get the book done right. 113+ books authored. 54+ ghostwritten for clients.
Ready to discuss your book?
BOOK YOUR PRIVATE CONSULTATIONNo pitch. No pressure.
© 2026 Richard Lowe. The Writing King. All rights reserved.
