Lexical Peaks Update: May and June 2023

(Yes, I am posting this one two weeks late. There’s been a lot going on and I am amazed and somewhat appalled to discover we are nearly halfway through July already!)

What I’ve been working on:

Last month I worked through a copyedit of a non-fiction book. It was a translation, and I always enjoy the challenge of working on translations: it can be a delicate line of preserving the author’s voice and retaining their meaning and emphasis, whilst keeping all the grammar neat and tidy. This one was made more tricky because I was only in contact with the translator, not the author, so I had to be even more careful that the changes I made were only tightening the wording up and didn’t involve changing it in any way. The translator and I were both really happy with the final version; it’s an important book which deserves to be more widely read, so it was brilliant to be involved with it.

I’m currently working my way through a developmental edit of a paranormal romance for Jennifer Lawler’s Advanced Developmental Editing course. Development editing really is my love and joy, so I’m really enjoying improving my skills and making the most of being able to learn from someone with as much expertise and wisdom as Jennifer has.

I’m also about to start copy editing a collection of short stories to help get them all ready for submission. This is for a repeat client whose stories are expansive and hugely imaginative, and I’m thrilled to be working with them again.

Looking ahead, I’ve got space for a manuscript critique during August, so if you’re a fantasy writer or YA writer looking to get some developmental feedback on your work, please do get in touch.

What I’ve been reading:

A recent fave was Treacle Walker by Alan Garner, which I am not entirely sure I completely understood but I did very much love. It’s definitely the sort of book that needs to be read at least a couple of times, so I’m looking forward to going back to it at some point and unravelling more of it.

I finally managed to grab Cal Flyn’s Islands of Abandonment from my local library. I’ve been intrigued to read this for ages and it certainly didn’t disappoint – it’s a fascinating account of several places left abandoned and, in some cases, forgotten. In my head this sits nicely alongside Robert MacFarlane’s Underland in a category of ‘nonfiction books which feel fantastical’.
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And I’ve just finished All the Stars and Teeth and All the Tide of Fate by Adalyn Grace – a fun fantasy duology involving a pirate, a magical boat and a vengeful mermaid, so basically all my favourite things. I actually really like duologies and being able to stay in that world a little longer than a standalone allows but without the commitment a longer series requires.

What I’ve been doing:

I’ve been away quite a lot with a relaxing holiday up in Mull followed by a couple of trips over to Jersey where some of my family are.

When I’ve been home, I’ve been doing lots of sport climbing. I’ve battled a lot with psyche levels and my headgame over the last couple of years, so it’s been amazing this summer to finally feel fully motivated and committed on routes.
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I’ve also just been enjoying being in the outdoors without any agenda. In Mull I went for a long run in the mountains, meandered my way up Ben More and had some delightful (if chilly) sea swims. My sea swims in Jersey were much warmer! Unfortunately it’s jellyfish season on the North Wales coastline, so any swims here mostly involve me jumping out of my skin at absolutely anything that brushes past me in the water.