Bite-Size Edits

What is Bite-Size Edits?

Bite-Size Edits connects authors and readers with a passion for wonderful writing. We take a text, break it up into sentences, and serve those sentences randomly to editors. Writers accept, reject or modify all edits, and can decide how public or private their projects are.

Sounds like work to me. What's fun about It?

If you like good sentences, it turns out that Bite-Size Edits is addictive, soothing, and fun. It's hard to explain. You'll just have to try it. And if you are a writer, you'll be amazed at how useful it is.

How does Bite-Size Edits work?

• You paste text into Bite-Size Edits
• We break your text into sentences.
• Those sentences are served up to your Bite-Size Editing team at random.
• Your editors can be, depending on your preference: you alone, a private group you invite, your Bite-Size Edits contacts, or anyone logged into Bite-Size Edits.
• Serving sentences out of context means that it's easier to see errors and to detect sentence structure problems.
• When every sentence has been seen the number of times you specify, you get to review all the edits.
• You get to accept/modify/reject all edits.
• Once you are done reviewing, the system "rebuilds" your text, putting the sentences back together in the right order.
• Now you've got a clean, edited text, and you can copy the text and paste it back wherever it came from.

Why would I add a text to Bite-Size Edits?

• to connect with readers, fans, other writers and editors in a new way.
• to get fresh eyes on your writing.
• to get a new look at a text before sending it to your agent, publisher, blog, post office, advertising agency ...

Why would I edit a text in Bite-Size Edits?

• because you love language and would like to help writers make better sentences.
• because you love certain writers, and you relish the chance to play around with their prose.
• because helping other writers might mean you'll get some help yourself.

How do I get a text into Bite-Size Edits?

Once you're logged in, click on "Add a text to edit." Copy and paste your text into Bite-Size Edits. It's easy!

How do I get a text out of Bite-Size Edits?

Once you've processed all the edits, copy your text, and paste it back from whence it came.

How do I find a text to edit?

See the "Help Edit Text" button in the top right hand corner? Click on that - you'll get random texts from all the users in Book Oven.

Do I have to let just anyone edit my text?

No. You can specify whether your texts are visible/editable to just you, to your contacts, or to everyone.

Can I edit my own text?

Yes! This is a great use for Bite-Size Edits. It allows you to really hone in on your sentences in the cold light of day.

You are barbarians! How can you do something so egregious to the precious written word?

Actually, we are doing this because we love words, we love writing, and we want to find new ways to connect people with text, to connect readers and writers. Bite-Size Edits is really a celebration of the craft of writing, and the pleasure of reading. It's an acknowledgement of the hard work writers and editors must do to make those basic building blocks of writing -- sentences -- as sharp and polished as they can be. Of course, there is room for raggedness in writing too; and not every text will be improved in Bite-Size Edits. But this is a new way to connect people who love words, and that, surely, is worth a little bit of barbarism.

An editor and a writer have a sacred relationship. Have you no shame?

There is no way that Bite-Size Edits could ever replace a writer-editor relationship. It is our hope, actually, that it might create those relationships, by helping writers and editors find each other. But Bite-Size Edits is not something that should be used instead of a "real" editor, if a "real" editor is available. It can be used in addition to a real editor, in parallel with a real editor, or even in series. Still, if you don't have access to an editor, Bite-Size Edits might be the next best thing.

Is this going to put copyeditors out of work?

No. While Bite-Size Edits will clean up lots of errors, a text should still be reviewed by a copyeditor who will find consistency problems, and do the other magic things good copyeditors do. And, in any case, there is so much text being created in the world, copyeditors will be working hard for years to come.

How do I get editors to work on my text?

Probably the best way is to invite them to work on your text. You could also do some Bite-Size Edits for other writers, and perhaps they'll return the favour.

What kind of text can I put into Bite-Size Edits?

You can put any kind of text you like, though we don't handle graphics and formatting. Just copy-paste to get it in. You can add a chapter of a novel, or a letter to your boss, a blog post, a short-story, a newspaper article, a whole memoir, a haiku, a college essay, or anything else.

How much text can I put into Bite-Size Edits?

Anything beyond 10,000 words on a single upload is probably pushing it.

I'm a published author with a good editor. Why would I put text into Bite-Size Edits?

To connect with readers in ways you can't elsewhere. To play around with your words. To experiment. To start thinking of writing in new ways. Because it is fun. Because words are wonderful things that we should cherish in as many ways as we can. Because, to be crass, connecting with your readers is a wonderful way to sell more books.

What about privacy?

You decide who gets to edit your text. And remember, only you get to see the whole text - everyone else just sees random sentences.

Can my editors see the whole text?

No. Your editors only see random sentences, not the whole text. We may give that option later, but not yet.

What about copyright?

You keep the copyright on texts you submit to Bite-Size Edits. Your editors donate the copyright of their edits to you. You donate the copyright to any edits you make on someone else's project.

Can anyone submit texts to Bite-Size Edits?

Yes.

What languages can texts be in?

Texts can be in any language, though we can't guarantee that all characters will come out right. We'll try our best.

Is there a risk that someone might pass my work off as theirs?

Editors only see random sentences. If you have 10 sentences in your text, then there are: 3.6 million different ways those sentences can be put together.