A sneak peek at the final stages of writing & editing a book

Loved seeing all these covers on display at the Simon & Schuster building during a visit with my editor and agent last month.

As a first-time author, I’ve spent the past four years writing and reporting my debut nonfiction book, “SLIP: Life in the Middle of Eating Disorder Recovery.” It’s been such a long labor of love that some acquaintances have asked: “Wait, is this your second book, or are you still working on your first one?”

I understand why they ask; most people don’t know all that goes into landing a nonfiction book deal with a Big Five publisher.

I’ve spent the summer editing my book, and there’s still a whole other year before it will hit shelves next summer. In my latest freelance piece for Harvard University’s Nieman Storyboard site, I wrote about the book publishing process — with a focus on the final writing and editing stages. It’s a “process” to say the least!

Being at this stage feels like completing the last few miles of an ultra-marathon: It’s both exhausting and energizing; it requires the humility to accept most edits and the confidence to speak up when you disagree with others; it demands time, undivided attention and an openness to change — all in service of making your book as good as it can be before it goes out into the world.

In my Nieman Storyboard piece, I offer up nine related takeaways, including: do a curiosity read, put every fact under a magnifying glass, and be protective of your prose (but not overly protective). You can read the full piece here.

Given that we’re talking about publishing, I’m wondering: What questions do you have about this part of the process (or the process in general)? I’m happy to shed light on what I’ve learned along the way. Leave a question or comment below!

(Rather than publish a separate discussion post on Fridays, I’m going to invite conversations in the comments section of my weekly Thursday posts so that we can all converse in the same place. As the “Write at the Edge” community grows, I’ll likely offer more chat/discussion features to foster further engagement.)