Shannon | Editor of Words | Writer of Words | Lover of Words
@editorshannon.bsky.social
👩🏾🏫 Story Coach 🔎 Developmental Editor 🏳️🌈🧑🏻🤝🧑🏼LGBTQ+ Romance Editor 🕵🏽♂️ Detective Thriller Editor 🧠 Neurospicy 🏳️🌈 Queer AF (she/her) 📚 Bibliophile
Website: https://sageediting.com
Alter Ego (MM Romance + Detective Thriller): @authorkalibenson.bsky.social
Website: https://sageediting.com
Alter Ego (MM Romance + Detective Thriller): @authorkalibenson.bsky.social
Tomorrow’s final 2025 issue of The Editor–Author Perspective drops with an easy-to-use revision process, a year-end Sage Editing update, and subscriber-only workbook discounts.
Monthly, no spam—just thoughtful craft support 👉🏾 shorturl.at/worAQ
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #AmEditing
Monthly, no spam—just thoughtful craft support 👉🏾 shorturl.at/worAQ
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #AmEditing
![At the top, Sage Editing logo with tagline "Reflecting On Your Story One Word at a Time". Below and to the left, a Black woman with raised eyebrows and black glasses drinking from a coffee mug that reads "Zero [Fox Image] Given." To the right, dark purple text "The Editor–Author Perspective".](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:75ehdh2lce3qhaswabxxfikl/bafkreieodzf27nmurkr5vlrn3rzmoajcfl4ijrk737r4x37xqwkmpahuii@jpeg)
December 1, 2025 at 3:14 PM
Tomorrow’s final 2025 issue of The Editor–Author Perspective drops with an easy-to-use revision process, a year-end Sage Editing update, and subscriber-only workbook discounts.
Monthly, no spam—just thoughtful craft support 👉🏾 shorturl.at/worAQ
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #AmEditing
Monthly, no spam—just thoughtful craft support 👉🏾 shorturl.at/worAQ
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #AmEditing
Reminder: Bundle discounts are live on my store!
💖 Romance Characters + Plotting
🕵🏾♀️ Detective Characters + Plotting
🏗️ Plotting + Structure + Characters
(Or just grab all four! 🤔😁)
If plotting/structure slow you down, bundle the fix. 👉🏾 shorturl.at/BxOFb
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller #AmWriting
💖 Romance Characters + Plotting
🕵🏾♀️ Detective Characters + Plotting
🏗️ Plotting + Structure + Characters
(Or just grab all four! 🤔😁)
If plotting/structure slow you down, bundle the fix. 👉🏾 shorturl.at/BxOFb
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller #AmWriting
Sage Editing
I am someone completely obsessed with the power of language on the human experience, especially in queer romances and detective thrillers.In particular, I’ve got a soft spot for emotionally stunted an...
shorturl.at
November 29, 2025 at 8:54 PM
Reminder: Bundle discounts are live on my store!
💖 Romance Characters + Plotting
🕵🏾♀️ Detective Characters + Plotting
🏗️ Plotting + Structure + Characters
(Or just grab all four! 🤔😁)
If plotting/structure slow you down, bundle the fix. 👉🏾 shorturl.at/BxOFb
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller #AmWriting
💖 Romance Characters + Plotting
🕵🏾♀️ Detective Characters + Plotting
🏗️ Plotting + Structure + Characters
(Or just grab all four! 🤔😁)
If plotting/structure slow you down, bundle the fix. 👉🏾 shorturl.at/BxOFb
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller #AmWriting
3 quick signs the climax isn’t set up:
(1) There's no on-page choice to trigger it.
(2) The stakes haven’t risen enough.
(3) The next scene doesn’t assume the new change.
Fix one today. Save yourself the hard revisions tomorrow.
#AmWriting #Pacing #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
(1) There's no on-page choice to trigger it.
(2) The stakes haven’t risen enough.
(3) The next scene doesn’t assume the new change.
Fix one today. Save yourself the hard revisions tomorrow.
#AmWriting #Pacing #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
November 27, 2025 at 6:57 PM
3 quick signs the climax isn’t set up:
(1) There's no on-page choice to trigger it.
(2) The stakes haven’t risen enough.
(3) The next scene doesn’t assume the new change.
Fix one today. Save yourself the hard revisions tomorrow.
#AmWriting #Pacing #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
(1) There's no on-page choice to trigger it.
(2) The stakes haven’t risen enough.
(3) The next scene doesn’t assume the new change.
Fix one today. Save yourself the hard revisions tomorrow.
#AmWriting #Pacing #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
Name your Midpoint: write the decision + consequence in one sentence. What turning point shifts your protagonist from being reactive to proactive? #FirstDraftFall #WritingTips
November 25, 2025 at 6:22 PM
Name your Midpoint: write the decision + consequence in one sentence. What turning point shifts your protagonist from being reactive to proactive? #FirstDraftFall #WritingTips
Saturday Speed Checklist: Skim each chapter, tag those 7 beats, star the weak spots.
Grab the “spot-the-beat” list from my website here 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL.
Don’t forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter while you’re there!
#AmWriting #StoryStructure #QueerRomance
Grab the “spot-the-beat” list from my website here 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL.
Don’t forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter while you’re there!
#AmWriting #StoryStructure #QueerRomance
November 22, 2025 at 9:54 PM
Saturday Speed Checklist: Skim each chapter, tag those 7 beats, star the weak spots.
Grab the “spot-the-beat” list from my website here 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL.
Don’t forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter while you’re there!
#AmWriting #StoryStructure #QueerRomance
Grab the “spot-the-beat” list from my website here 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL.
Don’t forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter while you’re there!
#AmWriting #StoryStructure #QueerRomance
One tiny fix this weekend: pick the story beat that wobbles, write 3 “because of that…” links, and run one scene experiment. Momentum > perfection. Need a visual reminder? Download the Spot-the-Beat from my website 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL
#Plotting #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
#Plotting #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
November 21, 2025 at 7:04 PM
One tiny fix this weekend: pick the story beat that wobbles, write 3 “because of that…” links, and run one scene experiment. Momentum > perfection. Need a visual reminder? Download the Spot-the-Beat from my website 👉🏾 shorturl.at/AcXeL
#Plotting #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
#Plotting #StoryStructure #WritingTips #FirstDraftFall
The 7 story beats in under 60s: Inciting Incident 👉🏾 First Plot Point 👉🏾 First Pinch Point 👉🏾 Midpoint 👉🏾 Second Pinch Point 👉🏾 Second Plot Point 👉🏾 Dark Night 👉🏾 Climax.
List yours: one line each, using your draft, not your outline. It’s about what’s on the page right now.
#AmWriting #StoryStructure
List yours: one line each, using your draft, not your outline. It’s about what’s on the page right now.
#AmWriting #StoryStructure
November 18, 2025 at 3:58 PM
The 7 story beats in under 60s: Inciting Incident 👉🏾 First Plot Point 👉🏾 First Pinch Point 👉🏾 Midpoint 👉🏾 Second Pinch Point 👉🏾 Second Plot Point 👉🏾 Dark Night 👉🏾 Climax.
List yours: one line each, using your draft, not your outline. It’s about what’s on the page right now.
#AmWriting #StoryStructure
List yours: one line each, using your draft, not your outline. It’s about what’s on the page right now.
#AmWriting #StoryStructure
I really did it. Store’s LIVE! Focused workbooks for queer romance & detective thriller authors—prompts for HEA/HFN arcs & detective case spines, plus scene tests to catch plot holes early.
👉🏾 payhip.com/sageediting
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller
👉🏾 payhip.com/sageediting
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller
November 12, 2025 at 8:18 PM
I really did it. Store’s LIVE! Focused workbooks for queer romance & detective thriller authors—prompts for HEA/HFN arcs & detective case spines, plus scene tests to catch plot holes early.
👉🏾 payhip.com/sageediting
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller
👉🏾 payhip.com/sageediting
#QueerRomance #DetectiveThriller
I've got new tools dropping soon, as in TOMORROW.
Genre-specific workbooks for queer romance + detective thriller authors.
Which story challenge do you wish you understood better?
#AmWriting #QueerAuthor🌈✒️ #DetectiveFiction
Genre-specific workbooks for queer romance + detective thriller authors.
Which story challenge do you wish you understood better?
#AmWriting #QueerAuthor🌈✒️ #DetectiveFiction
November 11, 2025 at 2:52 PM
I've got new tools dropping soon, as in TOMORROW.
Genre-specific workbooks for queer romance + detective thriller authors.
Which story challenge do you wish you understood better?
#AmWriting #QueerAuthor🌈✒️ #DetectiveFiction
Genre-specific workbooks for queer romance + detective thriller authors.
Which story challenge do you wish you understood better?
#AmWriting #QueerAuthor🌈✒️ #DetectiveFiction
Broke down and joined the Insta... Regular editing and writing tips throughout the week + the occasional writing prompt to spur your creativity!
www.instagram.com/shannonscott...
#WritingCommunity #EditingCommunity #AmWriting #AmEditing
www.instagram.com/shannonscott...
#WritingCommunity #EditingCommunity #AmWriting #AmEditing
November 11, 2025 at 3:02 AM
Broke down and joined the Insta... Regular editing and writing tips throughout the week + the occasional writing prompt to spur your creativity!
www.instagram.com/shannonscott...
#WritingCommunity #EditingCommunity #AmWriting #AmEditing
www.instagram.com/shannonscott...
#WritingCommunity #EditingCommunity #AmWriting #AmEditing
Rule No. 1 of the internet: You must watch this video whenever it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
Rule No. 1A of the internet: This video must ALWAYS be reposted every time it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
ALWAYS.
Rule No. 1A of the internet: This video must ALWAYS be reposted every time it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
ALWAYS.
Because it's a wet, dreary day.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPCJ...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPCJ...
Lip Sync Battle - Tom Holland
YouTube video by Comedy Central Latinoamérica
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Rule No. 1 of the internet: You must watch this video whenever it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
Rule No. 1A of the internet: This video must ALWAYS be reposted every time it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
ALWAYS.
Rule No. 1A of the internet: This video must ALWAYS be reposted every time it crosses your feed on any social media platform.
ALWAYS.
A light in the nihilistic darkness that is this planet right now.
#MarriageEquality #LGBTQRights #PrideWasARiot
#MarriageEquality #LGBTQRights #PrideWasARiot
November 10, 2025 at 4:06 PM
A light in the nihilistic darkness that is this planet right now.
#MarriageEquality #LGBTQRights #PrideWasARiot
#MarriageEquality #LGBTQRights #PrideWasARiot
I finally started tracking my analytics over the past month and used it to create a more effective campaign across all my social media touchpoints. My engagement numbers have shot through the roof.
Spring Clean Your Social Media
It's time to air out your social media accounts, your website, and maybe some pillows around the house.
tinyurl.com/5n6huk2f
It's time to air out your social media accounts, your website, and maybe some pillows around the house.
tinyurl.com/5n6huk2f
November 10, 2025 at 4:04 PM
I finally started tracking my analytics over the past month and used it to create a more effective campaign across all my social media touchpoints. My engagement numbers have shot through the roof.
Richard Bradburn has a very extensive book called "Self-Editing for Self-Publishers" if you're looking for all in one at the granular level.
#AmEditing #EditingTips #WritingCommunity
#AmEditing #EditingTips #WritingCommunity
Could anyone please recommend a comprehensive guide on grammar, speech, and tense in fiction? I'm usually ok with self-editing, but finding some issues that I never came across in academic writing. I'm happy to buy a book, but preferably not several books.
#AmWriting #AmEditing #WritingCommunity
#AmWriting #AmEditing #WritingCommunity
a woman is holding a yellow sticky note with help written on it
Alt: April Ludgate, played by Aubrey Plaza, is holding up a yellow square sticky note. As she looks to one side, the camera zooms in so the text becomes legible. The note is handwritten and says HELP!
media.tenor.com
November 10, 2025 at 4:02 PM
Richard Bradburn has a very extensive book called "Self-Editing for Self-Publishers" if you're looking for all in one at the granular level.
#AmEditing #EditingTips #WritingCommunity
#AmEditing #EditingTips #WritingCommunity
Have definitely been in this situation multiple times. It's not even about the lack of understanding of craft, there's just something innate missing in how I think readers will identify with the characters. Because what is story without believable, relatable characters?
#stephenking #readmore #amediting #indiepublisher
I can always tell when I'm editing a manuscript if the author is a reader or not. In no instance, has the non-reader produced a superior work.
Ironically, I can't really put it into words how I know or what the difference is. I just do know.
I can always tell when I'm editing a manuscript if the author is a reader or not. In no instance, has the non-reader produced a superior work.
Ironically, I can't really put it into words how I know or what the difference is. I just do know.
November 10, 2025 at 3:59 PM
Have definitely been in this situation multiple times. It's not even about the lack of understanding of craft, there's just something innate missing in how I think readers will identify with the characters. Because what is story without believable, relatable characters?
“The authorial voice from a flesh-and-blood writer remains a differentiator and that’s something the onslaught of AI Kindle uploads doesn’t have—publishers’ years of honing creative instincts and cultivating talent pipelines matter even more in a flood of content.”
👆🏾
#ReadMoreBooks
👆🏾
#ReadMoreBooks
Consulting firm Bain & Company argues that now is the time for the publishing industry to band together to find ways to win back consumers looking to break their obsession with screens.
New Report Urges Publishers to Capitalize on Hidden Strengths
Consulting firm Bain & Company argues that now is the time for the publishing industry to band together to find ways to win back consumers looking to break their obsession with screens.
buff.ly
November 10, 2025 at 3:56 PM
“The authorial voice from a flesh-and-blood writer remains a differentiator and that’s something the onslaught of AI Kindle uploads doesn’t have—publishers’ years of honing creative instincts and cultivating talent pipelines matter even more in a flood of content.”
👆🏾
#ReadMoreBooks
👆🏾
#ReadMoreBooks
I know it's kind of a cliche, but why use three words when one word will do?
Punchy sentences, even long ones, draw readers in more easily if each word resonates emotionally in the context of the scene.
#WritersCoffeeClub #WritingCommunity #WritingTips
Punchy sentences, even long ones, draw readers in more easily if each word resonates emotionally in the context of the scene.
#WritersCoffeeClub #WritingCommunity #WritingTips
#WritersCoffeeClub 10/11: What have you recently learned which will have a big impact on your work?
Not so much learned as re-learned, by example: how a small goal can make a story just as engaging as a grand one.
Not so much learned as re-learned, by example: how a small goal can make a story just as engaging as a grand one.
November 10, 2025 at 3:51 PM
I know it's kind of a cliche, but why use three words when one word will do?
Punchy sentences, even long ones, draw readers in more easily if each word resonates emotionally in the context of the scene.
#WritersCoffeeClub #WritingCommunity #WritingTips
Punchy sentences, even long ones, draw readers in more easily if each word resonates emotionally in the context of the scene.
#WritersCoffeeClub #WritingCommunity #WritingTips
Craft book reading? ✅
Social media content prepped? ✅-ish
Reading for fun? ✅
Daylight savings time ending still kicking my ass? ✅
#SundayFunday
Social media content prepped? ✅-ish
Reading for fun? ✅
Daylight savings time ending still kicking my ass? ✅
#SundayFunday
November 10, 2025 at 12:39 AM
Craft book reading? ✅
Social media content prepped? ✅-ish
Reading for fun? ✅
Daylight savings time ending still kicking my ass? ✅
#SundayFunday
Social media content prepped? ✅-ish
Reading for fun? ✅
Daylight savings time ending still kicking my ass? ✅
#SundayFunday
My regular depression waiting for the seasonal depression to show up...
November 8, 2025 at 11:45 PM
My regular depression waiting for the seasonal depression to show up...
Got a bunch of admin work to do today, but hoping to get in some writing this afternoon/evening.
What are your Saturday plans?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #QueerAuthor 🌈✒️
What are your Saturday plans?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #QueerAuthor 🌈✒️
November 8, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Got a bunch of admin work to do today, but hoping to get in some writing this afternoon/evening.
What are your Saturday plans?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #QueerAuthor 🌈✒️
What are your Saturday plans?
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity #QueerAuthor 🌈✒️
Give myself the same permission I give other authors: You can change the outline to fit the new direction your characters want to go in.
Q4: What can you do in the next three days to make the next week of #FirstDraftFall easier for yourself? #WeeknightWriters
November 7, 2025 at 1:22 AM
Give myself the same permission I give other authors: You can change the outline to fit the new direction your characters want to go in.
I mostly outline-ish to the next major scene. What happens between then and that scene is anyone's guess. Though I do have a fairly tight outline for a novella-in-progress, I still have to drag out every word. It's making it harder to write than I expected.
Brutally accurate...chapter that refuses to write is the worst. Taking notes is a genius workaround. Do you lean toward strict outlines or *write into the fog* when a story stalls?
November 5, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I mostly outline-ish to the next major scene. What happens between then and that scene is anyone's guess. Though I do have a fairly tight outline for a novella-in-progress, I still have to drag out every word. It's making it harder to write than I expected.
My newsletter The Editor–Author Perspective is back next Tuesday. One monthly issue especially for queer romance & detective/thriller authors.
Quick craft moves you can use in <20 mins.
Want it? Subscribe here: shorturl.at/worAQ
#QueerRomance #ThrillerAuthor #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
Quick craft moves you can use in <20 mins.
Want it? Subscribe here: shorturl.at/worAQ
#QueerRomance #ThrillerAuthor #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
October 30, 2025 at 3:56 PM
My newsletter The Editor–Author Perspective is back next Tuesday. One monthly issue especially for queer romance & detective/thriller authors.
Quick craft moves you can use in <20 mins.
Want it? Subscribe here: shorturl.at/worAQ
#QueerRomance #ThrillerAuthor #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
Quick craft moves you can use in <20 mins.
Want it? Subscribe here: shorturl.at/worAQ
#QueerRomance #ThrillerAuthor #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
Lies I Tell Myself, Chapter 40 Footnotes
1: This is the only time the novel won't write itself.
2: I'll take notes on how to make all future novels write themselves.
#WriterProblems #SelfEditing #AmWriting
1: This is the only time the novel won't write itself.
2: I'll take notes on how to make all future novels write themselves.
#WriterProblems #SelfEditing #AmWriting
Lies I Tell Myself, Chapter 40:
"My novel will write itself, right?"
#WritingCommunity #amwriting #amediting #writerslife
"My novel will write itself, right?"
#WritingCommunity #amwriting #amediting #writerslife
October 28, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Lies I Tell Myself, Chapter 40 Footnotes
1: This is the only time the novel won't write itself.
2: I'll take notes on how to make all future novels write themselves.
#WriterProblems #SelfEditing #AmWriting
1: This is the only time the novel won't write itself.
2: I'll take notes on how to make all future novels write themselves.
#WriterProblems #SelfEditing #AmWriting
Structure is story's spine. Without it, even great ideas collapse. Thus, every chapter should move the plot forward.
#WritingCraft #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
#WritingCraft #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
October 25, 2025 at 3:46 PM
Structure is story's spine. Without it, even great ideas collapse. Thus, every chapter should move the plot forward.
#WritingCraft #WritingCommunity #AmWriting
#WritingCraft #WritingCommunity #AmWriting