Writer self-care ,
Five Ways Jericho Writers Helped Me Get Published
By Dr Venetia Constantine
I became a Jericho member back in 2018 and my debut novel THE LAST STARBORN SEER publishes with Head of Zeus/Bloomsbury this week. One of the things I love most about Jericho is that it offers such a wide range of resources, tailored to every stage of the writing journey.
Here’s my rundown of the ways Jericho Writers helped me at different stages in my journey to publication and additional resources to help you on your writing path too.
1: Planning Stage
While I was plotting and outlining the manuscript that would eventually become my debut novel, I wanted to absorb as much information about writing craft as I could. Jericho has a huge digital library of articles and videos, which I fully immersed myself in it. Much of this material is available for free. I remember three masterclass videos being especially helpful. They addressed ‘Show don’t Tell’, ‘Psychic Distance’ and ‘Voice’ – concepts I’d found harder to grasp from craft books alone, and ones that – once properly understood – really levelled up my writing.
Top resources if you’re in the planning stage:
- Free resource: From Spark to Story with Becca Day
- Free resource: How To Plan A Novel: A Step By Step Guide
- Premium Member resource: Building your book with Becca Day
- Premium Member resource: 5 Things You Need to Nail Your First Draft
- Take it to the next level: Novel Writing Course: Write a novel in 8 months
2: Drafting Stage
Once I’d completed a full draft and had taken the manuscript as far as I could on my own, I was eager to get some expert feedback on it. I signed up for a manuscript assessment with Jericho, which was enormously helpful. It focused on both the positive elements of the manuscript, and those that needed further thought. It was a good introduction to constructive criticism, something writers have to navigate at all stages of their careers. Above all, it helped me hone my instincts about how to judge when editorial feedback is helpful. Oftentimes, the reader will correctly identify an issue with a piece of writing but not necessarily suggest the correct fix. Judging when to accept an editorial note – and when to challenge it – is a valuable skill all writers need to develop. The manuscript assessment with Jericho functioned as an excellent launchpad for me to then embark of self-edits. I had a clear plan in place for the areas I wanted to work on and refine.
Top resources if you’re in the drafting stage:
- Free resource: 5 Steps to Turn Editorial Feedback into Action
- Premium Member resource: The Different Types of Editing with Margaret Kirk
- Premium Member resource: Take Your Novel From Good to Great video course
- Take it to the next level: Manuscript Assessment
3: Editing Stage
After I’d completed my initial self-edits and had a fairly clean manuscript, I decided to enrol on the Jericho Self-Edit Your Novel course, led by Debi Alper. I’d heard excellent reviews and was looking to elevate my editing skills. I loved the writing community I established with my course cohort and I learnt so much from reading and critiquing their work. The course was well organised and full of valuable content. What I took away from the course, was a renewed sense of confidence in my writing and my manuscript. This encouraged me to take the plunge and embark on my querying adventure.
Want to read the rest of this article? Log in or join our free community – you’ll get the rest of our top tips, plus a truck-load of other resources. Whoever said you don’t get anything in this life for free?
Want to sharpen your writing skills?
Join our free community for instant access to:
By Dr Venetia Constantine
About the author
Dr Venetia Constantine is an Anglo-Italian-Bermudian writer and alumni of the Self-Edit Your Novel course. She read English at King’s College Cambridge and holds a PhD in Art History from the Courtauld Institute. She paused a much-cherished career in the art world to pursue her dreams of becoming an author, swapping galleries for an enchanted windmill, where she now writes full-time. Her debut book The Last Starborn Seer releases this week from Head of Zeus/Bloomsbury and is the first instalment in a ‘mesmerising’ epic romantic fantasy series. Sequels will follow in 2027 and 2028.