Novelists are the audience for On Editing by Helen Corner-Bryant and Kathryn Price. I am not a novelist; however, the writing style I am using to write the biography of Topsy the elephant, narrative nonfiction, is a way to write a true story that uses the techniques of fiction. Even though I am not the intended audience, I found this book to be one of the more helpful books I have read on writing, editing, and getting published.

The book has two sections: ‘Editing your novel’ and ‘Submitting your novel’. The first is the larger of the two. It is rich with insightful and practical advice. While the second is helpful, it is familiar territory to other books about writing I have read. The first section more than justifies reading this book.