Kristen Tate
The Blue Garret
Kristen Tate has been a freelance editor for over a decade, helping authors transform their work from rough draft to finished book. She is the author of Novel Study: Decoding the Secrets and Structures of Contemporary Fiction.
Kristen Tate is the editor behind The Blue Garret. Over the past decade, she has helped dozens of authors write books that win awards, land agents, and delight readers. She has a PhD in English from Columbia University, with a focus on the nineteenth-century British novel and publishing history. Her Novel Study blog and book series help fiction writers understand what makes stories work—and how to apply those insights to their own drafts. Kristen lives in San Francisco with her family. When she's not immersed in words, you’ll likely find her at a live music show, camping in the woods, or playing Bananagrams in a dive bar.
BookCAMP Presentor
Revision Strategies: How to Read Your Manuscript Like an Editor
4/24, 5:15PM
Most authors know revision is essential—but knowing what to revise and how to approach it systematically can feel overwhelming. This session provides a practical three-level framework for evaluating and revising your manuscript: story structure, scene construction, and sentence craft. You'll learn concrete tools like the story spreadsheet for diagnosing structural issues, techniques for "folding" interiority into scenes to deepen character development, and strategies for crafting cumulative sentences that add texture and sophistication to your prose. Whether you're revising your second novel or your tenth, you'll leave with actionable methods for reading your manuscript with an editor's critical eye—and the confidence to revise strategically rather than randomly.