Collaborative Creations by Shirley Crowder

From time-to-time someone will comment on how difficult it must be to have to co-write with someone.

Guess what? It isn’t! Including the books with Harriet, I have collaborated with two other people on projects, and have worked well with them.

The most important thing in co-writing, after both of you being Christ-followers, is to share very similar theological beliefs and understanding. If these are too dissimilar, the final manuscript will be choppy and inconsistent in presentation of biblical truth throughout the book.

Practically speaking, there are a few things that help make the co-writing process work well.

• Pray for each other.
• Agree in advance who will write what portions.
• Leave your pride behind.
• Have the person with the most expertise in Word compile, make changes in, and maintain the combined document.
• Be sure to turn on “tracking” so it is easy to see what edits the other person made.
• Defend/explain why you think something you wrote should not be changed.
• Explain why you think something the other person wrote should be changed.
• Flexibility—be prepared for rewrites, edits, and delays.

As you work together, you read and edit each other’s work. The changes you each make in the other person’s writing will help give the book a more consistent writing style and presentation.

Finally, while there are portions of this process that can be tedious, like galley corrections, it is fun to work with another person. And, when you get stuck, they can help make suggestions that jump start your thought processes and make completing the piece easier.

Have fun and don't forget to laugh at yourself!

About the Author

Shirley Crowder is a biblical counselor and co-host of "Think on These Things," a Birmingham, Alabama, radio/TV program for women. She is commissioned by and serves on the national Advisory Team for, The Addiction Connection, and is the author of STUDY GUIDE ON PRAYER. Later this year, she'll be releasing a collection of devotions on prayer that she has co-authored with Harriet E. Michael. Learn more about Shirley at her Write Integrity Author Page.