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Finding the Right Editor

Within my various writing groups (mainly online), it's not surprising that I encounter a variety of interactions about finding an editor. While some know that I'm an editor too and not just a writer, when I take part in these conversations, it is only to pass on my knowledge and experience about the things that writers should ask when seeking to hire a freelance editor.

The questions below are general. You might not need to ask every question, but getting the answers before you work with an editor will help to go a long way in forging a healthy working relationship with your editor.

In fact, these questions can apply to any freelancer that you might hire to be part of your team, be they a cover designer, book formatter, publicist, and, to a lesser extent, an agent. (Yes, an agent is technically a freelancer too.)

Within this post, when possible, I have also included my answers (as the editor).

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Your Roles in Your Writing Business

No matter how you look at it, if you are heading down the road towards publication, then you are running a writing business. Most of us don't start out thinking of it that way. We just want to write. But with publication comes money, taxes, marketing, and sometimes hiring others.

I have written on this topic before, highlighting how this whole running-a-business thing tends to just creep up on us. But for today's post, instead of focusing on how we are all little business owners, I want to delve into the different hats that we all need to wear.

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Editing Costs & Expectations: A Look at My Editorial Process

It would appear that yet again I have found myself in a situation where a client might have had different expectations regarding the cost of editing. It was actually a disconnect between what I was contracted to do (and my editing process) vs what they thought I should be doing. However, regardless how you look at it, everything comes down to the cost and value of the editor's time.

I see it time and time again. There is this expectation for the editor to do more work than they have time allotted for and to be paid the same amount of money for that "more" work. This results in a devaluing of the editor's time. Believe it or not, this is the Number 1 gripe among editors.

We want to be of value to our clients, but we also have to make a wage that will actually pay the bills. So, many editors will develop practices that assist them to get through the workload faster.

Today, I want to discuss what my editorial process is like—how I do things.

My process is based on over five years of experience of working as a developmental editor. It is about ensuring that I provide the best value for money while at the same time keeping the number of hours required to do the job to a minimum.

Please note that every editor is different, so my process is not necessarily the same process as another editor.

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The Stages of Editing

When I tell people that I'm a freelance editor, it's quite common for people to assume that I spend my days just looking at spelling, punctuation, and grammar. I don't get this reaction from just the general public either. Many writers, especially new writers, also make this assumption. However, editing is so much more.

Editing falls into three main categories:

  • developmental, which encompasses the rewriting process and critiques;
  • copyediting, with the line-edits and, of course, the famous punctuation-and-grammar concept;
  • and proofreading, which occurs after a manuscript is typeset for publication, looking for any errors that were either missed or introduced during the typesetting process.

Each stage is necessary for the production of a publishable book.

The initial drafting of a story is a solitary practice. However, during the different editing phases, it's vital for every writer to seek out those extra sets of eyes to provide objective input. The who and the when will depend entirely on what stage your manuscript is at.

The stages of editing described in this post are the same for both traditional and self-publication. It's just the players that change.

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Writing relies on a reader’s knowledge

If you read through various blogs about writing, there is a common theme: Don't treat your readers like they're idiots. This is 100% true, because your readers will have experiences and knowledge that they bring with them, interpreting your stories with that eye. But are you taking full advantage of that preexisting knowledge?

The acclaimed science fiction writer Ray Bradbury wrote many novels and short stories that were printed in the 1950s and 1960s. His readers had survived World War II, bringing with them the knowledge and experiences they had from during the war, including the colloquial terms. Readers of today can still enjoy his stories, but there will be elements we will miss because the subtext is meaningless without the World War II experience.

Today's readers of 2001: A Space Odyssey laugh at how far off-base the predictions regarding space travel and artificial intelligence were. But it was written in 1968, one year before Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the moon. Had the space program continued at the rate it was back in the late 1960s, not stopping at the moon, then we would likely already have a colony on Mars today, changing some of the meaning of that book and movie.

While we are hopefully crafting our stories in such a way that they are timeless, there will always be a partial reliance on preexisting knowledge to understand some subtext. It's time to look at how much hidden subtext is buried within your own writing based on the experiences and preexisting knowledge of your current readers.

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