Choosing an Editor
By Barry Knister | July 29, 2024 |
In Kathryn Craft’s WU post for May 9 (“To Diagnose or to Characterize?”), David Corbett makes the following comment:
“Having been in reading/writing groups early in my career, and having counseled students who’ve received curious feedback from other group members, I’ve come to realize that you have to be able to discern valid criticism from that which is something other than valid.”
These words registered with me. In part because of problems I met up with in a writers’ group, I have become a strong advocate for writers submitting their work to professional editors. It costs money, but in my view it’s money well spent. This assumes the writer takes pains to learn all she can before choosing an editor. But an editor and writer form a two-member writers’ group, so knowing how to “discern valid criticism” is no less important.
The practice for some who write WU posts is to wait to the end to summarize main points. But what comes first has the best chance of sticking with the reader, so up front, here are the TAKEAWAYS from today’s post on how to choose an editor.
1. Check the editor’s own writing. Whether it’s a marketing pitch or a response to your questions, make sure your would-be editor’s grammar, syntax and punctuation are as close to perfect as possible.
2. Ask for a sample edit. Editors usually offer to do a sample edit of a few pages to show possible clients how they work. (I would reject any editor who didn’t offer such a test sample.) Are the editor’s comments of the sample clear and useful?
3. Tap the spine. How-to books have become their own genre, and some editors write them. Two such excellent books that I’ve read were written by Writer Unboxed regulars Dave King and Tiffany Yates Martin. In both instances, the writing in their own books made the case for why I should do business with them. After all, editors are trying to sell themselves. They want you to hire them to edit your words. If their own words don’t measure up, I would forget whatever recommendation someone may have given to you, and move on.
4. Pay special attention to the choice of words editors use. Do they rely on commonplace buzzwords and cliches? Is there anything fresh or novel in what they themselves have written? For me, doing this is like using the “Look Inside” feature at Amazon. When I see a book description that sounds interesting, I read the opening pages. If they lack freshness or an intriguing voice, I don’t care what the writer’s reputation may be, whether the book has a zillion five-star reviews or made the NYT bestseller list. Same with editors. The writing has to sell me, not a list, or a third-party opinion.
5. Be sure you’re clear on the differences between copy editing, line editing, and developmental editing. You need to know them to fully understand the contract before you sign it.
6. Understand the beginning, middle and end—of your agreement. Will your arrangement with the editor also include follow-up contact after your manuscript has been edited? If so, will that involve additional charges? My arrangement with one editor included an informal understanding that we would meet in person for Happy Hour. We didn’t talk shop, but I think our actual contact led her to read a rewritten draft with fresh eyes. More likely are Zoom meetings, but nothing says you can’t Zoom and have Happy Hour at the same time.
7. Gather opinions from others who worked with the editor. Ask how the editor went about identifying positive aspects in a manuscript, as well as shortcomings. Were the comments specific to the writer’s work, or were they generic, the kind of comments that might apply to almost any story of the same kind? Both sides of the equation are important. You are obviously paying to learn what needs fixing in your manuscript, but you also need to know whether an editor’s ability to spot strengths fits with your own opinion of your work.
8. Remember that you are the final arbiter. Trust the facts you gather about an editor, as well as your intuition. Does the editor come across as a professional you want to work with?
What do you know? The take-aways are the complete post.
How about you? If you’ve worked with an editor, tell us about your experience. If you haven’t worked with one, and money isn’t the issue, what are your reasons? Some writers think their writers’ group accomplishes the same feedback function. Is this true for you?
After a career in college teaching, Barry Knister returned to fiction writing. For several years, he served as secretary for Detroit Working Writers, and for two years he directed the Cranbrook Summer Writers Conference. He is the author of the Brenda Contay mystery/suspense series. Just Bill , a short novel about dogs and their owners living on a golf course in Naples, Florida will soon be joined by another novel set in the same fictional golf community. Now and then, Barry also gives in to a whimsical impulse, and writes short posts for several Medium publications. He and his wife Barbara live in Pleasant Ridge, a suburb just north of Detroit. Barry looks forward to hearing from you, either through Facebook , his website , or bwknister@sbcglobal.net . Insult comedians are welcome.
Naturally I love this, and not just because you kindly shouted out my book. :) I think choosing an editor is one of an author’s most important decisions. It’s a very intimate relationship, and as you point out, Barry, you want to make sure they not only have qualifications and experience relative to your particular story, but that they “get” you, get your voice, that your styles jell. (I agree that a sample edit is crucial for this too. You wouldn’t buy a car or a mattress without trying it out–why would we do less with a major expenditure that’s so important to us and for our work?)
I have a free downloadable guide on my website, “Get It Edited”–an extensive guide for how to find, vet, and work with reputable, experienced editors who are the right fit for you. It’s on the Editing Toolbox page of my site with other free tools for authors: https://foxprinteditorial.com/editing-toolbox/
Finding the right editor may take some time, but it’s SO worth it! A good edit can do so much for your writing –but an unskillful one can do more damage than almost anything else. Thanks for posting these solid tips!
Thank you, Tiffany, for today’s comment, and for your expertise. As you say in an email, “Edits aren’t edicts–they’re reflections of what I see on the page, and suggestions for ways you might strengthen what you have. Take what resonates and disregard what doesn’t.” I would only add that it’s important to let an editor’s suggestions steep a while before disregarding or accepting them.
Hey Barry — I’ll tell you at the front end of my comment, to increase the chance that it’ll stick with you, that I appreciate this succinct and wise advice today as well as your ongoing presence here in the comment section. You have a knack for pointing to issues that benefit from further explanation or exploration. Thank you.
Regarding editors, I finally found my way to understanding an important point about being developmentally edited: Editors are guides not repairers. We should expect to be counseled rather than told. Sounds simple enough, and although I thought I knew it beforehand, it still took experience to fully grasp it.
Hello Vaughn. Kind words, followed by wise ones. As you say, it sounds simple enough to weigh and choose what an editor has to say–but it’s not. I think the reason has to do with the editor’s position of authority. She needs to be tactful in a way that frees the writer to make choices, rather than take orders.
I’m a developmental editor and work on manuscripts at all stages, including those of some names you might know. I would never do a “sample” edit. My work is highly customized to each writer, and I adjust every developmental undertaking to the specific needs of the work at hand after interviewing the writer (and sometimes, their agents). Showing pages I’ve edited for someone else simply does not apply to a pending engagement. I would much prefer offering recommendations from clients.
I couldn’t agree more, Stephanie, that each edit is specific to each author and manuscript. I won’t speak for Barry, but when I advocate for sample edits what I mean is the editor doing a sample on your actual manuscript. This doesn’t have to be long, but to me it’s the only way for an author to know if the editor is a good fit.
Hello Stephanie. Perhaps I failed to make myself clear. By sample edit, I’m talking about an editor providing an edit of some pages submitted to her by a potential client. As Tiffany Yates Martin says above, “You wouldn’t buy a car or a mattress without trying it out–why would we do less with a major expenditure that’s so important to us and for our work?” Sharing edits done for someone else would be unethical, and maybe even illegal.
Yes, I misunderstood, Barry and agree about the ethics. I wouldn’t do sample pages in any case, I’ll stick with my “recommendation” recommendation. Editing is not like a car or a mattress, not at all. On board and thanks for all the other numbers on the list.
To clarify, I’m referring to full developmental edits as far as asking for a sample. Beyond just gauging the fit on each side with such a personal, individual project, it also allows an editor to offer a rate based on what they’re seeing in the actual manuscript as far as how much editing may be necessary, for those who have variable rates, like me.
I do agree that with other types of editing–overviews, copyediting, proofing–the editor’s experience and testimonials should be sufficient.
But every editor–and author!–works differently, and I’m a big fan of every author finding what (and who) works for them.
Excellent, Barry.
Like you, I rely on trained, independent voices for feedback AKA professional editors. (My view is I want the best feedback BEFORE a book comes out than later from readers.)
No matter the talent of the author, she would do well to hear feedback from an editor, if for no other reason than to confirm her writing in on the mark. Some great authors lose their way by thinking their skills are fully established beyond reproach.
I have learned a great deal from the process, starting with our own David Corbett who brought my understanding of story in from its endless circling of the planet Jupiter.
Each editor has her strengths and David passed me to two others he appreciated. Writing and feedback can be elements of a generous world. Editors LOVE the written word, t least as much as authors. So in my case the learning goes on. The back and forth is now my favorite part of the process after the story tumbles out.
Hi Tom. Like you, I’m happy to hear comments from readers, but I want useful insights before publication, not after. Lots of us know about Maxwell Perkins, the legendary Scribner’s editor who worked on manuscripts for Thomas Wolfe, Hemingway and Fitzgerald. I often wonder about success stories in our own era. I’d love to see a few of those in draft before editors weighed in. I think it would be very revealing.
Excellent article and I agree completely. I use Barry’s guidelines when I hire an editor, except for asking for a sample edit. When an editor has deep and long experience, and a record of client successes, I believe they will serve me well. As a book editor of 35 years, I see my job, most of the time, as highly instructional, and giving honest but supportive criticism. Added to the list of services offered to writers should be questions about the evaluation provided after editing (for developmental work). My own evaluations are typically a custom course in craft for beginning and apprentice-level writers, and in-depth but shorter instruction for professional authors. One more thing I see as essential in skills every editor should have is wording feedback in as positive terms as possible. Our job is not to kill the writer in the process of giving critical feedback.
Hello Elizabeth. As a book editor for 35 years, I’m sure your own long and deep experience positions you to know reputations, as well as how to evaluate others in the business. I still think a sample edit is a sensible ask for less worldly-wise writers. In any case, as you say at the end of your comment, the tenor and tone of editorial feedback needs to be perceived as positive, not critical.
I am often asked to make recommendations of independent editors, and of course I do.
That said, while tailored advice on a particular project is good, what often is needed fundamentally is craft tools and techniques. For example, a manuscript can read “slow” but use of micro-tension, properly understood, can make non-active passages impossible to skim. (And to be fair, some manuscripts simply don’t move along as they could.)
To put it differently, a list of “fixes” can result in a manuscript with band aids all over it, but which still has the same fundamental ailments. Thus, I’d say that help is good and learning can be just as important.
Hello Don. Certainly, your concept of micro-tension can serve to “pick up the pace.” I think, though, that a preoccupation with pace can become an end in itself. Ask me, if a writer succeeds in finding and engaging those readers who respond to her/his voice and tone, those readers won’t begin fidgeting at the first leisurely section. Or so I hope.
Solid stuff, Barry. I was an editor in another lifetime, and thus I thought I could edit the first couple of books I self-published. You will likely (not) be surprised in how many ways there are to spell the word “wrong!” Those things needed some emergency room stitching. I’ve had capable editors, developmental and line, for my other works, and they can walk without a cane. Thanks!
Hi Tom. My version of “wrong!” writ large is not worth repeating, but I will say this: If you taught English to college freshmen and sophomores for many years, that can lead you to make very wrong assumptions about your ability to proofread something you’ve looked at a hundred times. If you get my drift.
Your recommendations are dead on, especially the suggestion to read some the editor’s writing prior to signing the contract. It would have given me a better picture of her style before I received her comments on the manuscript.
Having a professional editor redline my manuscript has been invaluable It’s not just the fixes to this manuscript that makes it worthwhile’ it’s also been the lessons I can take to the next. The members of my writing group have helped me along for years. I’m grateful for all they have done but our critique group isn’t a substitute for having a professional go through the story looking for weak areas.
Hello Bill. Thanks for your comment.
“Having a professional editor redline my manuscript has been invaluable It’s not just the fixes to this manuscript that makes it worthwhile’ it’s also been the lessons I can take to the next.”
You are making an important point here, especially for those who balk at the cost of hiring a freelance editor. What the writer learns “goes on giving.” The report and editorial comments on the manuscript are a resource to turn to with later projects.
Hi Barry,
Thank you for this.. I’m not published; I’m a wannabe. Before I invested in an editor, I wanted a professional opinion that what I had written was worth an investment of more time, effort, and especially $$$. So I researched editors in my genre ( mystery/detective story) and explained that. She responded that she’d be candid, and I sent a sample. What I got back was a critique of one item that I’d had misgivings about, two items I would never have thought about, and her opinion that it was strong work and why. I engaged her. It was a great experience, and I’m optimistic about the result of the additional investment of time, effort, and $$$. Hope that helps someone.
Hello Bob. Yours is the best kind of personal experience to encourage others. You “did your homework” first before choosing an editor, and that seems to have paid off for you. Best of luck.
Hello Bob. Yours is the best kind of personal experience for younger or unpublished writers to hear. You did your homework before choosing an editor, and that seems to have paid off for you. Good luck with your work.