This is a new post published on the Fictorians. Check it out there, along with other great posts this month on the business of writing.
As writers, we love to focus on writing, on creating that next great story. It took me a while to realize that typing “The End” is only the completion of the first part of the process. Once we finish that first draft, get the story out to beta readers, compile all the useful feedback, determine edits, and finish subsequent drafts, we finally have a story we feel rocks on all levels and is ready to go.
That’s when we need editors.
Some indie authors try to claim they don’t need an editor, but I’ve never seen any such story turn out well. Not as well as it could have been. Not as well as it should have been. Not well enough to compete in today’s market with well-read readers who can spot an unedited story fast.
A book without an editor is like a theatrical production without dress rehearsal. You’ve got the characters, the dialogue, costumes, and a setting, but the whole has not been polished to where an audience can enjoy it.
Why invest so much time in producing a book only to undermine the finished product?
Usually the reason is one of two things: Time or Money.
Time: with the internet making it so easy to get books available to readers, it is so incredibly tempting to skip the careful edit and just getting it out to readers faster. Why wait when you could be selling copies already? The truth is taking a little more time and polishing the story will result in far better reviews and far more copies sold. I’ve started reading books that skimped on final polishing, and I was universally disappointed and usually threw the book away without finishing.
Money: Editors are not free. Yes, they’re an investment and authors need to find a way to cover that investment. If you don’t believe in your story enough to make that investment, convinced you’ll sell more than enough copies to still profit, then how are your readers going to believe in it?
Then again, with avenues like Kickstarter available, it’s often now possible to raise the money to cover such costs up front instead of having to fork over all the cash yourself. I plan to launch a Kickstarter campaign for one of my stories next year.
How do you find a good editor? There are lots of editors out there, and just like anything else, there are good ones and bad ones. Here’s where networking comes in. Talk with other authors about editors they liked and ones they didn’t. Good editors will provide a listing of stories they’ve edited, and that can provide great insight into whether or not they might be a good fit.
Once you find an editor, you’ve got to get on their schedule. Good editors are sought after and usually their schedules are booked out weeks or even months. Get on the list early, and don’t be late with your work. If you miss your deadline, it may be a while before they can fit you in again. If you see you’re going to be late, notify the editor as soon as possible to make it easier for them to rearrange their schedule with the least amount of disruption.
I worked with our own Joshua Essoe on the manuscript for Set In Stone, a YA Fantasy novel currently in the hands of my agent. I realized I needed to make some significant changes to the manuscript prior to sending it in, so we had to reschedule a couple of times. Joshua was very accommodating, but I tried to warn him far in advance, as soon as I realized I was going to be late.
That brings up another point: make sure your book is really finished prior to hiring an editor. If you’ve just completed your first draft, I’d recommend you take the time to have some beta readers finish it and compile their feedback. It’s likely you’ll need to make some changes. Go through it a couple more times to ensure it’s really where you want it, and that the book you wrote is really the book you thought you were writing. Only then will you be able to maximize the benefit of an editor. If they’re so busy giving you feedback on major structural issues with the work, it’ll be harder for them to help you really polish it. And if you want to go back again to hire them for a second pass, that’s going to cost more since they now have to invest more time in the project.
