December 10, 2013
A writing colleague through my professional network of independent publishers (the PC term for self-publisher) asked if I would do a sample edit of one chapter so she could compare it to the work of other editors she was considering hiring. I have responded to such requests before, and I have never been hired. It’s not that I’m not a great editor (my clients write the most beautiful things about working with me in their acknowledgements and on yelp and my website). Rather it’s that a sample chapter gives no opportunity to interact with the writer about ways to approach her project that she may not have considered.
Most projects submitted to me do not need copyediting (punctuation, grammar, and a modicum of word tweaking), but are a first or second draft that may not have found the strongest voice, or start in the right place in the story that’s being told – the place that will grab the reader – or the balance of description, plot, character development, and forcefulness and distinctness of each character.
If I simply copyedit – as most writers expect at that stage – I am cheating the writer of a fair picture of what is needed. And I often can’t see what’s needed from a single chapter. If it’s an opening chapter, I want to hook the reader and make a promise of where the story will take him. But from one chapter I have no way to know what the whole piece intends to promise. That leaves me in a position to have to guess, which could lead me to propose changes inappropriate to the totality.
That makes it difficult for a writer to evaluate my work – especially since much of my work lies within the relationship with my client or helping educe what may not yet be within their capacity.
In fact, every piece of editing is its own challenge because of the attitude, finances, capacity, and vision of the writer (as well as need to control). For example, I recently worked on a personal journey through genetic breast cancer. The author wanted my hardcopy mark up, so she could input the changes herself, which would give her the opportunity to weigh whether she agreed with my suggestions, as well as help her view her writing from an editor’s perspective. She was a decent writer but wasn’t sure about the balance of personal journey and professional information.
This is what I wrote to my colleague:
What I propose is that I take a look and give you my impression of what I see needs attention – structure, writing style, voice, copyediting – and an estimate. My standard procedure is to edit one chapter (usually the first – which is often the most challenging for a writer) and send it back for feedback. Then I can work with my client to give her exactly what she wants (or, rather, will want after she understands my perspective). I’m willing to arm wrestle on behalf of my opinions, but then acquiesce so that my client has her own vision sustained. It’s rare that we don’t come to alignment. When we can’t, I gladly give up the project – something I’ve only had to do once, and that was because the client turned the writing over to me and my heart couldn’t align with the content or characters (a CIA spy novel that the author hadn’t adequately researched).
I’m happy to talk with you – answering questions, assuaging fears, building a working relationship – whatever will help you decide if I am the best editor for your needs.
The truth is that the joy of my work lies in two places – finding the most brilliant way of presenting and expressing the content, and in the intimacy that grows from the working relationship with writers.
Until next time, delight in the process.