Me Need an Editor? Yes you do!

The idea that editing is not needed is probably the most dangerous idea an author can have. The lack of editing can make your precious work look amateur.

All writers have some insecurity about their work, I know I do. Although I don’t know any famous writers personally, I imagine they feel the same. Each new book or article represents putting yourself out there for people to read and judge—either they like it or they don’t. Reviews from people who don’t like what we’ve written sting. These reviews are the ones to listen to when trying to improve your writing, especially if a number of the reviews say the same thing. But remember, not everyone will like what you write and it doesn’t mean what you have written is bad, it just doesn’t appeal to them. That’s important.

As a former editor for a nursing journal who worked with new writers—and nurses are not writers generally speaking—I know that an editor can help reduce the number of people that find fault with or don’t like what you write. As a published author I can tell you that without my editor, my stories would not be nearly as good. Her insights were invaluable.

I read recently that two authors I admire, Ian Rankin and Elizabeth George, had to go through many edits until their latest books were ready for publication. If these successful authors, who have written for a very long time, need edits, then the rest of us do too.

Editing is a job that requires tact and the ability to guide an author and help him or her make their writing better. Editors are worth their weight in gold if they are unafraid to call out weak spots in your manuscript and show you where you have gotten off in the weeds. They alert you to inconsistencies, poor plot development, and material that really doesn’t do much to move your manuscript along. They urge you to make it better and then wait for you to do that. An editor should not do the work for you. 

How do you find a good one? Ask several to do an initial review of a few chapters (they may have a limit on how much they will review) and provide you with an example of how they edit. Then compare the reviews to determine which one was the most insightful. Choose the one who found the most issues and said something about it.

Know whether you need a regular edit or a developmental edit. The difference being that a regular edit is less intensive and doesn't look for major issues. A developmental edit looks more closely at plot, timelines, inconsistencies, and whether the story makes sense. And an editor doing a developmental edit looks at what parts may be superfluous and would make the story better by being deleted. He or she should tell you what parts of the story are believable and which are not. Newer writers need developmental edits and sometimes experienced authors do too.

If you spend money on anything, I believe a good editor is money well spent.