This week we have author Mickey J Corrigan. She talks about Dealing with Editors. She also has a new book out, The Physics of Grief.
Originally from Boston, Mickey J. Corrigan writes tropical noir with a dark humor. Novels include Project XX about a school shooting (Salt Publishing, UK, 2017) and What I Did for Love, a spoof of Lolita (Bloodhound Books, UK, 2019).
Social media links:
http://mickeyjcorrigan.tumblr.com/
https://www.goodreads.com/Mickey_J_Corrigan
How to Deal with Editors
Disclaimer: I'm an author, but I also work
as a professional editor. So I'm on both sides of this question. Even though I
think my clients should not be afraid of what I might say about their
manuscripts, I understand how concerned they are when they hand over their work
for editorial input. After all, I can feel the butterflies flitting about in my
own belly whenever I submit manuscripts to publishers for editing. So I get it.
However, I love editing and being edited.
It's rewarding to be able to help someone improve their drafts, and to see my
own work reshaped so that it reads better. This is why I quiet my butterflies and
hand over the draft. I just suck it up. Because I know the truth is: editors
rock.
Well, most of them. I have worked with a
few editors who wanted to rewrite my text in their own voice. This doesn't
work. Once or twice a bumbling editor screwed up my manuscript. But those experiences
have been rare. Most of the editors I've worked with were eagle-eyed and
generous. They caught my errors and gave me gentle structural suggestions that
really improved my drafts. Some became my friends.
We all need an editor prior to
publication. But these days, we are fortunate when a publisher assigns an
editor to help prepare the manuscript. Some presses these days are more like
Amazon or a digital printing press and will provide you with zero editing. They
take your manuscript and convert it for digital print, then it's print on
demand from there. In such cases, you will need to hire an editor. In fact, you
really must. This is an added expense, but without an editor's keen eyes, your
manuscript will have errors. Guaranteed. The book will not present well and it
will appear unpolished. Unprofessional.
Some bestselling authors work with editors
before they hand over a manuscript to
their publisher; then they work with their publisher's editors as well. They
know from experience that you can't have too many eyes on the page.
The best publishers use the following
format in editing a manuscript: they assign an editor to take you through the
process, and with this skilled professional you work together to prepare the
final draft; the manuscript is passed to a copy editor who will format the book
and correct errors, then you read over the draft; the manuscript then goes to a
line editor who looks for typos, then you read over the draft; a proofreader
goes over the final final draft and
you read it one more time. Along the way, you can reject the editors' changes.
It's your book so you always have that option. You don't have to abide by
everything your editors suggest.
As uncomfortable as it might feel, it is
essential for authors to work with editors. They want what you want: a book
without errors that readers can enjoy. So don't be scared of your editor. Keep
in mind their changes are suggestions. You are still in the driver's seat, but
they are right there next to you on the long journey to a published book.
Latest book from Mickey J Corrigan
When Seymour Allan loses his girlfriend, his depression is as dark as a South Florida thunderstorm. He hides out in a retirement community, drinks too much, and hangs with a feral cat. But when he meets the mysterious Raymond C. Dasher, Seymour's life changes as he embarks on a new career: professional griever.
Seymour's depression lifts when he spends time at the wakes and funerals of some very unpopular people. He cares for a dying criminal who loves T.S. Eliot and refuses to pass on, and he attends some unique burials that may or may not be legal. He also meets Yvonne, a sexy redhead dealing with the loss of her mobster boyfriend. Out in the Everglades, he has to face down a group of armed mourners and an alligator in attack mode.
Nothing like sex and danger, guns and gators, to make a man remember how good it feels to be alive.
The Physics of Grief is a unique, quirky crime novel presenting the upside of funerals and a hopeful look at second chances—and at death.
It's always good to get other eyes on the pages before they go out for mass consumption. It's so easy to miss things when the writer gets too close to their work.
ReplyDeleteSo true. I use a proofreader before I submit to my publishers. He's got eagle eyes!
DeleteI came to thank you for visiting Katie Isabella's page. But I stayed to read the blog. As someone who always notices simple and sometimes more complex errors in books I buy, you have made me aware of how that can happen.
ReplyDeleteI had NO idea ,but I am not surprised at all that Amazon et al, don't provide any form of editing. When you come across mis-spellings as you read along, and you do so more than once in the book, it focuses your attention on those errors and others you come across as well; not to book itself.
I know what you mean. It's sad to see how a platform which allows writers to upload their unedited manuscripts has changed the quality of the books we read. Sometimes new writers tell me their small publisher is not providing any editing. I tell them to withdraw from such a contract. That's uploading, not publishing. Readers pay for books, and when they spend money they deserve to see books that have been carefully edited. It's a courtesy writers provide to our readers, and we expect as readers.
DeleteThanks for your thoughtful comments.
I agree about having many eyes looking over a manuscript. I use my own editor before I hand it over to the publisher's editor, that way it's in decent shape before the publisher takes a look at it.
ReplyDeleteGreat choice! This must help boost your confidence in your manuscripts when you hand them over to your publisher.
DeleteI agree with all your commenters when looking at any manuscript. I know myself with very short posts that I write on my blog, I can read over it several times and always find something that needs to be corrected. Thank you for a very interesting post.
ReplyDeleteThe brain knows what should be there and may trick us by filling in the proper words. I've caught typos later that seem egregious, yet I had not seen them in multiple readings. I love my editors for this, they save me from myself.
DeleteI'm glad to know that *anyone* still employs editors. ~rolls eyes~ Happy Writing and Editing!
ReplyDeleteI know, right? You can tell as soon as you start reading whether a book has been edited or just published as is. There should be some kind of standards, shouldn't there?
DeleteWe definitely need to have someone look over our work with a critical eye before it gets published. We just can't see all our own errors, from silly typos to massive plot holes, but readers will.
ReplyDeleteYes, you are so right. I wish new writers understood this. So many inexperienced writers are afraid of editors, scared they will change the story or the voice. But editors are on our side, they're there to improve us, make us look good.
DeleteI love working with editors. It is so exciting when the book becomes cleaner, clearer, and error free (or closer to error free). :) ~Jess
ReplyDeleteFabulous blog
ReplyDelete