Why writers don’t work with book editors

Kia ora,

Why have my chickens decided that the best place to lay their eggs is under a soggy, droopy fern and not inside the hen house where the nest boxes are filled with fresh, dry saw dust? They are delightful beasties but I do question their decisions sometimes.

But onto the topic at hand: A lot of my blog posts and newsletters talk about why writers should work with an editor. But I’m currently working on a post about why writers don’t work with an editor. I’ve got a few reasons from writers I’ve already spoken to, but how about you? What are the reasons you wouldn’t work with an editor? Reply and let me know. I can give you my take, and I can include your reason in the blog post.

A client of mine told me they had been reluctant to work with an editor because they didn’t know what was involved. They didn’t really get what editing is, what it looks like, or what it would do for their story, and she was particularly worried about losing her writing voice in the editing process.

Fair point. 

The results of editing aren’t as obvious as, say, painting a house. When you call a painter in, you can see their progress. They scrape off the old paint, sand back the weatherboards, putty any holes, lay down a primer coat, then paint the final colour, and you have a fresh, glorious house to look at.

Editing is behind the scenes. My work goes on in the background in a couple of ways. You can’t see the progress in the same way as when your house is getting painted. You send me your manuscript, I work away for a few weeks, then you receive the edit back in your inbox. What’s going on in the meantime? What’s Deborah doing to my story? What will I get back? Does she even think it’s any good? The thoughts can swirl around.

The other way editing work is background work is that readers don’t see the process and progress of all your hard work, let alone mine. They just see the final, polished product. (Except when they spot the few typos that have managed to sneak their way past many rounds of revisions and edits. Trust me: that sucks.)

That client who had been reluctant to work with an editor? Afterwards she said, “a skilled editor will understand your voice and suggest revisions around it, amplifying it in the process.”

Phew! That’s exactly what I want to hear. 

But her initial worries were valid, so next week I’m going to show you a more behind-the-scenes look at what I do and how I do it. You’ll hopefully understand more about what editing is and how it works.

Cheers!

Deborah

PS. What are your reasons for not working with an editor? I’m all ears, so reply and let me know.

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📚 What I’m reading

Thirty Below by Cassidy Randall. I’m getting to the heart-in-mouth moments of this account. 😬😬

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📅 Availability

Currently booking manuscripts from early November. 

If you’re thinking of getting your manuscript published early next year, reply to this email and we can set up a call.

I can give you a free sample edit, and we can jump on a video call to chat about the editing process too.

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✍️ Ways to work with me

Apply for a free sample edit​

Get your manuscript evaluation

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