Do You Really Need an Editor for Your Novel or Non-Fiction Book?

You’ve probably read or heard that you should have your manuscript edited. Do you agree or disagree with that statement?

I’ll get to the editing part in a moment. There’s something else to cover first. Something you really need to know, especially if you’re a novice author. You see, it’s the best of times and the worst of times for authors, especially first-timers. The worst is that the traditional publishing industry has been topsy-turvy for a while, and it’s going to be that way until the dust settles, however long that may take and whatever form it takes. It’s the best of times because self-publishing is available for anyone, and, agents and publishers are now reconsidering their opinion about authors who’ve self-published and are selling. The thing you have to ask yourself is which path is the one for you. Or is it both?

There are writers who are adamant about being traditionally published. These are the hearty souls who will wait the two or more years it usually takes to land an agent then a publisher, and to get into print. If they’re really hearty, during this process they start their next book. There are writers who want to get their book out as soon as possible, and maybe they don’t want to travel the trail of traditional publishing, for a variety of reasons, timing and lower percentage of royalties, for example. There are writers who by choice are both traditionally and indie published.

What does this have to do with the question about needing an editor? A lot. If you intend to go traditional, you have to erase the antiquated notion that you send your manuscript, errors and all, to a literary agent who lands a publisher for you, or to a publisher that doesn’t require an agent, and they’ll fix everything for you, excluding theme or plot and character development issues, if there are any, which they’ll expect you to address. An agent expects quality work to be submitted for consideration, for him or her to agree to represent you. A smaller publisher may agree to take you on without an agent, but may or will charge you for editing. A large publishing house expects to do some tweaking, but nothing extensive.

If indie publishing is your chosen route to Authordom, you need to know there’s something of a stigma attached to that, though frequently from writers still trying to get traditionally published. One comment often made about indie books is that the quality is poor; that the author should have worked with an editor. A surprising number of indie authors publish without ever having an editor or proofreader so much as look at their manuscript. Readers will comment if a book is riddled with typos or if a novel’s characters and or plot are not compelling.

So, you need an editor if you intend to go indie and want good or excellent reviews that lead to more sales and build your reader fan base. You need an editor if you intend to submit your manuscript to an agent or smaller publisher so they’ll consider you and possibly sign you on. Here’s another reason you may need or want an editor: You want to improve your skills as a writer. This last one applies if you really love writing, find it fulfilling, and intend to keep on writing. If this fits you, you need to find an editor who includes instruction as part of the editing service, as well as you personally doing what it takes to develop and expand your skills.

You want to find an editor you feel comfortable working with and trust. Let’s assume you’ve found this person who cares about your manuscript almost as much as you do. Now we bump into one of the facts of life about of working with an editor: Monetary investment. It can cost, and you need to be prepared for this. International best-selling author Andrew E. Kaufman had this to say: “An editor with a fresh and critical eye will bring things to your attention you never knew existed, both developmentally and in the line/copy editing. These are people who will help bring a novel to the next level. . . . And for those who say they can’t afford to hire one—I say you can’t afford not to. If you’re serious about selling your book, then this is a step you simply must take.”

There are things you can do first to reduce this expense. You can keep future editing costs down by not engaging an editor to work on a manuscript that needs extensive revision during the editing phase (unless that level of service is what you actually want and are willing to pay for). For example, are you someone who feels pretty darn confident about the creative and technical aspects of writing? Be honest. Whether you are or aren’t confident, maybe what you need is a manuscript evaluation, also called a critique, so you know how well your book is going, creatively and technically. Be sure to find out what the evaluation will provide; you want guidance, not just an opinion.

Maybe you know your skills aren’t what they could be or need to be. Maybe you want to learn how to develop these skills. Maybe you don’t. Maybe you prefer to rely on an editor instead. Only you know how much you’re personally willing to do to get your book into the best shape possible for readers, and what you aren’t prepared or skilled enough to do. Although, after nearly twenty years as an editor, I’ve learned that novice authors, more often than not, don’t know how much they don’t know about writing and revising a manuscript. If you’re skilled at writing non-fiction, these skills do not readily transfer to writing fiction. Fiction is a wholly different arena.

After discussing a new client’s project (his first novel), he told me another editor had said he could edit the still-in-progress manuscript for $300. There are novice authors who believe this is a fair price for editing an 80,000+ word manuscript. It isn’t, and especially not for developmental editing. The client decided to use my services. As we got going with the novel, which he wrote several chapters at a time, and with me as a developmental editor and ghost rewriter (and sometimes ghostwriter, at his request), it became clear to the author that he would never have received the same value and result for $300. Not even close.  

The author chose the indie route. His debut novel received five stars and outstanding reviews from professional reviewers, as well as from readers, with readers becoming self-proclaimed fans begging for the sequel. I don’t like to imagine what level of service or outcome the author would have received for $300. This author has a number of books planned. He wants to improve his writing skills but doesn’t have the time it takes. So he relies on the skills and expertise of his editor. Skilled writers rely on an editor. Every best-selling author works with and relies on an editor.

Whether you need a critique, developmental editing, or ghost rewriting/writing, you want to find someone who provides what will help you accomplish your desired outcome for your book or books. The more intense level of service you need, the more expertise your editor needs to have and the more time and monetary investment it will take. Now I’m going to be frank about this: If you don’t want to pay for a reliable editor but want good results, you must learn what it is you need to know if you intend to continue as a writer who gets the reviews that keep you writing and fans reading. However you get to your goal, it’s a worthy adventure.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a special focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Basic and Comprehensive Manuscript Evaluation/Critique and Basic and Comprehensive Developmental Editing, with an option for Ghost Rewriting/Writing services. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Learn more about how to make your book one readers rave about at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

What Exactly Is a Ghost Rewriter, and Why Would You Ever Use This Service?

You’re likely aware there are ghostwriters (I love the movie, The Ghost Writer, with Ewan McGregor), but are you aware there are ghost rewriters who provide services as well? Let’s look at what they can do for authors.

You seldom see the term “ghost rewriter” used, if you’ve ever seen it at all. If you search that term online, you’ll see tons of site listings for ghostwriters and then maybe some sprinkled in for rewriters. Ghostwriting is the more familiar service, which is an involved method of getting a book written that’s based on a concept, notes, and or interviews with and for the person who wishes to put their name on the book cover, even though they don’t write the book (there are far more books written by ghostwriters, including best-sellers, than you may be aware of). So, what is a ghost rewriter? Maybe it’s self-explanatory. If not, you’ll know more in a minute, as well as why an author might want a rewriter on his or her team.

There are new, budding, and prolific authors who are do-it-yourselfers. They appreciate input from an editor because they sincerely want to put the best book out there that they can write, but they want to do all the writing and revising. There are other new, budding, or prolific authors who want to write a rough draft of their fiction or non-fiction manuscript then turn it over to someone else to rewrite and revise it, including writing additional content, if needed, until it’s ready for readers. If you’re in the first group, you may wonder why any author would do what those in the second group do.

 

One reason may be that the author never focused on the technical and or creative mechanics of writing, and has no intention to. Ever. These writers rely on their editor/ghost rewriter to bring what they write to finished form. There are other authors, new or not, who don’t have the time, or inclination, to do more than a rough draft, so rely on an editor/ghost rewriter to bring their manuscript to the finished-product level. Yes, your book—your baby—is, after all is said and done, a product you promote and sell.

 

Ghost rewriting can be an involved process (though not as involved as ghostwriting usually is) because now the editor/rewriter is creating what is essentially a new first draft that will need to go through the revision process just as an author doing all the writing would be required to do. The author is the one credited for the work; though, mention of the editor usually appears on the copyright page, in acknowledgments, or both. Credit for services rendered is up to the author. But the fact that someone ghost rewrote (or ghostwrote) the book isn’t mentioned, at least, not usually.

 

If you think this is a form of cheating, please consider that a number of best-selling authors do a version of this: They engage a co-author to write their book(s). A good example is James Patterson. At some point in his career, he shifted gears from being a solo writer, and his fans (I’m one of them) don’t mind at all. They want to be entertained Patterson-style, and he fulfills this for them. He fleshes out an outline for a novel, working on it until he’s satisfied, and then he sends it to one of his co-authors to write the novel (that’s what the other names on his book covers are about, in case you weren’t certain). This happens with Patterson’s input and approval about what’s written, of course. What a terrific opportunity and win-win-win-win for him, the co-author, the publisher, and readers.

 

What you, as an author, need to decide is what works best for you; what helps you accomplish your desired outcome. Sometimes the best assistance for you is to have your manuscript evaluated or to use substantive editing services so you know how to improve your book. Just make sure the person doing this is going to provide you with enough guidance you’ll use to revise your manuscript so it becomes the engaging book for readers you intend. And if you need or want more assistance than that for the reasons listed above, or for some other reason, consider a ghost rewriter who’ll take your manuscript where it needs to go but not require his or her name on your book cover.

 

There’s an advantage to working with an editor/ghost rewriter: You can choose to start out with a completed rough draft or submit one or more chapters at a time, until the draft is completed (a number of my clients prefer to work this way); just be consistent about writing so that you never allow the momentum to flag. Yet another advantage to working with an editor/ghost rewriter, if you’re committed to improving your skills, is that you see what the person did with your manuscript and learn from it.

 

Ghost rewriters are skilled writers but may not wish to travel the publishing path themselves. They love writing and are avid readers. They love assisting authors, especially indie authors, to put their best foot forward for their particular audience. This is another win-win-win experience. As a new, budding, or—if you’ll pardon me—somewhat lazy author when it comes to the technical and creative mechanics of writing, finding the rewriter right for you can be the difference between not going far (or anywhere) with your book and going the distance (and getting great reviews).

 

No matter which group from above you fit into, the fact is this: No writer ever completes a book entirely alone. At least, writers shouldn’t, if they want to put the best book they can into publication. There should be one or more qualified beta readers involved to give quality feedback. At some point an editor needs to be involved, without exception. Line-editing may be needed. Eventually, the services of a proofreader are required. Best-selling authors have teams who assist them, whether they go the indie or traditional publishing route. And if you’re Patterson and want to publish ten books a year to keep your readers and publisher deliriously happy, you engage the services of co-authors. If you’re not 100 percent confident about your skills or don’t have or want to take the time to go the distance, you put a ghost rewriter on your team. A team makes a dream come alive.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress, always and in all ways.

Joyce L. Shafer provides services for writers, with a focus on assisting new and indie authors. Services include Manuscript Evaluation, Substantive Editing, and Silent (Ghost) Rewriting/Editing, which includes converting plays and screenplays into novels. Her clients say she’s part editor, part teacher, part coach. Details available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/. 

Some Facts about Working with an Editor

If you’ve never worked with an editor and you’re wondering things like what’s involved, how much it will cost, how long it will take, and other such aspects, here are some helpful facts for you to know.  

First, it’s important that you understand what an editor can and should do for you and your manuscript, whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, which includes memoir.

Editors understand that all writing, in the end, involves two people: The writer and the reader, even though others, such as an editor, may be involved in the process. Writers write for a number of personal or professional reasons, but the ultimate desired result should be to do as good a job as possible communicating to readers what the writer intended, whether that’s to inform or to provide a story that entertains or touches readers’ emotions or thoughts. This is where editors come in handy.

Writers have something to say. Yet, they may or may not be as adept at writing as they’d like to be—or think they are. As an editor I’m conscientious of the needs of writers and the rights of readers who have certain expectations. Readers expect content that’s free of typos (as much as possible) and free of any other technical or creative aspects that might negatively affect their reading experience. An editor helps a writer write in a way that holds the attention of readers, rather than distracts readers or discourages them from finishing the book, e-book, or short story.

Although many writers have developed their skills and writing as a craft, we all have trouble at times saying exactly what we mean. We know what we mean to say, but may not accomplish this in the way we hoped. Or maybe we have so much information in our minds, we assume—incorrectly—that others have access to our intended meanings. All writers benefit by caring about the overall quality of their work, which goes way beyond commas being in the right place.

Working with an Editor

Editing styles are as individual as editors are. If you sent your manuscript to three different editors, some editing would be the same and some wouldn’t, because you’re dealing with individuals who have their preferred editing styles. But, there are rules for writing, which exist for good reason, and an editor knows which ones must be followed and which ones can slide a bit—as long as this adds to the content and tone, rather than detracts from it.

And, each writer has a distinctive voice, which must or should be respected. This doesn’t mean that—if you’ll pardon the expression—sloppy writing should be left as is. A good editor can help a writer create clean, crisp sentences and paragraphs AND keep the voice and tone intact. Working with an editor can help you move from talent alone into someone who gains confidence in the craft of writing.

Some common matters editors put their attention on include:

• How the story or content is organized and if it flows well from start to finish
• The “voice” and tone
• Active rather than passive voice (passive voice has its purpose at times, but not as often as some writers use it or misuse it)
• Specific words or sentence construction that may cause confusion
• Tense consistency
• Technical matters such as punctuation, and so on
• Inconsistencies in the story or content
• Basic formatting: indents, no spaces between paragraphs, proper dialogue formatting, only one space between the punctuation mark at the end of a sentence and the first letter of the next sentence, and so forth
• Enough information or plot and character development is provided to fulfill readers’ expectations
• The way the piece ends completes what came before it

Revisions

All authors revise their manuscript, or should, and it usually takes a few or several revisions to get a manuscript into ready-to-go form. I read where one New York Times best-selling author said he often does ten or more revisions before he’s happy enough with his draft to send it to his publishing editor. Not all writers feel that way or require that many revisions. But that author has a point. Many new or uninitiated writers believe one revision (possibly two) should do it. I can tell you from experience that an editor who works on a manuscript that needs substantial revision knows that it will read quite differently once revised. And, it’s possible that the revision, and ones that follow, may (usually do) show what else can be done to improve the manuscript, until it’s the best it can be.

I’ve had clients who went through one round of editing with me, made revisions, but didn’t have me or a proofreader check their work (or had a beta reader go through it and give feedback) before they self-published or submitted to an agent or publisher—and it was too soon to do that. And, although I appreciate when clients include my name as editor in their self-published book, it’s awkward if they publish it with issues I never had the opportunity to assist them to address. Give your editor a chance to help both you, as the writer, and your book, e-book, or short story to shine.

In my nearly 20 years as a conceptual editor, I’ve seen the following—and more:

• Beautiful literary writing (but not often, because that’s not a popular or typical style of writing these days)
• Manuscripts that were one “paragraph,” meaning the writer never created paragraphs
• Stream-of-consciousness writing, with no regard for technical or creative matters or logical content organization
• Really creative writing with fair technical aspects
• Really creative writing with poor technical aspects
• Compelling stories from writers with no grasp of creative or technical aspects
• And I’ve seen all of my clients learn a lot through my efforts and guidance. Some self-publish and some get agents and publishing contracts. A few regular clients don’t worry about technical matters (and to some extent, creative matters), because they rely on me to address them, even down to performing more as a ghost rewriter than as solely an editor.

What about cost?

It’s best if I’m candid with you, because this is important for you to understand. The better writer you are the less will be required from your editor. The less required from your editor the less the cost for his or her services performed on your behalf. A good editor cares about your work almost as much as you do, and works hard to help you make it the best writing it can be. Cost for this service must be anticipated. If budget is a concern, look for an editor who offers a budget-friendly arrangement. This doesn’t mean they’ll charge less for their services, but that they’ll work with you on how and when payments are made.

What about time involved?

Again, it all depends on what the editor finds in the manuscript, as well as the length of the manuscript. Editors need to go through your manuscript twice—or should, the first time they edit your manuscript and every time they work on a revision. One thing you don’t want to do is rush your editor. Your editor must integrate your story or content as a whole, as well as focus on creative and technical matters. This kind of work is comprehensive and gets tiring after several hours. The brain needs to rest and recharge.

Cost for editing is definitely something writers are concerned about and should plan for. They should also plan for how they may feel when their manuscript comes back from the editor, especially the first time. Below are two comments from clients. The first comment is from a first-time writer; the second comment is from a first-time client who is a self-published author who wanted to go the traditional route.

“Thank you for the work you have done on my memoir manuscript. I hadn't realized how much I needed you until I had done my part of the editing process based on your suggestions and guidance. Initially, I glanced at your Technicolor superimposed indictment of my efforts and I was stupefied and rather offended: my book and I were under attack. Almost immediately, I tucked you under my wing to keep you close because you were consistently on target. Working with you has also inspired me to get going on my next book, which will be fiction, as soon as we’re finished with this one.”

“You were able to take my gibberish and convolution of uncoordinated words and transform the manuscript into a tight presentation that attracted three offers for publication. You identified my weaknesses in pacing and character development and taught me how to turn these faults into strengths. My experience with you will give me an improved chance to succeed in this brutal industry.”

When you find an editor you trust and feel comfortable working with, you’ve added someone significant to your team, someone who cares about your work almost as much as you do and is willing to go the distance with you, to make your dream as a writer become your reality.

I wish you the best with your writing and progress.

Joyce L. Shafer provides conceptual editing, book evaluation, and writing coaching services, especially but not solely, for new writers. Details about her services, plus her e-book for aspiring and new writers—Write, Get Published, and Promote and her special reports—How to Get an Agent for Your Book or Choose Self-Publishing Instead: Tips, Lists, and More and How to Get Your Book Started: Plan Your Work Then Work Your Plan are available at http://editmybookandmore.weebly.com/.