INTRODUCING GUEST BLOGGER AND EDITOR-LYNN SURUMA as she explains why as a writer you need an editor!
You have read and reread your story over and over again. You are certain your piece is perfect ⸺ after all, you’ve practically memorized it word for word! And that’s the problem: You have been “living” with the material for who knows how long and you read what you expect to see, not necessarily what is on the page. Another pair of eyes will be more likely to spot something you missed.
And this is only one reason why another pair of eyes is invaluable.
All writers have their little quirks, those style peculiarities which show up in everything they write. One writer will start off 80% of his sentences in one paragraph exactly the same way. Another will use the same trite phrases over and over. And a third writer, no matter how many times you remind her, still forgets to put her ending quote mark outside the period. Regardless of the type and degree of the error, every writer wants to present the best work possible, not only to interest an agent or a publishing company but, also, to satisfy the reader enough to return to pick up the next book.
You may think you are ready for publication but, surprise, surprise, maybe you aren’t quite ready at all. The question you have to ask yourself is not “Do I need an editor?” but what kind of editor do I need? The answer: it depends on the condition of your manuscript. A prospective editor who requests sample pages to read first will be able to tell you what kind of editing you will need, about how long it may take and how much it will probably cost.
Manuscript editing falls into these two categories, generally: copy editing and content editing, although there are others. See next week’s Blog about the editing process.
Atlanta-based Lynn W. Suruma, editor and writer, has more than 45 years’ experience editing a wide variety of products, including books, articles newsletters, brochures and pamphlets, theses, proposals and reports. Her published work includes children’s stories, magazine articles, and poetry. Since 1990, she has worked with Teachable Tech, Inc. as editor and writer of curriculum products for such clients as CNN for CNN Newsroom; The Weather Channel for The Weather Classroom; ABC Inc. for ABC Classroom Connection and ABC NewsConnect; and, for SAMHSA (US Dept. of Health and Human Services), Building Blocks for a Healthy Start.
