Don't 'Do-It-Yourself'
Every independent author wants to cut as many corners as possible when it comes to publishing a new work. But what many don’t realize is they may be costing themselves money in the long run by putting out a poorly edited book.
Reviews are the life’s blood of any product. Whether it’s a book, a car, or a box of cereal, a bad review or worse, a series of bad reviews, can be the death knell of whatever it is you’re trying to sell. So aside from the ‘exorbitant’ cost of hiring a professional editor, what other reasons to go it alone?
1. Nobody knows my story as well as me.
While true, this is a double-edged sword. Writers have a tendency to be too close to their manuscript, falling in love with their words and keeping words, sentences, and entire sections that take away from the overall story.
2. An editor will change my words or rewrite my story.
This is completely untrue of any editor worth his or her salt. I look at editing as sandpapering the rough edges off a marble statue (I have no idea if you actually sandpaper a statue, but you get the idea).
Do I sometimes suggest a better word in places? Absolutely. But that’s what an editor does: suggest. Every single change an editor makes to your story should be plain and evident so the author can agree or disagree upon review. If your editor operates differently, fire him or her immediately.
3. I can just get my friend to read it for me, he likes my stuff.
Another potential mistake. People too close to an author may tend to hedge edits. Sometimes, I’ll look at a page I just finished and see a whole lot of red and I wonder if I’m being overly critical. But then I remember, that’s what I’m being paid for. And if the client does feel like the edits on any particular page are heavy-handed, he can always not take the ones he doesn’t like. Back when I used to write a lot of poetry I was on a site where we would post poems and critique each other and there was nothing worse than someone who just couldn’t handle people saying anything other than how magnificent their piece was.
4. It’s just not affordable.
Now that is a potential drawback. A professional editor can cost as little as a half cent a word to several cents. But it’s really a ‘what’s it worth to you’ situation. Do you believe this is a book people have to read? Will it change lives? Do you have a plan in place and editing is just one cog in the wheel to creating a best-selling juggernaut? If it is, then the cost of an editor is only a drop in the bucket compared to what you’ll eventually rake in. If it’s not, then why exactly are you writing it? Don’t put a speed-bump in your way by having a story a lot of people may set their eyes on and quickly cast aside as unreadable.
There are different levels of editing. For proofreading, we (Razorline Press) charge only a half cent. That means we read the story to correct for grammar errors and punctuation. So if you had a 100,000 word manuscript, we would charge $500 to proofread it. We charge a little more when I am asked for things like syntax errors, sentence flow, and proper word usage. We also will solicit the author for more information to understand confusing sentences and do follow-ups with clients to make sure they understand all the edits.
Think about the last book you purchased. Whether you wound up liking it or not, I’d bet it had a nice cover. As an independent author, unless you are also a graphic artist, professional photographer, or painter, you’re not qualified to design your own cover. Editing is just as important as an eye-catching cover. In some ways, it is even more important than a cover. There have been a few books I’ve read that impressed me on the outside and I was completely letdown when I turned to the first page.
Before you put out your next novel or novella, set yourself up for success. I don’t know the statistics, but the heaviest cluster of sales of books occur somewhere in the first few weeks after release. Just like the three L’s of real estate—location, location, location—the more books that sell in a cluster, the closer an author gets to finding their book located on a best-seller list. An independent author/publisher can do it. Just look at the Fifty Shades trilogy, which have been ranked 1-3 on the NY Times Bestseller list for the last 20+ weeks. I can’t vouch for how well-written these books are, but the point is, word-of-mouth rocketed them into the American lexicon. And more people will be talking about an author’s book when it is not only well-written, but seen under a scrutinizing eye to make it the best possible story it can be.
- Gerald Rice -
Gerald Rice is an Editor at Razorline Press and author of several self-published books. For more information visit the Website of Razorline Press.
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Amen to that,
ReplyDeleteA poorly edited book immediately turns me off this reader, but with the cost of a good editor, I completely understand why authors might think they can do it themselves. Even after multiple critique groups have seen my work, I'll find errors. As much as the e-revolution has involved the badmouthing of the Big Six & editors therein, those folks have been doing incredibly important work. That work still needs to be done.
Thanks for the fine post.
Thanks for the post--Everyone needs to have their book edited--now line editing is another story--I found it prohibitively expensive and so my husband and I went through the MS with a fine tooth comb before publishing. It is discouraging to realize that writers put their work out there without a backward glance--it gives indie authors a bad name...
ReplyDeleteIt doesn't have anything to do with the story. I used to edit for Contemporary books, so I feel I know something about what to look for. I left about a third out of my first book and now I can't even remember what it was. I used to save my cuts, but no longer bother. I notice typos in any book, bound or epub, unknown or famous. I have four epubs up and have never heard a criticism except about my characters' moral issues. Put your own MS on your ereader before publishing, and you will notice most everything wrong. Why would you pay for something when you know nothing about the quality of their work? I have a book on Amazon at 600,000 plus. Very bad. And one at 68,000. Pretty good. Epub success: promo, word of mouth, multi pubs. Not easy.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree with no 1. Writers are too close to their own work, so they should get someone professinal to edit it for them, which is why I do. And I agree about covers. Only try and do them if you are cognizant with layouts, fonts etc, otherwise get someone to do them for you. I do because I tried to have a go and had no idea what I was doing.
ReplyDeleteI agree, there are times when I am too close to my work. I have trained myself to write a rough draft of something, come back a couple of days later and reread my work--out loud. This helps me realize that what I said could have been said in a more concise way. I also tend to catch grammatical errors. When I wrote Getting Roosevelt--a homeowner's nightmare, I went ahead and sent it to the printers. I got my proof copy and boy, the errors leaped off the page. I spent another three months re-writing. Only then was I happy with my 2nd proof, then I published it.
ReplyDeleteHere! Here! I wouldn't waste a dime - let alone my precious reading time - on a book that hadn't been at least professionally proof read. There are so many options and price scales out there for indies to choose from. There's no excuse for not getting your work edited.
ReplyDeleteNikki, thanks for perfectly making the point for me. Out comes my red pencil and corrects the above to "Hear, hear!" Which I then echo.
ReplyDeleteI read a terrible book about a year ago which put me right off indies altogether. It included the words "summersault" and "undo attention". At the time I blogged that I would never read another self-published book based on this experience, and started a campaign that self-published books should state this fact on the cover so that readers know that they are getting something which may be substandard.
Luckily, since then, various friends have persuaded me otherwise and I have read some very good indies. And, in fact, my next book will be self-published because the publishers of my first five books felt the subject matter is too controversial for them. And yes, I am paying to have it edited.
I will admit it! I learned the hard way that I could not edit my own work! My first book went out unedited and boy did I regret it! After a few weeks I pulled it back out of circulation and had some writing friends help me edit it. I put it back on the market, but I lost momentum with the book after than. Now my second book is almost ready to put out. I have a wonderful editor who is doing the editing for me. My advice, if you can't afford to hire someone, do editing in trade with other writers who need a second set of eyes for their work. Also it is possible to find someone who is willing to edit for a percentage of future book sales. Whatever you do, don't think that you can edit your own work. Trust me, it won't work.
ReplyDeleteI agree. My book was poorly edited by a perfessional editor. However I should had known better after she kept putting me off. I had cancer at the time and thought I was not going to pull through. Yes I agree getting someone to edit who is honest is the right way. I learned the hard way and paid the cold hard price. I support all writers, wish all the best. I'm glad to finally found someone who is helping me now. However my publisher will NOT pull it out of circulation. Guess I will keep paying the price. I don't promote the book. Good advice on here, I appreciate all the help and what ever I can learn from better writers.
DeleteThank you for writing this article.
ReplyDelete"[Editing is] not about what to change. It's about what to keep intact. The author's voice and meaning are paramount. The editor's job is to help the writer convey the message in the best way possible, in proper English convention, to the audience for which it was designed and with the purpose for which it was intended.
The author-editor connection is a relationship. This is why you pay for the editor's time. The editor has years of knowledge and experience, and tailors them to you and your needs, which means getting to know you and your work, and taking time to go through it. Choose your editor with care and build a relationship" - opening to "Did You Know An Editor's Job Is to Work With the Author, Not Against the Author?" (http://www.siriusword.com/ebblog/did-you-know-an-editors-job-is-to-work-with-the-author-not-against-the-author).
2. "An editor will change my words or rewrite my story."
Many people have this fear and it may have originated in school. A good editor applies only the changes needed--with the author's approval--to say what the author wanted, not something else.
I'm a lifelong writer and editor, so I've sat on both sides of the fence. I also teach writing. I have spent much of my life trying to figure out the causes for the fear and under-valuing of professional editing.
Spelling and grammar checkers are only a start, not a finish. Of the errors they catch, they require the knowledge of a human brain to interpret the recommendations. No program can replace human thinking with regard to the complexity of language.
Having friends read one's work and give feedback is helpful, but chances are they are not trained editors, so if it's going into print permanently, I'd think carefully about the quality the author wants to convey. I've seen people stop reading poorly written books, even those with potentially good plots and ideas. How a book is written and how it is punctuated are part of the experience.
As for editing one's own work, no matter how good an editor the writer is, he/she still needs a proofreader if it's going into print. Our brain is bound to miss something in our own writing.
I like your way of thinking, you made it clear and to the point.
DeleteNo matter how bad the book is written, I agree the story could be really great, the plot the characters. I'm one who struggles due to a disabilty with brain and I have to get everything edited. It takes me longer to read and longer to write and I am bad editor. I agree with you. I believe in honesty between the writer and editor.
Thanks!
Excellent article,
ReplyDeleteFirst impressions count. You need to stand out from the crowd in every aspect.
Thank you for an informative article. I'm sure it will give many Writers food for thought.
Kind Regards
P.L. Dodds
Sound advice, especially on editing. It's worth every cent.
ReplyDeleteHaving some form of editing is essential. At the very least some proofreading and checking of sentence structure and flow. No matter how many times you go over your own book, you will miss things and those things can cause a negative reading experience for your readers. Better to pay an editor now than to pay later in loss of readership!
ReplyDeleteGreat advice - it's really hard to be objective, though for the sake of cost an author really needs to line edit themselves before it goes off. The book will definitely suffer without a professional looking at it.
ReplyDeleteI will not hire an editor. I am very good at picking up errors of spelling and grammar (and typos) and the incredibly bad job made by the editor/publisher of my first book have put me off them for life. 'just removing a few commas and making it flow a bit better in places.' Unfortunately, I trusted him, and when I found difficulty in opening the revised MS, I gave authorisation to him to publish, (especially as it was already several months after the original publication date.) Things like 'Karate' changed to 'harate,' presumably because he disagreed with the capital letter, and as he appeared to be a comma hater, he deleted hundreds, but far too often, deleting the last letter of the word before the comma. Criminally careless. And that was from a manuscript all-but-immaculate. (I think he did find and correct just one actual error.)
ReplyDeleteSo maybe it's not self-published books you should be careful of - at least the author can be relied up to care about the book, but small Indie publishers who set up - I'm not quite sure why. Nobility? Or for profits? After all, any author will mostly sell a dozen copies to friends and family, even if no-one else.
I am proud of my books now, even though there was a lot to learn before I was able to publish them. They are far better presented than the first one that had been 'edited' and then published with enough errors to make me cry. That 'publisher' has over 100 authors still, I believe. I don't know whether he is still producing such unprofessional work.
Writers need editors. They need them to hone their work, true. They also need them to give it to 'em straight. Red ink and highlighter marks all over a page are great at getting through a writer's precious ego. A few moments of chagrin upon seeing such pages is better than a slew of bad reviews on Amazon which will never go away. @SimianEditor
ReplyDeleteI agree with every single word in that post! as a blogger who reviews a lot of Indie, I can definitely tell who's paid the money for an editor and who hasn't. It makes a big difference in the ejoyability factor.
ReplyDeleteI have managed to find a process that makes an editor unnecessary but it is not an easy route:
ReplyDelete1. Write Draft
2. Write Draft of entirely separate project
3. Use custom written (by me) editing software to do another pass
4. Turn mss into an ebook.
5. Read entire book aloud to my wife (reading it aloud helps me pick up poor cadence and clumsy sentence structure)
After that the work goes to as many beta-readers as I can find and, after that may have to be combed once more for the final few typos.
It's probably less intense to just pay for a professional editor but I really am that poor.
74,000 x .05 a word - if writer is lucky enough to get one that cheap - do the math. Then cover artist fees - the writer is no longer writing for their benefit - their hard earned $$ is goin giinto other people's pockets.
ReplyDeleteThat's $3,700, but unfortunately, you used 5 cents per word, not .005 (1/2 cent) per word as the low ball the author indicated. That would be $370. A 74,000 word book would be around 250 pp. I review/ edit books, but am a slow reader. Editing (not reading) 250 pp would take me about 25 hours minimum ($370/25 = $14.80/hr.) I use to manage an editing group in corporate America. They were paid a lot more than that. I don't think that is exorbitant to ensure a solid product.
DeleteCost is usually the main reason for a writer not hiring an editor, but it can be lowered by investing a relatively small amount of money in editing software, such as Grammarly. That can clean up obvious errors, making a human editor's job a lot quicker and so, less expensive. Of course, word processors (MS Word, Mac, etc.) have their own (imperfect) checking functions that will do a pretty good job for nothing; it seems many writers are simply unaware of them. A writer can also learn something about grammar, punctuation and spelling by seeing the changes.
ReplyDeleteAs a freelance editor, I agree that money can be a huge factor in writers choosing not to hire an editor. A good developmental (substantive) editor will spend 30-50 hours on a full-length novel. It's very time consuming and so the charge has to be reasonable. I wrote a blog about this here: https://thewriteditor.wordpress.com/2013/02/12/how-much-should-you-pay-for-a-freelance-novel-editor/
ReplyDeleteI suggest looking for an editor that offers a combination of line editing and developmental editing who is also education focused so that you will know how to correct your own mistakes in subsequent drafts.