@AppropriateAdult
When agents submit new work to you, how much does your relationship with the agent, or their reputation/status within the industry, play a role in your likelihood of signing the project? Does it make a difference, or is everything that lands on your desk treated equally?
I do very little work for agents. Mostly I have been employed by publishing houses/companies when I lived in London or by authors themselves and/or publishers now that I’m freelance and live in a field. In general I can only do my best so everything is equal. If (and I’m not) hired to edit Donna Tartt or Will Self I would be nervous but still work in the same way. If they don’t like it then they don’t hire me.
@everythingcrossed
Great thread, thank you. What are the most common mistakes that you see in manuscripts (I don't mean typos, more structural or narrative or stylistic problems)? What is the easiest way to improve a book - cut it by 10%?
This is mainly relevant to the fiction titles I work on. Mistakes vary and every author has their idiosyncrasies, but in general I try to cut scenes or characters (possibly chapters) that are a means to an end and don’t add to the overall narrative. Think Chekhov’s Gun or randoms who are introduced to significant fanfare, serve a purpose then disappear forever. Over-writing is common, saggy mid-sections also, failing to maintain tension in particular. With some (not all) authors less is more but I couldn’t say there’s a formula for everyone – show don’t tell is the golden rule: with apologies to Chekhov: “Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.”
In general, avoid clichés like the plague, don’t mix metaphors and avoid the repetitious overuse of synonyms and idioms to repeat yourself over and over again for ever in a way that never ever really ends. Dialogue has to be natural – speak your character’s lines out loud to see if it sounds like something someone (possibly you) would actually say. Don’t be verbose, bombastic and loquacious (repetition alert!). Most importantly: do your research – when I was starting out I had to use microfiche in Westminster Reference Library to look things up but these days there’s no excuse: shotguns are not chambered in .50 calibre, it doesn’t take an hour and a half to fly from Washington to NYC, Pink Flamingos was written by Manfred Mann and not the Kinks (all recent examples).
@SorryAuntLydia
What’s the most extensive edit you’ve done and what’s the lightest?
Some development edits can stray into ghost writing – massive rewrites, which is fine but don’t hire an editor for a copy edit if you really need a development edit (or indeed a ghost writer). Get feedback from people you trust but avoid family and close friends who might not want to say what they really think. If you can, find online communities (MN?) where you can get beta feedback rather than asking your mum/partner. Writing is so very personal – if someone you know/love says “this is shite” things can go downhill quickly. Your first draft is exactly that – add flesh to those bones in your second/third/fourth revision. If you can do that the edit will be lighter.
Do you have a minimum quota of changes you have to make?
No not really, it’s all subjective so as an editor you just do the best you can. What I consider to be a good edit could be ripped apart and reworded by another editor.
@flashingbeacon
Do you ever feel a bit of text is really good, well written and interesting but still needs cut? Would you ever say to an author so they could use it somewhere else?
If I feel it’s well written I won’t make too many changes, even though the beauty of the English language means I could probably recast the para in a hundred different ways. I often move paras around (or suggest a cut/deletion) – Scrivener can be useful for this from the writer’s perspective – but if it’s good I’m more hands-off. Just make sure everything that follows is as good (easy to say). If I come across a really well-crafted sentence or description I will flag it to use on the back-cover blurb. I always leave notes in the margin (in MS Word) to engage with the author and ask for clarification or suggest cuts/expansion where it could benefit a scene/character.
Also say something is littered with grammar mistakes and typos, do you have to slog through it changing affect to effect and chanting i before e? Or is that an admin type job?
At heart I’m a sub-editor so I love this aspect of the job – it’s rule-driven (or style guide dependant) so there’s little room for argument. Complement or compliment is either right or wrong in the context, so I enjoy the slog.
@SorryAuntLydia
Which famous book/s do you think would be improved by a good edit?
(Personally I’d be looking at anything by Thomas Hardy and Charles Dickens)
Mmmm not sure really. We have hundreds and hundreds of books in my home but the last thing I want to do after nine hours a day/six days a week reading/editing is curl up with a good book. Hardy and Dickens are of course so of their time that I would be wary of suggesting changes. Same with Irvine Welsh or Jack Palahniuk – you have to let them have their voice.
@TildaKauskumholm
Why is it that so much published writing is full of errors these days? I am constantly amazed at what I see, errors in grammar, spelling, sentence structure. This is in books, magazines, newspapers, and I presume most publishers employ editors and/or proofreaders - so makes me think that having a decent standard of English is no longer thought necessary. What's your opinion OP?
I think it’s not very valued sometimes and that might be why rates haven’t really gone up much over the years – the Waily Fail is the world’s most popular website (I think) and it can be a complete shocker for the errors you mention, but the flipside of that is the terrible rep The Grauniad used to have – budgets/laziness/indifference/who knows? I love my job but it doesn’t make me rich
@flashingbeacon
Also I’ve always just assumed with an author gets a book back it’s like a teacher giving back an essay, covered in red pen with comments in the margin. That seems unlikely now I’ve written down.
That’s pretty much it, although instead of the red (or green) pen its ‘track change’ in Word. Writing is so personal (at least with fiction) that I would never pitch it as ‘C minus, Must Try Harder’ – always suggestions and questions and proposed changes so that something reads/scans/flows better. If it’s non-fiction text that I’ve commissioned it’s much easier to send back and say, ‘you haven’t fulfilled the brief/I need another 250 words/you’re off on a tangent.’ Can still be a tricky conversation to have so tact is always useful.
@LivingTheThighLife
Is it easier to edit fiction or non-fiction? Do they need different skills?
I started in non-fiction and you can’t really argue with facts (hello Fox News) so that was easier as long as you can back up everything you say with evidence. I then went freelance and jumped into the subjective realm of how/why/what-if of fiction, which was fractious at first but if you handle people with sensitivity you can suggest changes/rewrites/edits that they can read and see if they agree with. These days I prefer working on fiction as it’s more creative and fun. Both need consistency and thorough research though.
@Witchend
How honest are you when someone gives something to edit which you know that whatever is done there is no chance a publisher will take it on?
And do you tell them directly, or is it a bit like teacher euphemism?
For fiction authors I always offer a sample edit (say 3k words) so that they can see if I’m a good fit for them. More importantly, it gives me an idea of the standard of their writing and sometimes their personality and if I want to get involved. I’m as honest as I can be with a creative endeavour and will say if they need to work on it more before it’s ready for an editor to take on.
(No refunds for any typos in the above, soz)