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Ready for an Editor?

Philip Overby

Staff
Article Team
K.M.Weiland, who is a font of writing advice, has a good interview on Writer.ly discussing when to know you're ready for an editor. I particularly like her idea of having "heavy hitter" critique partners and "nice" critique partners to use as buffers before moving on to getting an actual editor. If you're thinking of doing so, it might be interesting to read her methods.

Writer.ly Community – One Question Interview with Writer.ly

How do you know when you're ready to pass your work on to others?
 
When I've made at least one pass through the chapter without making any large changes. If I make more than two passes through a chapter that only make minor changes, I may start inventing problems to have something to edit.
 

acapes

Sage
One marker for me is exactly as KM says, when I've made adjustments after crit partners have got stuck in, another marker is when I'm close to vomiting at the thought of going over the story one more time ;)
 

PaulineMRoss

Inkling
One marker for me is exactly as KM says, when I've made adjustments after crit partners have got stuck in, another marker is when I'm close to vomiting at the thought of going over the story one more time ;)

This is me, too - especially the vomiting part. I really don't know how people can do edit after edit after edit without getting totally sick of the thing. So I aim to get it right first time. ;-)
 

acapes

Sage
This is me, too - especially the vomiting part. I really don't know how people can do edit after edit after edit without getting totally sick of the thing. So I aim to get it right first time. ;-)

I know! The endlessness of it! I always worry about editing it into the ground, making endless changes that eventually begin to add nothing.
 
Hi,

Not wanting to be overly practical here, but an editor should be your final step in the process. By the time the work goes to them everything about the story should be done. Yes I know there are developmental editors etc, but they cost a lot of money as do copy editors, and the goal is not to spend more than you have to. If you give your work to a developmental editor who advises wholesale story changes then you have to get your work edited again. If instead you use beta readers, critique groups etc etc to get your story to its best possible state, then the work your editor should have to do when it comes to him, should be less. That means quicker edits and less repeats. It means spending less money.

Cheers, Greg.
 
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