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If writing the first word, of the first line, of the first page of a book is akin to planting a seed, then preparing a manuscript for publication is similar to getting ready to harvest a crop.

Gardening and writing can both feel like rather solitary pursuits at times, can’t they? Editors pop up at just the right moment and advise on nurturing and harvesting that precious manuscript ‘crop’.

Why Hire A Book Editor? 

For me, an editor has always got to be a human being. Google ‘how to find an editor’, however, and the first thing offered will almost certainly be a glitzy editing software package.

These can be useful in certain circumstances, especially if your writing requires nuts and bolts work on spelling and grammar, but they can also be confusing to use.

Before you splash out on anything new and costly, be sure that you are already using all the automated editing features available on your existing software.

Software can never empathise. Software will never praise you for writing something which sings, nor ask you questions to help it understand what it is you mean. 

For me, at times of stress or difficult choices in life, nothing beats having a calm, empathetic (yet objective) person at your side.

There can be an adrenaline slump after that ‘whoop, whoop, I’ve finished my first draft!’ moment when you realise that the editing process means, in a way, starting all over again. Your editor should provide you with guidance, support and inspiration in equal measure.  

Our very first editors tend to come free within our family. For young writers, this kind of uber-positive (‘simply wonderful, darling…’) feedback is essential in building confidence and self-esteem, but most writers quickly grow to require something more objective. 

From there, people often refer to beta readers or book editors (or both) to help them further enhance their books.

I try to be as encouraging yet constructive as possible when I am editing.

I am working, for example, with a young and promising neurodiverse writer whose mother is concerned about the intensely macabre biographical content of her work. Up to this point in her writing life, her mum has been her greatest fan, so this dissent has come as a nasty shock to them both. My client is maturing fast as a writer and developing a remarkable authorial voice. It may not be one which her mother recognises or wants to hear, but her mother does not represent the extensive target market for the book in question.

An editor can see all this; and can reassure both parties and move them forward.  

What Does A Book Editor Do? 

A good editor (and yes, there are bad ones out there too) should read a manuscript objectively while wearing a few different hats: that of a future reader, of course, but those of a potential publisher or agent too.

An editor should also be able to ‘get inside your head’ to a degree: to understand what it is you are trying to achieve, even if you have not yet quite got there.  

It is essential to be clear in your mind if you hire an editor that you are not paying them to tell you that your book is utterly marvellous. You are paying them to tell you the truth and to help you make it more publishable.  

How To Decide What Kind Of Editing You Need

There are some confusing terms used to describe the many different types of book editing services which it may be helpful to explain here.  

Line Editing

Line editing means that your editor will read your text carefully, line by line, looking at how your text flows, your narrative style, and whether or not it is readable.

Line editing is more about making sure each sentence works and less about the ‘big picture’. 

You could opt for this service if you have written your manuscript – or part of it – as a bit of a stream of consciousness and you are now unsure what it is you have, or where to go or what to do with it next.  

Developmental Editing

If, however, you think that your book is ‘almost there’ but lacks something fundamental that you cannot quite pinpoint, then developmental editing might be for you.

This takes a step back from your completed manuscript and considers the overall structure: your content, plot, characters, and timeframe, for example.

Does it all combine into a convincing, compelling read? A developmental editor will make recommendations on how to rework any weaker sections for improvement, often giving you specific examples.  

I tend to provide a bit of both line editing and developmental editing in my own reports.

For example, I recently edited an excellent manuscript where a compelling plot was marred by an important secondary character lacking entirely in motivation for their actions (which would fall under developmental editing). I was able to demonstrate this by highlighting plot weaknesses and unconvincing dialogue and suggesting improvements (and that is line editing). A hint of smouldering unspoken passion for a central character and the plot suddenly snapped into sharp focus.

Sometimes all it takes is a nudge in the right direction from an editor to avoid a major rewrite. 

Proofreading

Proofreading is a specialist area of professional editing, one which should be undertaken immediately before publication.

Proofs are the final ‘set’ (i.e. in the final positions on the page), cover, and content of your book as it will appear once published.

Your proofreader should spot any final typesetting and copy errors in them and flag them up.

If your editor has done a good job, there should not be that many and you should then be able to ‘sign off’ a final corrected proof.

In theory, that is then exactly how the book should appear once published, but I once had an over-zealous publishing-house content editor make catastrophic changes to my text after it had been ‘signed off’ – the stuff of nightmares (and litigation)!  

You might now ask ‘why not get one person to do the lot at the same time’?

This may seem a logical economy but would not work well, as after any line editing or developmental editing, you will wish to restructure or rewrite to some degree, so premature proofreading would be pointless.

Proofing is also better undertaken by someone who has not had anything to do with the writing or editing process already.

A good editor should already have picked up on repeated errors in spelling or grammar but worrying about the nitty-gritty of typos tends to come at this later stage.  

How Editors Work

Your editor is there to decide whether your book ‘works’.

If it does, they will suggest ways to make it better still.

If it does not, they will explain why and recommend ways to put it right.  

I do this myself by:  

• Highlighting examples of weak writing within the text, often showing an improved version alongside it 
• Rewriting short sections where a writer is struggling for clarity, especially if the text has been over-written (this is common with opening chapters) 
• Recommending necessary changes to structure, plot, characters, narrative style etc 
• Pointing out over-used words or phrases (something we all do – my own are the word ‘little’ and a penchant for unnecessary adverbs) 

I may also suggest an alternative to the working title of a book, so expect this too. As writers we become used to thinking of a particular title from the first word on the first page and it is hard to see beyond that.

A few years ago, I edited a family-orientated illustrated history book which was called Growing a Cathedral. It was the last major published work of the veteran author, Elizabeth Sutherland. The weak title really bothered me – but she could not see past it. We eventually agreed a compromise: 'Sowing a cathedral' became instead the slightly tweaked title of the first chapter, while the book was issued under the much stronger title, Highland Cathedral. It is now in its third edition and still doing well. 

Somewhere in your editorial report, a good editor should compare/contrast your work with published books in the same genre. Sometimes it is difficult for a writer to see precisely where their work ‘sits’ in terms of the market.

It was helpful when early readers compared my book, Major Tom’s War, with Vera Brittain’s great memoir Testament of Youth and Michael Ondaatje’s novel The English Patient, for example, because I could then see how it falls somewhere between fiction and non-fiction.

These comparisons are useful to mention in a letter to a potential agent or publisher too which may be an agreed part of your report package if you go through an agency.

Editors can help you craft a synopsis too – often the hardest part of pulling together a submission following the completion of the editing stage.  

How Much Does An Editor Cost? 

A good editor has a curious blend of traits. You should be prepared to pay them for a service, and you must also be prepared to act on (or at least consider) their recommendations.  

If you are a young or new writer and you worry about the cost of hiring a professional, then try to find someone to undertake the task who isn't a close friend or family member, as they will be able to give you more objective feedback. Consider asking a neighbour, or anyone you know who's a journalist, teacher, or librarian.

Ask yourself this, though: will you be prepared to act on their recommendations if you are not invested enough in your own output to pay them something?

And is it fair to expect anyone to work (and yes, even if your 90,000 word manuscript is a shoo-in for a future Booker Prize, it is still work) for free? 

How To Find An Editor

Commissioning an editor may not in fact cost as much as you think.

Even so, once you have decided that you need an editor, beware of panic buying: it horrifies me how many people will Google 'editors' and then immediately hand over their money to the first algorithm which says ‘card details here’.

Always search for their company name online. Always check for feedback.  

There is a special place in hell reserved for ‘vanity’ publishers (which often pop up within the first few clicks online because of the sheer quantity of poor saps they have suckered before you). These will offer to edit, produce and even design a cover for your book and their sales pitch is often misleadingly slick.

One elderly friend ignored my advice a few years ago and signed up with a well-known ‘publisher’ without reading the small print. In return, he received a boxful of poorly edited and produced books with an unrecognisable cover illustration, and it cost him much heartbreak and most of his savings.  

If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. 

Editing Costs

The UK Chartered Institute for Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) currently suggests minimum hourly rates of £28.65 for proofreading, £33.30 for copyediting and £38.30 for substantial editing, rewriting and/or developmental editing. However, I would steer clear of any editor who tries to seal the deal by quoting for editing work by the hour.

I happen to read very fast, but I will generally read manuscripts submitted to me twice or even three times before writing an editorial report. Charging by the hour or even by the day would not work for me, or for my clients.  

Consider instead individual professional editors or agencies which will charge you according to the word length of your manuscript, as really this is the fairest way of doing it. Some editing projects will take a bit longer than others and most agency editors accept this: it evens out.  

Agency charges vary (see ours here), and the editor assigned to you will generally receive around half of the fee you pay, the other half covering core administration costs (for example marketing, writing, conference planning and the creation of the invaluable generic web links freelance editors can add into their reports).

Shop around, do not be afraid to ask questions and make sure you get as much bang for your buck as you possibly can. 

If you commission an independent professional editor, check their website (if they have one), ask for references from recent previous clients, and aim to make sure that they have already edited within your genre. 

Some professional book editors or editing companies provide a sample edit or two on their websites. These also offer a visual comparison between, for example, copy editing and line editing.

Before you sign a contract, expect to have a dialogue with your editor or agency (and if they resist this, find someone else). This helps ensure that you've found the right editor for you.

Three Good Questions To Ask An Editor:  

• ‘How long do you think it will take to read and edit my manuscript?’ (NB most agencies will agree this for you with the editor in advance) 
• ‘Have you ever written or worked on something in this particular genre before?’ 
• ‘Can you look particularly closely at my opening chapter/character development/timeline/ending?’ (it is always helpful to pinpoint areas of your manuscript which you think need work) 

Your Editor May Respond With Questions Of Their Own, So Expect Something Along These Lines: 

• ‘Has any other editor already worked on your text?’ 
• ‘How much of your story is based on real events and people?’ 
• 'Which authors inspire your writing?’ 

The Editing Process

Once you have received your report, you should be given a period of time for reflection on its content and then the option to have an email exchange or a Zoom chat to clarify any points or simply to talk through the content: I prefer Zoom, because I tend to form a picture of the writer in my head as I edit and I like to compare that preconception to reality! 

I often begin my reports by praising the writer for their courage in entrusting their seedling manuscript to my care and I am completely sincere about that. Although a few have come close, I have never yet been sent a manuscript where I thought ‘this is so good that I cannot help it grow.’  Agencies often have a fast track to an agent system for any manuscripts an editor considers ready to go out.  

Since starting to edit for Jericho a couple of years ago, one manuscript on which I have worked was sold as part of a historical fantasy book series to a major publisher, and that was just as exciting for me as it was for the author concerned. 

Finding An Editor

Editors must aim to be kind and positive without becoming over-friendly, at which point objectivity may be lost. Your editor’s name will never appear on your cover and probably not even in your list of acknowledgements. We provide secret support to help enhance your book. A recent client of mine had a superb manuscript but struggled to write convincing sex scenes from a female viewpoint: a challenge I much enjoyed resolving.

Editors must work with clients under the strictest confidentiality and should never divulge book or author names without consent.  

When basking in the glow of a successful book-harvest, you may not remember an editor’s face or name for long, or even acknowledge their existence to the outside world, but that does not matter a jot. As your editor, I will have helped you through the joyful ordeal that is book-growing, and that, for me at least, is reward enough.

Whether you opt for a freelance book editor or an editing company, regardless of the kind of editing service you choose, your book always remains precisely that - yours. 

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A messy first draft might sound like a problem, but it’s actually a beautiful thing. Trying too hard to get things ‘right’ the first time stilts your ability to immerse yourself in your work and gives undue weight to your inner critic’s disapproval. Completing a chaotic first draft, on the other hand, means that you’ve allowed yourself to write freely and without self-judgement, in spontaneous pursuit of the right next words.

Your next step will be to revise your manuscript to improve it and take it closer to the final version you envisioned. 

Self-editing can be tough, forcing you to reckon with everything that’s ‘wrong’ with your manuscript. The more awareness you have of your work’s flaws, the better equipped you’ll be to work through them. The key is to self-edit thoroughly, patiently, and with equal amounts of mercilessness and self-compassion.

But let’s start from the beginning.

What Exactly Is Self-Editing?

Self-editing is the type of editing you do yourself, without the assistance of anyone else. These will be the first changes you make to your novel’s first draft, so the self-editing stage will typically involve radical edits. Expect to erase or rewrite entire chapters or scenes, insert additional scenes where necessary, change the subject matter or tone of particular dialogues, and generally work on exercising greater control over your writing.

Much like working with professional editors, a thorough self-edit will begin with big-picture elements and gradually focus on more minor details. Typically, writers perform at least three rounds of revisions, with some projects taking as many as nine or ten rounds. 

In addition to spurring specific changes, self-editing works as an exercise in reflection. After re-reading your manuscript (ideally after a little time away from it), you’ll encounter the words you actually wrote. This is the moment to bridge the gap between the book you wrote and the book you want to write. (Note that it’s completely fine if the book you ended up writing isn’t the one you set out to write — plans change.)

If you haven’t ever had to edit a manuscript-length project before, the many moving parts involved may end up overwhelming you. Some degree of frustration is probably inevitable, but by self-editing in an organised, strategic, and methodical way, you can prevent panic. 

Below, I’m listing seven important questions you should ask yourself while you edit your own writing — the idea is that these questions can help you stay focused on one thing for each editing iteration while ensuring you do a thorough job. 

1. What Do I Honestly Think Is Wrong With This Manuscript?

To embark on this process with a sense of control, take stock of where you are right now. Begin by reading through your work one more time, and making a note (but stopping yourself from editing on the go) of everything you aren’t happy with. 

Maybe a certain plot point comes too abruptly — note that down. Maybe a character’s development feels too slow and elaborate, and you’d like to include another scene, where change is more decisive. Maybe the opening doesn’t feel like it’s highlighting the right things anymore. Maybe the middle is too slow, or a specific scene needs rewriting.

When you’ve got a big list of everything you’d like to improve, you can use it to decide what to edit next — and writing things down will help quieten down your mind, helping you feel less overwhelmed. 

Ideally, start by looking at your plot’s major arc. If there are truly fundamental plot points you aren’t sure about (e.g. “the protagonist should not have ended up with character A, character B was the right one for them”), start there, because those adjustments will bring about a series of changes throughout the rest of the book. 

2. Which Element Of The Manuscript Will This Editing Round Focus On?

Before you begin each round of edits, identify what your focus will be. Making a plan can help you resist the temptation to multi-task editing several things at once, and trace throughlines to ensure satisfying big-picture arcs for your characters or overall plot. There’s always time to return to a specific scene to improve the minutiae.

A disclaimer here: there isn’t really a right and wrong way to self-edit, so if multi-tasking is the path that feels right, feel free to change up several things at once. Just make sure you return to check that arcs or plot points add up to a bigger structure that helps your story make an impact.

3. Is This Paragraph, Scene, Or Chapter Necessary?

Part of the fun of first drafts is the freedom you have to write without restraint. At this stage, asides, tangential jokes, and elaborate descriptions are all allowed — but that doesn’t mean they get to stay in your manuscript for eternity.

Every part of your manuscript should be contributing something. If it isn’t, you’ll either have to figure out how to make it contribute, or get rid of it. Either way, your manuscript will be more focused or more concise, and stronger.

Here’s an exercise to help you identify redundant chapters: when you’re working on your big-picture structural edit, spend some time listing out every chapter — either in a numbered list or in a spreadsheet. Try to summarise each one in a few words (e.g., “Keiko locates the murder weapon,” “Jon begins to doubt the loyalty of the AI bot”), then read through your summaries and try to determine whether each chapter contributes something of value in the form of character development, theme exploration, or plot progression. 

Next, when you’re editing each chapter with more detail, do the same for the scenes comprising a given chapter. Ask yourself if you’re slipping into accidental script writing, narrating every single action your character takes. Contrast these two examples: 

“When she got downstairs, Cathy opened the cupboard, drawing out a jar of rolled oats. She measured the right amount of oats and then gathered the rest of the ingredients she needed to make her porridge. As always, she topped her breakfast with cinnamon. Then she opened the curtains and sat down to eat her breakfast, before phoning her sister.”

“In the morning, Cathy phoned her sister while she was having breakfast.”

Unless Cathy’s breakfast is about to be part of a crime scene, there’s really no need to zoom into the minutiae of her meal in that much detail. As the writer, you can fast-forward to the important part. The same applies to the beginning and ending of dialogues: there’s no need for characters to engage in extended small talk. Use your novelist powers to lead the reader where they actually need to be.

Another example, to illustrate my point:

As soon as the lab results came back, Martha picked up the phone and rang Janice, a private investigator. “Hi, Janice, it’s Martha from Forensics. How have you been?” “Great! How are you, how’s Georgia?” “Fine, thank you. We saw a fantastic play over the weekend, you should check it out. It’s called Green.” “I definitely will do! Can I help you with anything?” “Yes, I’m calling about a case I’m working on. The thing is, the evidence is not consistent with…”

As soon as the lab results came back, Martha phoned Janice, a private investigator. “Janice, I’m working a case, and I’ve got some evidence that isn’t consistent with …”

Before you hand your manuscript to a professional editor or send a sample to literary agents, you’ll also have to spend some time with each sentence, dwelling on the necessity of each individual word. If there are turns of phrase you’re sad to lose, by all means cut and paste them into another document, where you can return to them for other projects. Right now, focus on the needs of the manuscript at hand.

4. Does The Ending Conclude The Book In A Satisfactory And Logical Way?

Often, having trouble with the ending is a symptom of plot issues earlier on in your book. If you feel like something doesn’t quite click right with your ending, try to trace it back to the rest of the book, and see where it is that the problem really begins.

What ‘flavour’ does your book end on? Is this consistent with what you were working towards? Have you built up to that feeling throughout? End with a feeling of regret if it makes sense given what you’ve written before, but not if it’s an inexplicable change in direction.

If you’re choosing not to fully resolve every narrative thread and leave part of the story open-ended, try to write a few versions of the ending, each with a different degree of open-endedness. If you still feel like your original ending provided the right degree of closure and openness, that’s great — if not, this exercise can help you zoom in on what isn’t working in each version.

This being the self-editing stage, do your best to sharpen your ending, while remembering that there may be some more changes coming to this significant part of your book once you’ve heard back from beta readers and your editor. 

5. Does The Opening Hook The Reader And Emphasise The Right Themes?

You probably wrote your book’s opening first or early on in the writing process, and it's likely that your project has evolved quite dramatically since then. Re-read your first few chapters and reflect as honestly as you can on the pace of the opening — are you doing what you can to ensure your reader will keep on reading? Is your first sentence grabbing their attention? Many writers find that the real opening of their book is a few chapters into the story, as it sometimes takes a little while to find your feet. 

Though many books open with suspenseful, highly-dramatic first sentences (e.g., “The day my life changed forever, I had forgotten to pack my torch”), that level of drama is optional. Works of literary fiction in particular tend to opt for a low-key first sentence that introduces a problem, conflict, or personality, and works well without showing off. 

Compare these two ways to open the same scene:

“It was a Tuesday like all Tuesdays, and autumn leaves were scattered all over the pavement Robin was walking on.”

“With every homeward step, Robin felt more and more like he didn’t want to get back home.”

The latter example isn’t about to win any Nobels, but it introduces Robin as a character, gives readers a sense of something he doesn’t want to do, and tells them he’s doing it anyway — whereas the former sentence is more generic and unmemorable. 

You’ll also need to ask yourself whether your opening scene still embodies the themes that have led your book to its end. If not, you may have to reconsider an altogether different opening.

6. Do The Characters Feel Like Real People Who Have Both Positive And Negative Traits, As Well As A Motivation And Backstory?

Skim through your manuscript and make a note of every major character’s trajectory through the story. Is it all adding up, and does each character feel like they’ve naturally arrived where they’re supposed to be at the end of the book? 

If you can’t really see them as people, that’s probably a sign they deserve a little bit of fleshing out. Here are a few aspects of characterisation to think about:

• Your characters’ goals
• Your characters’ flaws
• Your characters’ backstory
• How they interact differently with other characters
• Where they’re going to go next, after the book is over
• Whether major characters are dynamic or static

One way to get to know your characters better is to complete a character questionnaire, which provides some playful prompts to help you imagine their inner lives and behaviour.

7. If I Read It Aloud, Does It Still Sound Good?

Asking yourself this question will help you evaluate your work’s tone. Many writers sometimes slip into purple prose when they can’t hear their own writing, but quickly regret their choice of words when those same sentences are read aloud. 

Ideally, you should read your entire book out loud to yourself — but if you don’t have that much time, read out passages containing extensive descriptions of characters or landscapes, as well as dialogue. If you’re planning to work with an illustrator or cover designer, you can put those descriptions in another document so you can include them in your design brief. In the meantime, listen out for words that you’re embarrassed to say out loud (a classic purple prose flag), as well as sentences that sound a little off tonally.

A tone check can help you identify passages where you’ve tried too hard to make the writing sound good, ending up with overly elaborate vocabulary or convoluted syntax, or instances where humour doesn’t carry across successfully. 

Once you’re sure you’ve done the best you possibly can, it’s time to begin sharing your work with other people — be that informal beta readers, a professional editor, or literary agents reading a sample of your work. Whichever it is, it’s important that you know that self-editing is simply phase one of editing, and your manuscript will still undergo many revisions informed by external feedback. Approach the next stage with openness and courage — you’ve come a very long way already!

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To create a truly great piece of work, there are many aspects of the craft of writing to take into consideration. Learning the skill of copyediting and line editing is one of them.

There are many different stages of the editing process and when traditionally published you will work with a copy editor, line editors, proofreaders and even sensitivity readers. So, I'm afraid, it's not as simple as checking your work just the once!

In this article, I will be explaining what line editing is, how to line edit effectively, and the differences between line editing vs copy editing.

Unless you have worked as an editor, understanding the different stages of editing and why they're important can feel like a minefield. With so many editing terms floating around it’s hard to know what you need to implement, or when you need the help of a professional editor.

So let us start with the line editing process.

What Is Line Editing?

One of the most common questions I'm asked as an editor is “what is line editing?”

Starting the editing process can be incredibly intimidating, especially when you have no idea what it requires.

Firstly we need to break down the terminology of editing services:

In most areas of writing, be that fiction, non-fiction or even article writing, there are five major types of editing.

1. Developmental Editing
2. Structural Editing
3. Copy Editing
4. Line Editing
5. Mechanical Editing/Proofreading

Most of these editing terms are fairly easy to understand, but the two that get confused more than most are copy editing vs line editing.

Line editing, in its most simple definition, deals with the editing for purposes of flow, style and readability of the manuscript. It's literally looking at your manuscript line by line.

Contrary to what many believe, line editing does not include grammar, spelling or punctuation errors.

Don’t get me wrong, you will be looking so closely at your sentence structures that these will most likely become glaringly obvious, but you don’t need to worry about picking up on all typos during this sweep of your manuscript. There's a reason why proofreading is left until the very end!

Instead, when line editing (either by you or a professional line editor, if you are working with an editor via your publisher or one you have hired) will look at your word usage, the overall readability, the flow and prose.

Clunky sentences will be polished, run-on sentences will be tweaked, and all those words you were not sure really fit will be interchanged for shiny new ones.

This is where you truly polish that diamond.

Line Editing Vs Copy Editing

If line editing focuses on flow, creative content, and writing style, what is the difference between a line edit and a copy edit?

A copy edit is much more technical. It's the editing process where you focus on editing text looking for spelling, grammar and punctuation errors as well as consistency and continuity in regards to name spellings, location spelling and so on.

Proofreading your writing at the very end will also pick up on any stray typos that may have occurred during the editing process.

Copy editing is mechanical and looks at the standard and expected edits, your line edit is much more subjective. It’s about polishing for beauty rather than polishing for performance.

Line Editing Vs Developmental Editing

Developmental Editing is an editing process that happens earlier in the writing journey, focussing on the big picture; pacing, structure, continuity, and character development.

This is a stage of editing where you make sure your character arcs are tight, the relationships on the page make sense, and where those who enjoy working to ‘beats’ will ensure they are hitting the beats at the right points in the novel.

There's no point focussing on what words work best and where, if your chronology and plot are all out of place. So story first, then word choice.

How To Line Edit

My first piece of advice in this section might seem a little left field but bear with me. With each wave of edits, try using a different medium.

This is one piece of advice, given by my favourite writing mentor (Alison May) and it has stuck with me ever since. If you normally read on a laptop, print out your pages and do this edit on hard copy. Or, send it to your Kindle or iPad.

Or better yet, read it backwards!

At this stage, you already know that your book is developmentally sound having completed your developmental edit. So read a page at a time… but from the back of your book. This will force you to look at each line and paragraph individually without getting sucked into the story once more.

Getting Started

When doing a line edit, the best thing to do is first make a list of all the areas you should be focusing on:

Dialogue

Can your dialogue be tighter? Does it read naturally? Can you cut some of those ‘extra’ words to make it read/sound more convincing?

Action

Check your action on the page. This is extremely helpful when it comes to sex scenes, for instance. Do you have too many arms in the scene, (trust me this is entirely possible!) or do the transitions in the action make sense?

Run-On Sentences

Could those sentences be shortened to pack a bigger punch? Does the cadence of the sentence pull you through the scene or stop you short?

Extraneous Or Overused Words

EVERYONE has a tick. A word they overuse in every manuscript. Use the ‘find’ function to discover how many times you lean on it (top tip, you can nearly always delete 'just' and many 'that's').

Repetition

Check for repetition. When writing your first draft you often don’t notice it. Have you told your reader the same thing in four different ways to make sure they get your point? Try to remember your reader is more intelligent than you give them credit for; you only need to tell them something once.

Line Editing Tips

If you are choosing to do your line edits yourself, here are a few ideas to help you complete this editing process as painlessly as possible.

Try:

• Editing/reading in a different format (even if that means simply changing the font style and colour to trick your brain into thinking it’s reading something new).
• Give yourself space between your last edit and your copy edit. Set aside your manuscript for a few days, a week or two if you can cope. Your brain needs time to breathe before you read those words again so it can see them with fresh eyes.
• Try reading your work out loud. How do those words sound when they hit the air?
• Or better yet, get someone to read it to you. (Microsoft word now offers a read-out-loud function.) Sometimes the emphasis someone else puts on certain words will make you realise that sentence doesn’t quite work as well as you'd intended.
• Ask for help! There are many professional editors out there that do this for a living and would be more than happy to assist. If you feel overwhelmed then ask for help. Writing may be a solitary job, but it doesn’t mean we have to struggle alone.

Equally, There Are A Few Things You Should Try Not To Do:

• A thesaurus can often be your best friend… but don’t overuse it. Sometimes simple works best, and if you have to look up a ‘better word’ in a thesaurus, maybe it’s not the word that’s wrong. Look at what it is you are actually trying to say.
• Don’t over analyse. Trust yourself and your reader. Remember the repetition comment – your reader is often more intelligent than you give them credit for. Trust that your writing is strong enough to get your point across without over-explanation.  

As you can see, the process of editing can be broken down into smaller pieces. It makes the whole idea of that scary edit feel much less daunting. Remember, you can’t eat an elephant whole… you need to take it in small bitesize chunks, so embrace the different stages.

Breaking down the writing process into small and very deliberate steps will also give you the distance you need to edit your manuscript with less emotional attachment and from a much more clinical point of view.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Line Editing In Writing?

Line editing is a stage in the editing process where you focus solely on the flow, style, and readability of the manuscript.

This does not include grammar, spelling or punctuation errors.

What Does Line Editing Look Like?

Put very simply, a line edit looks like a lot of red-pen on the page. It is a stage of the edit where you look at every paragraph of your novel and make sure that it moves the story forward, and that the tone and voice are consistent.

At the end of this edit, you will have a manuscript that feels rounded and almost complete.

Do I Need To Employ A Professional Editor/Professional Line Editor?

Hiring a developmental editor/editing services can be incredibly helpful to those who feel they need an extra set of eyes to ensure the flow of the story, but by the time you get to the line edit, most writers feel more than comfortable enough to tackle it themselves.

Get Your Red Pen Out!

Now you know how it's time to get editing. I hope you have found this article helpful, and that you've learned what it takes to get your manuscript sparkling. The editing process needn't be painful. In fact, if done right, it can be a lot of fun!

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Developmental editing. Structural editing. Line editing. Copy editing. Proofreading.

Yes, we know: you’ve written a manuscript. You know it needs some kind of professional help. But what kind of help? Copy editing or line editing? Structural editing or developmental support? There seem to be so many options to choose from.

But never fear. We’ll tell you exactly what each of the different types of editing are – and offer some suggestions on what editing you do/don’t need right now.

The good news is that, quite often, you need less editorial input than you might think. (The bad news is that you have to put in a lot of hard graft instead…)

What Are The Different Types Of Editing?

• Developmental editing: checks concept, plot coherence, and character development/arc.
• Structural editing: identifies issues with plot, pacing, characters, settings, themes, writing style.
• Line editing: looks at details line by line.
• Copy-editing: is much as above, except with less attention to line-by-line correction of clumsy writing.
• Proof reading: looks for simple typos or errors in the text.

How Editing Works

Before we go any further, it’s worth explaining the editorial heirarchy. Essentially you go from large to little, from structural to detailed.

So it’s like building a house: you start with foundations, walls and roof. Then you start thinking about doors and windows. Then you start thinking about paints and wallpapers. Last, you go around sweeping up and sorting out any last little snags.

The same thing with editing, where the hierarchy runs roughly like this, from big to small:

1. Developmental editing. Is this concept sound? Does my plot cohere? Are these the right characters for this book?
2. Structural editing. Identifying and addressing any number of issues covering (for example) plot, pacing, characters, character development, settings, emotional turning points, themes, writing style and much else.
3. Line editing: this starts to look at the detail. Is each sentence clear? Are there typos? Unwanted repetitions? Minor factual errors?
4. Copy editing: much as above, except there’s less attention to line-by-line correction of clumsy writing.
5. Proof reading: At the proof stage, you generally expect that all the essential work has already been done, so this is really just rushing around the manuscript looking for last bits of lint to pick off and typos to clear away.

That’s the overview. Not all manuscripts will go through all of these stages – indeed, if you’re doing a decent job as an author then two or three of these stages are probably redundant.

All that said, let’s jump straight into the meat…

Developmental Editing

We’ll start with the biggest, broadest, most sweeping kind of editing you can get: developmental editing. That’s a type of editing that used to have one meaning, but it’s kind of morphed into two distinct beasts for reasons, I’ll explain in a second.

Definition: What Is Developmental Editing?

In the good old days, developmental editing used to have one precise meaning. It now has certainly two, and maybe three.

A. Developmental Editing – Traditional Definition

But we start with the first, core, and most precise definition. To quote the ever-reliable Wikipedia:

“A developmental editor may guide an author (or group of authors) in conceiving the topic, planning the overall structure, and developing an outline—and may coach authors in their writing, chapter by chapter.”

In other words, any true “editing” took place before the writing. It was a planning and design function, in essence. Because competent authors can probably take care of planning and design perfectly well by themselves, such editing was always relatively rare and, in fiction, very rare. (I’ve authored getting on for twenty books now and have never once had a development edit. I’m damn sure I never will.)

B. Developmental Editing As Industry Euphemism

But of course not all authors are perfect and, now and again, publishers have to deal with a manuscript they’ve commissioned, but which turns out to be absolutely dire. Think celebrity memoir of the worst sort. Or a multi-million-selling author who’s long since stopped caring about how he or she writes, because they know the money will roll in anyway.

So what to do?

Well, the standard solution in trade publishing is to do what is euphemistically called a ‘development edit’. What that actually means is that an editor takes on the role of something akin to a ghostwriter. They rip out everything that’s hopeless and rebuild.

I’ve known a Big 5 editor who had done this a couple of times, and he said it was soul-destroying. He didn’t get any bonus for doing the work. He didn’t get a share of fame or royalties. He didn’t go on the chat shows or the book tours. And he was always dancing on eggshells with the Famous Author, because the author in question was very prickly about having his work slighted in any way.

Even though the work in question sucked.

Great.

So that’s the second meaning of a development edit: basically a euphemism designed to disguise what is basically a ghostwriting job.

When Is Classic Developmental Editing Right For You?

It isn’t. You don’t need it.

What you probably need (either now or in due course) is a professional manuscript assessment and possibly some of the add-ons normally associated with developmental editing. But in the classic sense of the term, you just don’t need it. We’ll talk about what you do need right away.

Structural Editing, Substantive Editing, Editorial Assessment

Right. So I’m not a big fan of developmental editing, but I LOVE the type of editing we’re about to talk about. But first up: definitions.

Definitions

Structural editing is, strictly speaking, a set of comments on the structure of your work. That will certainly involve plot and pacing. But it may also include comments on character, mood, emotional transitions, dialogue, character arcs, writing style and much more.

If you’re being strict about it, structural editing should focus only on structure, but in practice editors tend to comment on anything that, in their view, needs attention. (Which is good. Which is what you want.)

Basically, a good structural edit will tell you:

• What’s working (though they won’t spend too long on this)
• What’s not working (this is where the report will concentrate all its firepower)
• How to fix the stuff that isn’t yet right

A good report will quite simply cover everything that you most need to know. It’ll do that from the perspective of the market for books as it is now. So the kind of crime novels (say) that could have sold 25 years ago may not be right for the market now. A good editor will know that, and set you on the right lines.

Substantive editing is basically the same as structural editing, except that technically it doesn’t have to limit itself to structure alone. But since structural editors don’t in practice confine themselves to structural comments, it’s pretty safe to say that, in practice, the two things are exactly the same.

Editorial assessment, or Manuscript assessment. These two things are exactly the same as structural editing. The difference is that an editorial assessment gives you an editorial report, but doesn’t usually also give you a marked-up manuscript as well.

Again, in practice, these things blur into each other. Our own core editorial product is, indeed, the manuscript assessment. The main deliverable there is a long, detailed editorial report on your book. That said, a lot of editors will, if it’s useful, also mark-up all or part of your manuscript. Or if they don’t, they may quote so extensively from your work, that it’s kinda the same as if they did.

In short, and give or take a few blurry bits on the edges:

structural editing = substantive editing = editorial assessment = manuscript assessment

Easy, right?

Is Structural Editing / Editorial Assessment Right For You?

Yes.

Almost certainly: yes.

Now, to be clear, I own Jericho Writers and if you trot along to buy one of our wonderful manuscript assessments, you’ll make me a teeny-tiny bit richer. So in that sense I’m biased.

On the other hand, I just told you not to buy developmental edits, and I’d make myself a LOT richer if I got you to buy one of those things, so I hope I have a little credit in the bank. I’m speaking truth, not salesman yadda.

And the reason I like structural editing so much is that:

1. It is and remains the gold-standard way to improve a manuscript. Nothing else has ever come close. I’m not that far away from publishing my twentieth book. (I’m both trad & indie, and I love both channels, in case you’re wondering.) I’m a pretty damn good author. I’ve had very positive reviews in newspapers across the world. My books have sold in a kazillion countries and been adapted for TV. And every single one of my books have had detailed editorial input. And they’ve always, always got better as a result. Always.
2. It makes you better as a writer. You always emerge from these exercises with new skills and new insights. You will apply those to your current manuscript, for sure, but you’ll apply them to the next one too. The more you work with skilled external editors, the more you’ll grow as a writer. (And, I think, as a human too.)

So that’s why I think structural editing works so well, and for such a huge variety of manuscripts, genres and authors.

When Should You Get Structural Input On Your Work?

Well, OK. The businessman in me wants to say, “Get that input right now. Hand over your lovely hard-earned dollars / pounds / shekels / yen, and your soul and career will flourish, my friend.”

But that’s not the right answer.

The fact is that the right time for editorial input is generally: as late as possible.

If you know you have a plot niggle in Part IV, then fix the damn niggle. Fix it as well as you can. Don’t go and pay someone to tell you that you have an issue. That’s dumb.

Same thing if your characters feel a bit flat, or your atmosphere is a bit lacking, or whatever else. If you know your book has issues, then do the best you can to fix those issues. You’ll learn a lot and your book will get better.

That means, the right time for editorial input comes when:

1. You’ve worked hard, but you keep going round in circles. You’re confusing yourself. You need external eyes and buckets of wisdom.
2. You’ve worked hard, but you know the book isn’t right. You don’t know what’s awry exactly, but you know you need help.
3. You’ve worked hard, you’ve got the book out to agents, but you’re not getting offers of representation. You know you need to do something, but you don’t know what.
4. The self-pub version of 2: you have a draft you’re reasonably happy with, but you’re about to publish this damn thing, and your whole future career depends on the excellence of the story you’re going to serve the reader. So you do the right thing and invest in the product. You’re going to get the best kickass structural edit you can, then use that advice as intensively as you can. (Editing, in fact, is one of the only two things that should cost you real money at this early stage: the other one is cover design. And, no surprise, they both relate to developing the best product it is in your power to produce.)

In short: work as hard as you can on the book. When you’re no longer making discernible forward progress, come to an editor.

And – blatant plug alert! – Jericho Writers is very, very good at editorial stuff. We’ve got a bazillion people published, trad and indie, and the success stories just keep coming.

Developmental Editing – As Premium Manuscript Assessment

I love manuscript assessments – I think they’re the single most helpful thing you can do to improve your work. At their best, with author and editor working well together, they’re like a magic formula for improving your work.

But a lot of people still find them insufficient. In particular, a manuscript assessment might say something like, “Your character Claudia isn’t yet cohering. Here’s what I mean in general terms [blah, blah, blah]. And here are some specific page references which illustrate my general point [page 23, page 58, etc].”

Now that’s helpful, but it still leaves you to do an awful lot. If Claudia is a major character, the specific changes you need to make are likely to go well beyond the handful of examples the editor uses to make their broader point.

So what do you do?

Well, hopefully, you understand exactly where your editor is coming from, and you make the necessary changes, and your manuscript becomes perfect.

Only maybe not. Some people just are helped by having their manuscript marked up page by page. That’s not instead of the more general report. It’s in addition. That way you get to see the broad thrust of the comments, as well as the more specific issues as well.

So you get an overview of (for example) why Claudia isn’t quite working as well as a detailed laundry list of all the specific places where her character grates a bit.

And it’s not just characterisation. It’s plot issues. It’s matters of writing style. It’s sense of place. It’s everything that goes into a novel.

So – and this is because our clients have specifically asked us to create the product – we now offer a version of developmental editing that combines these services in a single package:

• Manuscript assessment – overview report
• Detailed mark-up of your manuscript – literally page, by page
• One hour discussion with the editor, so you can resolve any outstanding questions or niggles you may have.

Pretty obviously, this is a deluxe package and, pretty obviously, it’s expensive. It’s also, honestly, not what most of you need.

Will I Benefit From Developmental Editing, Jericho-style?

As a rough guide, very new writers are probably best off building their skills by taking a writing course or, of course, just hammering away at their manuscript. (That’s still the best learning exercise of all.)

After that, once you have a first, or third, or fifth draft manuscript, it makes sense to get a regular manuscript assessment. That way, you can grasp the main issues with your work and you have a plan of attack for dealing with them.

Because developmental editing is as much concerned both with the broader issues AND with the narrower ones, it doesn’t really make sense to purchase the service until your manuscript is in pretty good shape.

After all, the outcome of a manuscript assessment might be “That whole sequence set on Venus just doesn’t work and needs to be rethought from scratch.” If that’s the case, then having detailed page-by-page comments on the way you write isn’t really going to help you much.

So as a rough guide, you will benefit from developmental editing, if:

• Your manuscript is in pretty good shape (ie: this should be the last major round of work before submitting to publishers or self-publishing the manuscript)
• You want both broad and narrow comments
• You want the opportunity to talk at length with your editor
• You are OK paying for a premium service.

You will not benefit from developmental editing, if:

• Your manuscript is still at a somewhat earlier stage in its journey
• You feel able to handle the narrower issues yourself, so long as you have reasonable guidance from your manuscript assessment report.

Because we don’t want to take your money if developmental editing is not right for you, we have made the service by application only. That’s not because we’re going to stop you doing what you want to do. Just, if we’re not sure whether it makes sense for you to splash the cash, we at least want to be able to check in with you before we go ahead.

Line Editing, Copy Editing, Proof Reading

OK. We’ve dealt with the broader, more structural types of editing. We’re now going to home in on the ever finer-grained types of editing.

We’ll start as before with some definitions.

Definitions

Of the detailed, line-by-line type edits, line-editing is the one that has the broadest remit. I’ll start with proof-reading (the most narrowly defined of these editorial stages) and build upwards from there.

Proof-reading comes at the final stage prior to printing/publication. It basically assumes that the manuscript has already been checked over thoroughly, so this is really only a final check for errors that have managed to slip through the net. (And, in fact historically, the process of type-setting for print often introduced errors, so proof-reading was partly necessary to reverse those. These days, unsurprisingly, you can format a document for print without messing it up.) The kind of errors a proof-reader will catch include: typos, misspellings, punctuation errors, missing spaces, and the like. It’s a micro-level, final-error catching task, and nothing much else.

Copy-editing includes everything included in proofreading, but it’ll have a somewhat broader scope. So a copy editor will also be on the look out for factual errors, timetable and other inconsistencies in the novel, occasional instances of unclear or weak phrasing, awkward repetitions, deviations from house style (if there is a house style), and so on. In the traditional publishing sequence, copy editing will take place after all structural editing has been done, but before the book has been set for print.

Line-editing will cover everything that’s detailed above, plus a general check for sentence structure, clarity and sense. In other words, it is part of a line editor’s job to fix clumsily phrased, repetitious or otherwise awkward sentences. Yes, you the author should not be writing clumsily in the first place, but if by chance you do, the line editor is there to put things right.

Why does anyone ever want or need line-editing? Well, some authors are brilliant at generating character and story, but their actual sentence-by-sentence expression of that story just isn’t so great. In these cases, a publisher will commission a line-edit to put those things right.

The Editing Process: What You Need & When You Need It

Right. What kind of editing you need and should pay for depends on what kind of publication you are looking at. So:

The Traditional Publishing Sequence

The normal publishing sequence (for traditionally published books) would be:

1. Structural editing (ie: a detailed manuscript assessment)
2. Copy-editing (or line editing if the author really needs it, but never both things)
3. Proof-reading

That’s it.

If you are aiming at traditional publication, then you may well need to invest in a manuscript assessment, in order to write something of the quality needed for a literary agent / publisher.

You certainly won’t need copy editing, or anything along those lines. That’ll be carried out, for free, by the publisher down the line. (They’ll also do some more structural editing work too, but don’t worry about that – you can’t get too much, and your book always gets better.)

The Indie Publishing Sequence

Indie publishers, inevitably, focus more on cost-cutting than the Big 5 houses do, so a typical indie process might look simply like this:

1. Some kind of structural support – probably an editorial assessment or something similar
2. Some kind of copy-editing support

If you don’t have the budget for both, I’d urge you to get the structural help: that’s what will really make the difference to the sheer readability of your book. That’s where to spend your funds.

Indeed, though we at Jericho Writers offer a full range of copyediting and proofreading services, I don’t usually advise writers to invest in them at all.

If you are an indie on a lowish launch budget (which is the right kind of budget to have when you’re just starting out), then I’d recommend an editing plan along roughly the following lines:

1. Full editorial assessment, ideally from Jericho Writers (because we’re really good at it.)
2. You then rework your book in the light of what you’ve been told
3. You then give it a good hard proofread yourself for any errors and typos
4. You then enlist the help of any eagle-eyed friends to do the same

That plan won’t give you a manuscript as clean as if you give it the full cost-no-object Big 5 treatment … but it’ll be just fine. Don’t overspend at this stage.

The Indie Publishing Sequence

OK. You know the basic layout of what editing is and when it’s used. Here’s what I think the big questions are.

Developmental Editing Vs Structural Editing

You know my view on this. I think for 99% of you reading this, you are best off (a) working and self-editing as hard as you can yourself, then (b) getting professional input on your work from a structural editor.

That’s going to be miles cheaper and the end result will be better too. Yes, you’ll need to do a lot of work, but you’re a writer. You like work. (If you don’t, you’re in the wrong job.)

If you are a newer author, you may well need two or three rounds of structural input. That’s fine. That’s not a failure on your part. That’s you learning a new trade. It’s money well spent – and you can prove it to yourself too. Just ask yourself: are you a better, more knowledgeable, more capable writer at the end of the process? If the answer isn’t yes, I’ll eat my boots, jingly spurs and all. (*)

* – disclosure: I don’t actually wear spurs.

Structural Editing Vs Copy Editing

OK, these are two very different things, but of the two, the structural editing definitely matters more. The purpose of structural / substantive editing is simply: make your book the best book it can be.

The purpose of copy editing is simply: make the text as clean as it can be.

Both things matter, but if your budget only permits one of those things, then go for structural editing, every day of the week. A wonderful story is much more important than tidy text.

And again, though we sell copyediting services, you shouldn’t need them at all if you are heading for trad publication, and you should probably be able to find an acceptable but much cheaper substitute if you are self-publishing.

Line Editing Vs Copy Editing Vs Proof-reading

If you are going to get line-by-line corrections to your MS, then the default answer is to go for copy editing. Proof-reading is really too narrow, and only really makes sense if your book has already been copy edited. (Which is fine if you have a Big 5 budget, but makes no sense for you.)

Line editing is really only required if your sentence construction isn’t yet all it could be, in which case I’d urge you to invest in upskilling. Quite simply: as a pro author, you should be in command of your language. If you’re not, and have to pay a line editor, and if you intend to write 10, 15, 20 or more books over the course of your career, you’ll end up paying a fortune. Much, much better to nurture those exact skills in yourself, and you’ll never need to spend a penny on a line edit.

Also: writing well is good for your soul and writing beautiful sentences is a source of beauty and joy forever. So don’t give anyone else the pleasure.

And Finally…

That’s it from me. Thanks for reading. If you’ve read this far, you may also like:

Help on how to present your manuscript

Help on how to self-edit your novel

If you need help figuring out what kind of editorial process (or, indeed, other support) might be right for you, then get in touch. Jericho Writers does not have a sales team or employ salespeople or pay anyone on commission. Our customer service people are only allowed to recommend a particular service if they genuinely think it would be helpful to the writer concerned.

We’re run by writers for writers, and we’re on your side.

Thanks for reading – and happy editing!

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If you think you need copyediting for your manuscript, take a look at our copyediting services. Jericho Writers' experienced editors specialise in editing both novels and non-fiction and would love to help you with your work. Click here for more.

You asked. We answered.

You’ve written your manuscript. You’ve edited hard. You are now on your fourth, seventh, nineteenth draft. You still absolutely believe in your basic concept and you are certain that you have a vocation for writing / authoring.

But here’s the thing: you know your work isn’t yet good enough.

Maybe you know that just because you’ve got that feelings in my bones. (And believe me: I’ve been there too.)

Or maybe you’ve tried actually sending your work out to literary agents and had nothing but pre-printed rejection emails. (Or, worse, but very common – you haven’t even heard back.)

So what next? It feels like a Catch-22. You want expert editing to help you over the last remaining hurdles, but the people who look like they ought to be helping you – those literary agents – aren’t even replying to your emails.

So now what? And do these darn agents edit manuscripts, yes or no?

Well, if you want the short answer, then it’s:

Yes, they do edit manuscripts, but also
No, no, they really don’t.

If that explanation doesn’t seem totally helpful, then I’ll see if I can make it a little clearer.

When Agents Get Involved In Editing

And when (more often) they don’t.

When it comes to your dealings with literary agents, it’s essential to remember that these guys do not charge you anything upfront. Not a dollar, not a dime. I’ve had an agent for twenty years and I have never paid even one single penny for his or (with my first agent) her services – or not directly anyway.

Because the way that agents get their money is by earning commissions on sales to publishers.

So if you take the first book in my Fiona Griffiths series, my agent has made sales – and earned commission – on sales to publishers in Britain, America, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, and further afield. He’s also been involved in the sale of TV rights. He’s also done a terrific audio deal for me. There may be other deals down the road too. Each time one of these deals happens, I get a wodge of money arriving in my bank account, from which the agent has deducted his little (and well-earned) sliver.

The consequence of this “no fee / commission only” payment structure is that agents only get paid for their time if they make a sale – and then only if that sale is for enough money to pay them back for all that they’ve done. That’s should be easy-ish if the sale is to a Big 5 publisher and brings some overseas book deals in its wake. If the only sale is to a mid-sized or micro domestic publisher, then the agent is probably (privately) disappointed.

The Tottering Slushpile

If the commission-only way of doing business seems challenging, that challenge is compounded by the sheer volume of submissions that literary agents receive.

That total varies from agent to agent, but about 2,000 submissions per agent per year would be typical. Of that an agent may find only 2-3 manuscripts that seem destined for the kind of advances that will generate enough revenue for an agent.

The result?

Predictably enough, agents will reject the vast majority of manuscripts that come their way. It’s not just that they don’t have the time to deal with those manuscripts and those clients, it’s that there’s no money in them. Most manuscripts that agents receive are just unsaleable.

So When do Agents Edit?

Agents will get involved in editorial advice when they come across a manuscript that:

1. Has an excellent, saleable idea.
2. Is written with a competent professionalism.
3. Has a strong story.
4. Is in the top 1%, or maybe the top 0.5% of all submissions.
5. Is not ready to be sent to publishers as it stands.

In effect, when an agent offers to get involved editorially, they are thinking, roughly:

“Look, if I sent this manuscript out as it is, I might get offers, but I don’t think they’d be very strong ones... and actually, I might just get fistful of rejections. And I certainly don’t want that.

“Then again, I can’t helpfeeling that this manuscript could do really well, if I put in the 2-3 dozen hours needed to get this manuscript into shape. Yes, the writer themselves will be doing the actual work here – my job will be one of guidance only; I’m not going to be making hands-on changes to the manuscript myself.

“But with my input, and if the writer works hard and makes the changes I recommend? Then yes, I think this could be a really profitable (and fun, and artistically rewarding) project. I’m going to reach out to this author. Yay!“

As a writer, that’s good to hear on a number of levels. You don’t want a real estate guy who just dumps your house on the market without telling you to mow your overgrown lawn and fix that sagging guttering. You want the real estate person who forces you to fix the house up for sale, in order that you get the very best price.

So the fact that agents are willing to be engaged, active and intelligent in how they sell your book is great to hear.

But from your perspective, as writer, there are two crucial qualifications to take away.

Crucial Thing the First
Your manuscript has to be really, really good already.
You can’t just use agents as a free pass to solving the difficulties that you and your manuscript face.

If you send an agent a mediocre manuscript, you stand no chance at all of engaging them qua editor. In fact, because the competition is so intense, you won’t get an agent involved even if your book is really quite good.

The sad fact is that “really quite good” isn’t even close to the standard agents are looking for.

Crucial Thing the Second
Some agents are really strong editorially, and love doing it.
Others just aren’t that strong and don’t pretend to be.

After all, an agent’s core job is as a saleswoman (or, less often in this industry, salesman.) My first agent – who was great – told me directly when I engaged her that she just wasn’t that great at editing books, but she was a powerhouse when it came to selling them.

These days, I’d say that all agents have had to become more hands on when it comes to polishing manuscripts prior to sale, but there’s still a reason why editors edit, and agents sell.

In effect, using an agent as an editor is a bit like using a carpenter as a bricklayer. Sure, carpenters are skilled and multi-talented. They’ll probably do a pretty good job of building that wall, but . . .

If You Want An Editor, Hire An Editor!

There are plenty of freelance editors around. We at Jericho Writers built our business and our reputation by offering superb editorial advice to writers just like you. Get a manuscript assessment here.

And what you get is editing, editing, editing.

You pay for our input, and you get our full, committed, detailed assessment of your manuscript, along with a ton of recommendations about what to do and how to do it.

Now you probably think that, because we make money from editing, and because we’ve had a huge number of success stories, I’m going to tell you to rush over to us for editorial help.

Well, no. I’m not.

You can’t use editorial input as a shortcut. Successful writers always put the hard yards in themselves.

Some writers think something like this: “Hey, I’ve completed my manuscript. I’ve done a couple of quick read-throughs for typos and that kind of thing. I’ve emailed my manuscript out to a few dozen literary agents, but no one offered to take me on and they won’t help me edit my book, even though I asked really nicely. So, OK, maybe I need to pay someone to get this book into shape.”

If you think like that, then you won’t make the grade as a writer and, to be honest with you, you aren’t the sort of client that we especially love dealing with. I mean, sure, we’ll work with anyone, and we’ll do our level professional best for you. But our favourite clients? They are always, always the super-committed ones.

Remember: Writing is rewriting.

Self-editing is the art of sifting through your manuscript and checking it for everything.

Surplus words, sentences, paragraphs and scenes. Faulty, vague or unconvincing characterisation. Weak dialogue. Weak plotting. Problems with pace or viewpoint.

Basically, you need to think like an author and work these things out for yourself, as far as you are possibly able.

You will benefit in three ways. First, your manuscript will get better (probably a lot better). Secondly, your own skills as an author will grow. Thirdly, your pride and confidence will – quite rightly – grow and blossom.

So, OK, you do all that and then you may still need editorial help.

And that’s fine. Maybe you’ll just know for yourself that your manuscript needs work. Or maybe you’ll try your luck with literary agents and not get the response you wanted. Or maybe you’ve been scratching away at a dissatisfaction with your work, and have found yourself going round in circles.

If you fit into any of those categories, then, yes, you do need third party editorial help and, yes, we at Jericho Writers would absolutely love to give it.

We are here to deliver outstanding editorial services to committed writers, and we would be deeply honoured to work with you. If you're interested in our copyediting services, please click here.

In the meantime, happy writing, happy editing and (when you’re good and ready to send your work out) happy agent-hunting too!

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