Life's Not Always Sunshine and Roses
Sometimes it's sunflowers!
It's been soooo gray and dreary here in San Antonio most of the winter, I decided to provide my own little bit of sunshine. Enjoy!
The title of this post is a metaphor, too, I think. I'm bad with those. My editor will tell you. And guess what? She just happens to be my special guest this month.
Some of you may recall my search for her a couple of years ago. Of course I didn't know who it would be at that time.
Anyway, I'm happy to introduce you to the editor I chose for The Amazing Gracie Trilogy - Susan Helene Gottfried at West of Mars.
Susan is amazing in her own right. She gets what I write. She knows her stuff. She makes me think. And she's fast. Or should that be quick? LOL!
Today she's talking about one of the things she sees a lot of from writers. And I'm certain she could make that sentence much better :)
She also makes me sound a lot cooler than I really am. I'll try to use her words as inspiration.
Here's Susan.
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Let me start off my visit Under the Tiki Hut today by thanking Carol for hosting me. She and I have become friendly over the past few years, and Iāve become a huge fan. Being associated with someone as much fun, as professional, and as kind and friendly as Carol has been a very healing balm in my life. I hope some of you reading this will cross the interwebs and hang around my place, too; after all, like attracts like, right? And Carolās attracted us both.
But as much as Iād like to, Iām not here to gush about my awesome friend. Iām here to talk a little bit about editing, because thatās how I make my way through this world: Iām a freelance editor to authors of fiction.
Good editing is expensive. We all know this, and if you donāt agree, or havenāt encountered it, I do hope youāre getting excellent work from whoever youāve chosen to partner with.
However, a number of authors Iāve been meeting of late have been using online forums as a means of subverting the editing experience.
I have at times dabbled in these online forums, but Iāve found Iāve had to limit my time there. Iāve found it too frustrating to try to be a crowd-sourced editor.
Whatās happening is that authors are posting snippets and hoping for feedback. But without the continuity of the rest of the work, many of their questions are impossible to answer. I canāt tell you if itās better to say Papa, Father, or Daddy if I donāt know anything about the character whoāll be using those words.
Thatās because too oftenāwhich is another way of saying almost every single timeāmy reply to the author reads: It depends on the context, the voice of the character, the narrative flow, and other factors.
Likewise, I canāt tell you if you should describe certain details without knowing if the narrator is the type of characterāand yes, the narrator IS a character!āwho will pay attention. It may seem inconsequential right now, but when a reader sits down with your book, they need for all the voices to be consistent. It doesnāt matter if five people on Facebook prefer using Dad to the other choices. It matters if the character or narratorāwhoever will be using the wordāsounds like him or herself when they utter that word.
Fiction is intricate stuff. It doesnāt seem like it, but when you get down to the nitty-gritty of revising and working with a really good editor, you want someone who will pay attention to these issues. You need to make sure that if youāre writing in the first person, the narrative voice matches the characterās dialogue, since the same person is speaking. You want to make sure they are acting consistently within themselves even though human beings are an inconsistent lot. Thereās a line to toe here, and if you need help not teetering one way or the other, you need to know that the people youāve lined up to work with you can handle what youāre going to throw at them.
So thatās why Iāve stopped hanging around the online groups. My problem isnāt that the writers are bad, itās that I always want to see more so I can give the best answer for the authorās needs. On the surface, thatās what authors want, right? Theyāve joined a group to get help, so whatās the problem?
In many of these groups, doing so would be viewed as making an offer to work for the author, and self-promotion like this isnāt allowed. Itās almost a catch-22. Authors want the information to help them make the best book possible, but us editors? Weāre not allowed to ask for a wider context, lest we be seen as soliciting clients unfairly, even when thatās not our intent. Personally, I think that a more in-depth back and forth with the author benefits not only the author but the editor as well, because it lets us see what people who arenāt our clients are struggling with.
So Iāve had to walk away. Iām sad to have to, as I enjoy interacting with writers of all sorts, and that means my clients and those who arenāt. As much as Iād love to, I canāt edit the entire world of writers, after all.
But for those of you who find that these online groups are working for you, keep in mind that maybe you can take your writing up another level by finding an editor whoāll help you understand the fine nuance that emerges when context is considered.
Good luck and I hope you make smart decisions. If you need help or advice as you try to do so, donāt hesitate to reach out. Sometimes, being the best editor means knowing when to let an author hire someone else.
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In Name Only will be on sale for 99 cents February 19-25.
Please share with your friends and readers.
Please share with your friends and readers.
I'll be back here on Monday, March 5.
ā„ Happy Valentine's Day ā„
Comments
It would be hard to judge just a small part of the work, even for a writer who isn't an editor.
Elizabeth - It's so easy to get overwhelmed with online anything. I often step back and reassess. For me it's an ongoing process.
Diane - I know people (not just writers) who will wait in line for anything free and then complain because it's not what they expected or wanted. That's why writing is so much fun - all of us are weird in some way :)
Hi, Susan! Hope you're having fun. Margaritas on the patio at six :)
For me, I'd rather pay an editor for the one-on-one connection. That means I need to win the lotto! LOL (But I'm not really a gambler... LOL)
*waving* Hope you're well, Carol!
Now off to my writing balloon..
Hope those margaritas are virgin. Sigh. No, I don't. How about margaritas at six and a half hour bike ride at eight?
Michelle - Have fun in your writing balloon! I'm doing great, thank you. So thankful.
Susan, if we're going bike riding, we better go before margarita time :)
I am out of the loop with online forums. I didn't even realize authors were posting to them and hoping for some crowd source editing help. I can see how it would be difficult to give advice without a bit more context.
Editing is so important and I am thankful to editors every day.
Have a great week!
~Jess
Interesting post. I'm so glad you two "found" each other. A good working relationship between writer and editor is very important, and it sounds like you guys have it. I totally agree with Susan (such a lovely name!) about online "crowd editing." It's impossible to judge content based on a snippet. Grammar and spelling, yes, but to get the big picture, you need to see the... big picture!
Jess - I'm certainly thankful for Susan!
Susan S. - Perhaps I should invent a sunshine machine. Like one of those SAD lights, except one that can shine through a window and light up a room :)
Jan - Hi again!
Susan - Jan and I first met in the Short Mystery Fiction Society. Her stories are always fun. Except for the noir ones. They're deliciously dark.
Jemi - Yes!
Ms. Flett Swiderski: You have a GORGEOUS first name. Can I use it in my own fiction sometime?
Jan: I'm impressed. One of my good friends publishes in Mysterical-E, as well.
Mason: You can have my margarita. Since my bike accident, I can't drink anymore. This is possibly the hardest thing I've ever done. You don't realize what a drinking society we are until you can't join in.
It's SO nice when a writer and editor can gel like you two obviously have. It really can make such a difference in the final book. Can't wait to finally read it when it's published!
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