Authors need good editors. Wearing both hats is so hard. I am a story person. I focus on interesting characters and compelling narratives. Searching through a story for every typo, spelling mistake, comma in the right/wrong place...being an editor, generally, harms my love of reading. There is a reason I never majored in literature studies. That burn out is too great a burden.

That said, I have had to wear the editor's hat for the last 6 months. I've been working with a new publisher and we were not fully in synch when my recent books were put through. As such, many minor issues got through the editing process which great readers were good enough to bring to my attention. Taking responsibility I resolved to go through each book line by line, word by word, punctuation by bloody gosh darn &*%*%^&!!!! punctuation to correct every issue.

I have finally finished. The correction lists have been sent to the publisher so that they can correct the master copies of each manuscript and those books can be everything you deserve them to be.

With this painful chapter closed I can also, finally, put the author cap back on. I have had 2 WIPs in limbo, refusing to push forward until the mess I've made has been cleaned up. I find myself nervous. This journey has left me questioning my own talent and worthiness. I know that I like the stories I'm crafting but am I good enough to tell them? Is it worth the effort? I don't like that feeling one bit. I write because I love to write. In the end that's all I get out of it. My books have yet to turn a profit and have a very small fan base. They are, however, something that gets me out of bed in the morning, that makes me want to work on them no matter how I'm feeling.

So I'll write, having learned form this experience, and if new mistakes happen then I'll correct them. Maybe I'm good enough to tell these stories and maybe I'm not but I won't know until I try. I'm an author. I tell stories. The rest? I guess I'll just have to figure that out as I go.