Help For Writers discussion

Often we talk about "Editors." But there are different kinds of editors that you should be aware of.

As a writer, you should know about "Acquiring Editors" at a publishing house. Their job is to look at your manuscript, or submission, evaluate it, and see if it fits within the publisher's guidelines for the lines, or imprints they publish. This type of editor is a position of title, as in "decision maker." Will your novel make money for the publisher? Will it sell? Who would read it?

Their job is NOT to fix your mistakes and give you advice, or to critique your work. The Acquiring Editor is usually the first person at a publishing house who looks at your work. They "acquire" the submissions.

There are many titles for these editors at a publishing house, "Editor-in-Chief," "Senior Editor," "Assistant Editor," or just "Editor." There is usually a main editor for each imprint put out by the publisher. Often they have several Assistant Editors under them.

So, before you send off your submission, do a bit of research and find out the editor's name for the imprint you plan to send to. Sometimes there is a list of editors. You can pick one of these and send your submission to them. Now days many publishers may require your submission to come through an agent. If so, then you will need to query agents first, then the agent sends out to the editors for you. But many small independent publishers will accept personal submissions.

It is usually best to address your query to a specific person. By just saying "Editor" it is the equivlent of saying, "Hey You!" Then send it to the editor over the imprint that publishes your type of material.

For those who may not know, most larger publishers have many "imprints." These are the different types of genres they publish. For instance, many have a "Line" or imprint for sci-fi and fantasy, another one for romance, another imprint for suspense/thrillers, another for non-fiction, etc. So make sure you send to the editor who handles the type of material you write.

Also, there are "Line Editors," whose job is to read through your manuscript and look for errors. These also work for the publisher, but they don't come into play until after you've been offered a contract and have submitted your BEST manuscript. The more perfect your manuscript, the better your first impression will be. They don't have the time to "teach" new writers "HOW" to write. If your writing skills are not up to publishable standards or of a high quality, your manuscirpt will be rejected. (The same goes for agents. If they don't think they can sell it a publisher, they'll reject it.)

Incidentally, never send out a manuscript that is "single-spaced." It will not get read. ALL submissions MUST be "double-spaced" and in standard manuscript format. Too often new writers think they have to present a manuscript that looks like it is "ready for the printers." This will quickly get you a rejection.

The double-spacing allows the editor to make comments and edits between the lines. If accepted by a publisher, your manuscript will be re-formatted to fit the printers specifications. So, just make sure the "content" reads like a published book. Remember, you are presenting a MANUSCRIPT for their perusal, not a hot-off-the-press book.

Now we often talk about making sure your manuscript has been edited, honed, and polished before sending off to a publisher or agent. The type of editors we are talking about here are "Independant Editors" who work for themselves and charge by the page, or the hour, or by the project, to go through your manuscript and edit it. This is NOT the same as a critique.

This editor's job is to look for errors in grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc. The reason they charge so much is that editing is very tedious and tiring work. They may offer suggestions to make your work stronger concerning the plot, or certain sections, but their "main job" is to make sure it is "technically sound."

To avoid having to pay for a professional editor, it helps if you "learn the basics" of grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc., so that you can present a professional looking manuscript. Every serious writer should learn these basics. If you aren't sure, pick up a copy of "Elements of Style" then you can look up things as you go.

Someone who "Critiques" goes more into what is not working in the plot (plot holes), the general standard of writing, and may spot problems with the manuscript in general. They may point out the obvious errors as they run across them, but they take a look at the overall writing. Does it pull the reader in? Would the character react this way in this situation? Is this situation believable to the average reader? Things like that.

Having someone critique your chapters, opening pages, or first chapter can be of more value than any editor, as they can spot problems that an editor looking for errant commas never would. The "Critiquer" gets into the guts of the story.

I've always said that every serious writer should join a writers group where you can get feedback, or your material critiqued. You learn more about your writing from this than you would from paying to have your work edited. If there isn't a writers group in your area that you can join, then maybe start one at your local library. Or see if you can post a notice at a local independant book store. Most often you are too close to your own writing to spot many of the problems that others might pick up. Many groups meet at a local coffee shop, or larger book store where they have seating, or like mine, reserve a private room once a week at the library.

If you are paranoid about them stealing your ideas or characters, then maybe you should not be a writer. There are no NEW ideas, and besides, ideas cannot be copyrighted. Most serious writers have plenty of ideas of their own and don't need to steal them from others. It is usually the beginning writer who is often this paranoid. Professional writers know the copyright laws and would never plagiarize themselves. It would ruin their careers.

I hope this clears up some of the confusion about the different types of editors that writers deal with.

Any other comments or suggestions?

I've also seen reference to "Copy Editors" (who fact check historical details and look for consistency in descriptions, etc.) and "Developmental Editors." I have a vague notion of what the latter do, but I would like to hear if others have more input.

Yes, I forgot about "Copy Editors."

I'm not sure what a "developmental editor" is. I've never dealt with one. I think they may come up with ideas for a book or series of books, then hire a writer, or several writers to write the books. Usually in this case the writer only gets paid a flat fee for their service, and don't get any name recognition since the publisher owns the rights to the series and characters. An example would be the Long Horn Western Series. Long Horn is a made up name for an author, the publisher owns the name and the characters. (There's also the Max Brand name as well.) They hire outside writers for a flat fee to come up with short books of fast action. Or some are probably staff writers who are paid by the project.

Another one might be the Nancy Drew Mysteries, by Carolyn Keene. The author is a house name made up and owned by the publisher. They have many writers come up with ideas for stories. I could be wrong, but this is my understanding.

Tina wrote: "Yes, I forgot about "Copy Editors."

I'm not sure what a "developmental editor" is. I've never dealt with one. I think they may come up with ideas for a book or series of books, then hire a writer..."

A developmental editor is aware of your genre and helps you fit your book into that genre. He/she also is able to advise you how to make your book different from other good selling books on the same topic.

Thanks, that makes it a bit clearer.