Photo courtesy of Allison Day

Good editors are hard to come by. Unless you happen to hang out here at Sirius Graphix. We are lucky enough to work with some very talented and smart editors who know how to polish words until they shine like gems. When we realized  Rose wouldn’t be able to write our Tuesday Writing series for awhile due to an overload of work, ( Hey, that’s a good thing!) we knew exactly where to turn to keep up the fresh, thoughtful and helpful posts that Rose got us excited about.

Please welcome Steph VanderMeulen who has graciously agreed to step in for Rose until she can return. Steph  has been polishing people’s writing as a freelance copyeditor and proofreader for seven years. She has been passionate about books since a very young age and it shows. Welcome to Sirius Steph!

A few weeks ago, Rose talked about the line between the editor and the writer. This week I’m going to chime in and add that being a good writer stems from being a good editor (or editee as the case may be—and nope, that’s not a real word, but you know what I mean!). Over the next few Tuesday posts, I’m going to pose several suggestions as to how to edit, or be edited, in order to make your writing as effective as possible.

Let’s face it, writers are very close to their content. This often makes them reluctant to change their work. Why? Mainly because creating is a personal, intimate endeavour, and it becomes extremely difficult to leave ego and pride at the door in order to improve. Writing is probably more narcissistic than most want to admit. Many writers write because they feel compelled to, and that has a great deal to do with the fact that writing makes them feel good. Self-satisfaction is hard to beat.

As a writer of sorts myself, I understand this feeling of pride, this close connection to the words I’ve chosen and how I’ve rendered them. But as an editor, I am certain that no matter how great I feel a piece is, no matter how wonderfully it may flow, the first draft always needs to be revised.

How to be edited, or, how to edit your own work

First, try not to edit while you’re writing. It stilts your creative flow. Once you’ve finished though, the most important thing is to step away from what you’ve produced. If you can’t see the forest for the trees, if you’re too attached (especially emotionally) to what you’ve just produced, you’re going to think your writing is perfect. At this point your chest is puffed out with the pride of a new parent. That’s precisely why you need to step away. Experience tells me it’s never perfect the first or even second time around, not even if you’re Margaret Atwood. So refrain from hitting publish or send right away.

A copyeditor’s singular job is to make you look good. She is your friend, not your nemesis, so there’s no need to become defensive. She’s checking to see if you’re saying what you really mean, if your message or story is concise, effective and compelling, and for inaccuracy and credibility.

These are questions that typically arise from a draft. In order for you to provide constructive and helpful feedback, you need to open yourself to criticism and distance yourself from what you’ve written—though only to a certain extent: by distancing yourself I mean simply putting aside ego in order to improve. At the same time, editors are not infallible. If you have a healthy relationship with your text, you will be able to defend what you’ve written using reason rather than pride.

If you’re self-editing, the same thing applies. Try to look at your writing with your audience in your mind. You’re writing primarily for them, after all. What do they need or want? This could range from education to escape. No matter what, if the message or story is tainted by overwriting or bad grammar or ego (look at me, I’m a writer!), you are failing your audience. Step back and ask yourself: How can I make this better? Be open to suggestions. Ask questions. Be not afraid. You’ll be surprised by how much of a difference a simple change can make.

Next week, we talk about the cardinal sin of overwriting and how to abstain from it. Stay tuned!

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