At laaasst….

I think I have finally found an editor that I can work with. It only took me almost a year and a half. That being said I cannot emphasize enough that you (as a writer) should be extremely picky when it comes to this facet of your work.

Several sample edits, with several different editors, left me feeling frustrated, not only because they didn’t seem to get me, or my work, but because we just didn’t mesh. At first I thought it was me, after all these were professionals, right? Wrong (the it was me part, not the other).

Believe it or not you can tell whether you can work with someone just based off their editing of your baby. What they choose, how they phrase the criticism, and even whether a sense that they want to take it in directions that you don’t want to follow. The letter you get at the end, where they might, or might not, ask further questions will also contribute to the overall vibe.

So if you think that this may not be the editor for you…then it probably isn’t. Take your time and vet them thoroughly. It will be worth it.

How did I find mine? Research. Tons and tons of research…and  a little luck. I’ve been looking at what is available for those of use who are interested in self-publishing. I had narrowed it down to a few options, leaning heavily toward IngramSpark, when my wife pointed me at Lulu.

Out of curiosity I hit their site and started browsing. Eventually I came across a professional services page where I noticed a company called The Book Butchers. Who wouldn’t want to follow that link? No one…so I did. I immediately loved their website and decided to send in a sample for editing. This is a free service, and your writing will get edited by as many potential candidate editors as take a fancy to your work.

I had a few responses, but only one stood out to me. Even though I had not spoken to this person, his comments/changes were all what I had anticipated. It didn’t take me long to realize that interacting with him was easy. This had certainly not been the case with other editors I had worked with in the past.

Now, this will not be cheap by any means, but their pricing is in line with most of the industry. I will most likely go with the .04 cents a word option, or the Extra Bloody package as they like to call it…:) This incorporates two passes at the manuscript, including Developmental editing which I sorely need.

Oh, and I went ahead and bought the pro version of Grammarly. I didn’t think I would need a tool like this, but it didn’t take long for me to be proven wrong. It’s relatively cheap so I highly recommend getting it.

I still have a ton of shorts and two more novels to run through using this tool, so I’d best be about it.