In the past twenty years I’ve only worked with editors on three occasions. Most of my erotic stories, posted on Literotica, are self-edited. Read a few and you’ll see that from 2002 to 2009 things were not pretty. The only exception is Anonymous Destiny published on August 14, 2005. I did have the help of an editor that worked with me to tighten the story. That conversation was valuable for me, because we bounced ideas off each other and when it was done the story was much better. It scored well with readers, and it earned a 4.57 out of 5 stars and 29,546 readers and 70 votes. The only story that did better and is one of my favorites is Serendipity at the Plaza and it scored 4.65 from 73 votes and 41,339 readers.
My previous editor, first pass editing First Tentative Steps, was a typical professional editor. I received loads of comments with suggestions for changes and improvements, and only one – very generic – end interview conversation. Ugh! That’s not what I was looking for.
My current editor, Kathryn Hall (Twitter: @katherynhall_), gets where I need to go as an author. We’ve had several conversations about the double chore I have with this edit. The previous version ballooned to 94k words, and it needs to be close to 77k words at the end of this rewrite, and that’s one of the challenges. The other is to get a hook, and to make the story flow, not just from one point of view (POV) but from two. I write the story from Mike’s POV and from Helen’s POV with her side of the story coming in only when necessary to add context to the story arc.
If I did not have the help of an editor that keeps touching base on the project, I’d get whatever independent slant the editor caught. It would not be the direction where the story needs to go. We have regular check-ins that allow her to see where the book needs to go, and I get feedback I can apply as I move forward in the editing process.
I’m coming to the opinion that working with an editor needs to be a collaborative process. Line edits, proof reading is a different story. I’m talking about the work you do to make your novel or story better. It is not about handing it off and having the editor do their magic. They may do just that, and still be completely useless or wrong.
I’m down to a few chapters and this portion of the edit will be done. Then comes the effort to bring all the suggestions and changes into the story and making sure it still flows in the original direction. I’m a plotter that runs by the seat of his pants – does that make me a Plantser? The editing will need to make sure that Mike and Helen still go from point A to point B and end up at C like they are supposed to. The value of working with this editor is that I know in the end, the reader, will want to turn the next page. I’m not sure in my original version that was the case.
Am I being too hard on myself? I don’t think so. I based my opinion, that of someone not being intrigued enough in the story to turn the next page, in that a good friend who loves erotica never finished the book. I keep that in front of me to remind me that editors have an important job. They help us tell the story we want to tell; in spite of the story we wrote first.
AUTHOR’S NOTES:
I’d love to know your experience with editors.
What was your best experience?
What was an experience you’d like to avoid?
The only editor I have tried was a man that had, in my opinion, some very strange suggestions. He was supposed to be an experienced erotica editor so it kind of surprised me for a good number of his suggestions. I edit my own work now and may miss things but I’m happier doing it.