William Faulkner said, “In writing, you must kill all your darlings.” A good editor knows that this process is sometimes painful to the author because their words are their babies. How, then, is an editor to approach nonfiction trauma manuscripts when an author’s words are their nightmares?
Editing
The Art of Editing Graphic Novels
By Anastacia Ferry @anastacialace
In a previous blog post, we discussed how editors in the comic book industry have their work cut out for them. While they’re certainly not the only type of editor who deals with multimedia editing, comics and graphic novel editors face unique challenges compared to those who deal with more traditional texts like children’s books or even textbooks. One of the key differences in this type of editing is that graphic novels utilize sequential art to tell the story. While other editors still have to look at whatever images they’re using, comics editors need to pay equal or even greater attention to the art.
It Ain’t Just Grammar: Skills for Successful Copyediting
By Olivia Rollins
If you’re a writer or an English major who aced every spelling and grammar quiz in school, you might think to yourself, “Hey, I’m pretty good with words. I understand punctuation, possessives, and present participles. I would make a fantastic copyeditor!” And you could very well be right. But before you dive headfirst into this profession, it’s important to know that for a good copyeditor, grammatical know-how is just the tip of the iceberg; successful copyediting requires a number of additional skills that have nothing to do with whipping out that red pen to correct a dangling modifier. This post outlines some essential copyediting skills that are completely unrelated to grammar and spelling.
What Happens In Between: Line Editing for Manuscripts
By Melinda Crouchley
A line edit typically occurs between developmental editing and copyediting, and it’s a sort of transition between making large structural changes and perfecting the mechanics of the language. Not every manuscript needs a line edit, but a line edit would likely enhance most manuscripts because its primary focus is not on perfecting the language but on elevating it.
Giving Your Fiction a Sensitivity Read
By Tia Sprague
Research is an important aspect of writing, often prompting authors to reach out to experts in the topics they are writing about. But things start to get complicated when we talk about fiction.
The Words We Trade: How Authors Handle Copyedits
By Andre Cole
Editors must consider and balance the feelings of two groups of people when suggesting language changes: firstly, they must consider how the reader will react to the language of the original manuscript; and secondly, they must consider how the author will respond to the suggested edits.