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the editing process

How To Edit A Book

Do not be scared - editing is your best friend, yes really - I have lost count of the number of times I have seen people on writers forum ask “Do I really need a professional editor?”, “Can anyone recommend a good editor?” “Can my friend be my editor?” “How much does an editor cost?”

And this is usually followed by twenty something posts of people saying, “I’ll do it”, “I charge $5” and a barrage of their links etc. This is of no help whatsoever and should not be taken as any sort of recommendation. No offence but who are these people? How do you know the quality of their work? Their reliability? Or even if they are a story thief? If you are a newbie it is easy to be caught out.

Writing your manuscript and working through the process to turn it into a successful book, can be quite stressful enough, without worrying about whether people can be trusted with your work.

My best piece of advice if you want to get a finished manuscript, and you really need to listen to it. Is do not start editing until you have got the whole story as you have it down on paper.

I mean it, and here is why; if you finish chapter one and edit that, redraft it, edit again until you get it just right the chances are you won’t make it passed chapter three. You must get the whole story down on paper (or screen).

Once it’s all written down give yourself a couple of weeks to learn about the five types of editing and editor there are, and then you will be ready to ask the right questions to find the right editor for you.

To learn more about the what, why and how of the editing process

How To Choose An Editor Masterclass

And just in case you go it alone I only ever recommend that you use suppliers and services recommended by The Alliance of Independent Authors, as these have been, and are frequently checked for quality and reliability.

This is my ALLi affiliate link in case you love what they do soi much that you want to join. And if you do a few pounds will help me continue my writing life. If affiliate links are not your thing, feel free to use your search engine of choice to find them.

https://www.allianceindependentauthors.org/?affid=8022