I will not work
as a developmental editor on anything that I do not feel can be improved to this level.
With my background in writing and publishing, I have exactly what it takes to serve
as the developmental editor on your next project.
Not exact matches
A
developmental edit (also referred to in the industry
as a content edit) includes your Midnight Publishing
editor reading the material and providing in - line comments and a chapter - by - chapter additional summary
on facets of the storyline beyond grammar and syntax.
In a post
on editing, author Ruth Harris concentrates
on nine benefits primarily of «
developmental» editing,
as we say in the States, or «structural» editing,
as it's called in the UK — the specialization of
editors who work with how you're telling your story and, if necessary, how to reconstruct what you're doing to make it far more effective.
A
developmental editor can help you work through your issues, make suggestions and be a sounding board for what's troubling you about your piece of work,
as well
as offering excellent suggestions
on how to improve it.
Details below:
Developmental Reads
on a full manuscript: 15 % discount Line Edit Reads
on a full manuscript: 10 % discount ** Any full read, I will throw in your query for no extra charge WHO I AM I'm a traditionally published author with Penguin Random House and HarperCollins,
as well
as a freelance
editor, and blogger.
I'd like to add to the appreciative notes
on this inspiring article and to add one note of caution regarding the earnings figures: remember to consider your upfront costs
as a self - publisher, which ought to include a
developmental editor, a line
editor, a proofreader, and a designer (most of which a traditional publisher pays for).
As I mentioned in Part One of this series, not all
developmental editors handle the proofreading aspects of a manuscript and focus solely
on the overall «big picture.»
Feedback from beta readers and
developmental editors often helps with this step
as well,
as they might comment
on confusing sections and the like.
As a
developmental editor, I've been really surprised at how many clients struggle with POV
on macro and micro levels.
As a freelance
developmental editor, I found myself doing a * head slap * over Naomi's emphasis
on pulling out this stage of editing from the rest.
My point here about self - editing is that by taking your time and fixing
as many errors
as you can with the help of readers, you can get a price
on the lower end of your
editor's rates and maybe even skip
developmental editing altogether.
As I mentioned earlier, the
developmental editor looks at the manuscript
on a more macro level, spotting issues with regard to character and story development, timelines, dialogue, and so
on.
Working with a
developmental editor (DE) means improving and developing your manuscript
on a big - picture, story - logic level to prepare it for the next editing processes such
as line and copy editing, and proofreading.
As a
developmental editor working with authors
on early drafts, I frequently go back to find and help fill in the spaces, so the reader can understand a character's private process that leads to new behavior.
Developmental edits can be time - consuming because the
editor is reading your manuscript not only from a typical «
editor's» standpoint (fixing grammatical errors), but
as a «reader» who is determining whether it is an entertaining book that achieves what it set out to achieve (this will depend
on the genre; for example, romance novels want to entice readers with sensual characters and chemistry, while a murder mystery's goal is to instill fear and intrigue in the reader's mind).
How an author would use Reedsy to find, for example, a
developmental editor for a particular genre (using Mark working
on a non-fiction paranormal book,
as an example)
As a
developmental editor, I focus a lot
on the storytelling aspect of writing craft in my posts here: character arcs, plots and subplots, stakes and motivations, etc..
The
developmental editor is your sounding board,
on hand to tell you if all the wonderful, creative, passionate, important stuff you want to communicate is coming through
as you intend — and when it isn't, to help you figure out why not and what you can do about it.
But from what your agent has requested I'd recommend that before sending anything back to him, you consider hiring a professional
developmental editor to help you put together a proper proposal and, most importantly, to work with you
on revising the manuscript to develop the narrative arc, your character and other elements
as necessary to bring it to the level an agent and publisher would expect.
In addition to marking it up, a good substantive or
developmental editor will make lots of queries (questions for the author)
on the manuscript, where a copy
editor will mostly clean up the language
as - is, and a proofreader is usually purely focused
on correcting any errors of usage or formatting.
After creating a rough outline that fleshes out my story with all the basic elements and characters (
as detailed in my blog
on outlining), and satisfying myself that the arcs work, I look at each chapter
as a
developmental editor might, and ask myself how I can make it the best in the book.
They skimp a bit
on editing by either getting a not
as experienced
editor or by only doing certain editing like
developmental editing and then opting to skip proofreading editing and just doing it themselves.
The opportunity to work
on the team associated with such unbelievably talented authors is really an
editor's dream,» said De Vita of joining the Waterhouse Press family as the Developmental E
editor's dream,» said De Vita of joining the Waterhouse Press family
as the
Developmental EditorEditor.
Developmental editors should never try to take control of the process, consider themselves
as co-author, or go with the writer
on a book signing tour.
She has helped hundreds of authors
as a
developmental editor, writing coach, and through her «plot sessions» — one -
on - one calls that get authors from concept to plot points in one hour.
Served
as the
Developmental Editor for three creative non-fiction manuscripts
on behalf of [company name], analyzing texts for content, structure, and grammatical accuracy,
as well
as discussing any potential changes with authors