Blogger: Rachelle Gardner
A couple of weeks ago I told you what the editorial process typically looks like inside a publishing house. Sometimes the editing is smooth and wonderful, but not always. Today I wanted to talk about what to do when it gets rocky.
As a writer, you care deeply about your words and you’ve tried to get them just right. Hence your first encounter with an editor might be a little daunting. When they send you pages and pages of notes for revisions, you might be overwhelmed, depressed, and demoralized. Take heart… this is normal!
I recommend you enter the editorial process with a humble and teachable spirit. The editing process is a terrific opportunity to learn how to improve your writing.
But what if your editor requests changes with which you disagree? How you handle it may depend on who you are—a bestselling author versus a first-timer. (Guess who has more leverage?)
My advice, in a situation where you don’t understand the editorial request or you disagree with it:
- Ask a lot of questions of your editor. Try to get their perspective.
- Get them to explain their reasoning, and keep your mind open, considering the possibility that they may be right.
- If you feel the need, gently explain your side. But realize you may not understand what they’re saying until you actually try doing what they’ve suggested. Most times, authors end up agreeing that the changes improved the book.
- Be courteous in your disagreement and try to negotiate a win-win with your editor.
- The key is communication.
You are always going to hear stories from authors who feel an editor ruined their book, totally didn’t get it, or tried to change their voice. That scenario is not the norm, but sometimes an author deeply, seriously disagrees with certain changes an editor requests. And sometimes, the editor has strong reasons for their suggestions, and won’t back down. This is a situation in which it’s helpful to bring your agent in to help. If you and your agent are unable to negotiate a compromise, you have to decide if this is a hill you want to die on.
In the last several years, I’ve been involved in two cases where the author so strenuously disagreed with the editorial changes that the author and publisher agreed to cancel the contract. And yes, the author paid back the advance. (These were editorial disagreements about the content, not about grammar, punctuation or author voice.) I’ve been involved in a few others where the disagreement was significant, but eventually the two sides came to a decision everyone could live with.
Consider how important it is that you get your way in the editorial process. Are you willing to give up the contract for it?
Remember that everyone has the same goal in mind: The very best book possible. You just might not agree on how to get there.
In the end, most publishers respect the author and the fact that it’s your name on the cover. They’ll work hard to allow you to have the book you intended to write.
Can you think of an editorial situation in which you’d be willing to lose the contract over it?
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Shirlee Abbott
Enter the process with a humble and teachable spirit? That’s good advice, Rachelle, for more than books. It’s hard to find that emotional space that says, “this is my best work, and it could be better.”
Southpaw
To so vehemently disagree with the edits would be a scary situation to be in. I like your advice to at least try it and see how it works out.
Sue Harrison
I so agree with Shirlee Abbott. That emotional space is illusive at best! Rachelle, the only time I refused to make the changes requested was when it involved a moral issue, and the publisher graciously backed down.
Glen
Great insight. I would never have considered getting the agent involved. I recently had a friend who decided against a contract because the agent wanted to have the author change focus on the book from romance to thriller. When I talked with the author, I agreed with the agent. But the author was too stubborn and scrapped a deal with the agent. I just shook my head. Sometimes pride is our worst enemy.
Glen
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
Maybe that’s why pride is considered the deadliest sin.
One remains forever in the shadow of one’s own ego, and can never grow in the Light.
Regina Rushing
Well it may not always be pride. If thats the author’s vision then they have to raise their own child. Hopefully they saw the worth of the advice in hindsight. Even that’s something.
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
This helps me…
To me, my book is a work of art.
To the publisher, and thus the editorial team, it’s a potential revenue stream which will help ensure their collective job security.
To me, it’s my voice.
To the editorial team, it’s a roof over their heads and food on the table.
I think I know how to tell a good story, but I certainly don’t know as much about SELLING a good story. That’s their area of expertise, and my job is to provide the publisher with the most salable product possible. I want my work to be read by others – it’s not just my personal cri de couer.
There are, however, some areas of exclusion –
* I don’t write explicitly about sex. First, I believe that it appeals to prurient interests, and second, I simply don’t have the skill to do it. (I don’t think anyone does.)
* I won’t remove Christianity from my stories.
But anyone who reads past, say, page ten has probably already figured that out.
It takes a lone genius to write a book, but it takes a village – crit partners, Beta readers, an agent, an editorial team, and the management group at the publishing company – to get it into the hands of readers.
It’s a team effort, and I’m a team player.
Jeanne Takenaka
I love your perspective, Andrew. It makes a lot of sense.
Cheryl Malandrinos
Excellent point of view, Andrew. It definitely takes a lot of hands to get a book into the hands of readers, and if you’re not a team player, it’s going to be tough.
Andrea (Wood) Nell
Maybe years ago when I first started writing, I might have given up a contract to avoid changing the story. But, after ten plus years of maturity and perspective, I can’t imagine refusing to make a change a publisher requests. The only deal breaker I can think of is compromising my faith. I wouldn’t want to put my name on a book that teaches a message I don’t believe in. I would hope that wouldn’t be an issue with an inspirational publisher. Thanks Rachelle.
James Scott Bell
It’s important for new writers not to get the PITB stamp out of the gate. (Note, PITB = Pain In…)
Editors can also have that stamp. They are human (rumor has it) and can sometimes take a stand that shouldn’t be a stand at all.
But if the writer is going to disagree, make sure it’s based on real knowledge of the craft.
All chips should be removed from all shoulders, on both sides.
That said, there are sometimes personality and style differences that demand a change. I had a young editor once who thought (he/she) knew everything about the craft of writing, and only knew about 30% of it. The publisher graciously granted a change because I had worked hard not to be a PITB.
Andrew Budek-Schmeisser
Good point about young editors! They sometimes don’t know craft…and they sometimes can be hazy on facts.
Dan Ford, the historian (and a really nice guy), had an interesting experience working with a copy editor on the cover blurb for his book on the Flying Tigers in WW2.
The editor was impressed with the fact that these brave volunteers would fly on behalf of a free China for ‘only’ $600 per month.
Dan had to point out that in 1941, $600 went quite a long way, and was equivalent to about $144,000 per year.
Charise Olson
Ha! I used to work somewhere we had the PITA surcharge. The definition of the acronym nearly identical (but less polite). We never actually got to CHARGE anyone, but we’d say it about THOSE clients.
Jane Perdue
Two wonderful pieces of advice that apply to writers and everyone: be humble and be thoughtful in picking your battles!
Nita Leland
Picking your battles is key, as Jane says. But–what to do if your editor doesn’t “get” you? I had two manuscript reviews at a writers’ workshop recently. The senior editor had great suggestions for improvement. The younger one’s comments were way off the mark.
Jim Lupis
I have been very fortunate, Rachelle. My editorial advice has been spot on. My first editor kept reminding me to go back to the reader. Something I knew, but wasn’t doing.
Also, I have a tendency to speak in general terms, but my editor kept leading me gently to be more specific. Again, something that I knew but wasn’t doing. Knowing and doing is certainly two different things. Even as I write now, her voice in still inside my head: “What EXACTLY do you mean by that?
Lindsay Harrel
Great advice, Rachelle. Like Andrea said above, I wouldn’t want to compromise my faith, but I try to be teachable in other ways. Then again, I don’t think I’d even be considering publishers who didn’t publish inspirational fiction, so hopefully that doesn’t have too large a chance of occurring.
I respect the people who have been at this much longer than I have. They (including you!) know what sells…and although my ultimate goal is to reach others with the message of God’s love, etc., publication is the key to achieving that. So yeah, I’ll do what it takes to get there.
Jennifer Smith
Great advice, Rachelle, and great comments, too. Being a newbie, I can’t imagine refusing to change something, subsequently hurting my chances of publication. As Andrea mentioned above, about the only thing worth doing that for would be if the change went against my convictions as a Christian.
Meghan Carver
“This is normal!” Wonderful words for us newbies. Thank you, Rachelle.
Richard Mabry
Rachelle, although I haven’t agreed with every change suggested in the edits to my novels, almost every editor has gone out of their way to 1) start with words of praise for the work, then 2) say that if I disagree with their suggested changes I should feel free to reject them.
That having been said, I did have one line editor who acted like a macro editor, sometimes changing the wording of whole paragraphs and inserting the new words for mine. That required some effort on my part to compare the old and new and make a number of decisions.
And your suggestion of involving the agent in sticky situations is excellent. Thanks for sharing.
Jeanne Takenaka
This makes a lot of sense, Rachelle. Teachability and humility take a person a long ways in life, publishing or otherwise.
As an author hopeful, I need to be teachable. I strive to maintain the mindset that an editor knows more than I do about what makes a story salable. Having that other set of eyes on my story will bring out areas that need improvement. I find it hard to think of a situation where I would reject a contract, save having to compromise my faith to get a sale. Thanks for sharing the specific examples and your wisdom. As always, it’s appreciated.
Lori Benton
Rachelle, your point about the author sometimes not knowing whether a change is right until she actually digs in and starts making it held true with both my published novels. I landed with a brilliant editor. Everyone told me so. So with my first book I decided to have faith in her reputation even though I wasn’t sure about all the macro changes she suggested. I dove in and began, and sure enough, a ways into the process I knew this was making for a better book. Same held true the second time, on an even bigger and far more complex edit.
Rebekkah N
Can I think of edits I’d be willing to lose a contract over?
“So this couple, the protagonist and her love interest of your last book…why don’t you kill them off? It would make things much more dramatic. And GoT is big right now.”
“Needs more sparkly vampires.”
“This entire formatting style. I dislike it. Get rid of all the onomatopoeias, even though they’re major plot devices and an integral part of understanding the protagonist’s magic and a couple of important plot points.”
There are a few things that would be deal-breakers. Most things I could handle, because those few things aren’t likely to really be given by someone who does this for a living.
Angela Mills
As a newbie, I accept that an editor will know more than I do. If my agent agreed with them, I’d be willing to change just about anything. I really wouldn’t want to switch genres like someone mentioned above, because once you’re in a genre you’re kind of stuck there, right?
Keli Gwyn
I’ve only been through the editorial process twice with editors and once with my savvy agent (waves at Rachelle), but that’s all it took to show me the value of editorial input. In each case the publishing pro helped me improve my story. They also helped me catch what could have been embarrassing slip ups. I can’t imagine putting a book out that hasn’t been through an extensive editorial process. Editors rock!
Angela Brackeen
The stories we write can be so much a part of us. Edits involving a significant change in the story wouldn’t always be easy to make.
But, as others have already said here, publishers, editors, and agents know the business better than new authors. I would have to carefully consider their requests! (And make them.)
I can think of only one reason I might be willing to lose a contract–if the story was personal, as in a memoir, and I didn’t feel a publisher’s requested change was true to what actually happened.
In the case of fiction written for the Christian market, requested changes would be much easier to agree to as long as they agreed with my Christian point-of-view. (And they should if the publisher is in the CBA.)
Elissa
As long as the editor’s understanding of the story meshes with mine, I can make any changes required.
However–
If an editor’s suggestions would significantly change the story’s tone, theme, concept, or plot in ways that didn’t reflect my intentions for the story, then yes, I would absolutely walk away from a contract.
It boils down to this: If an editor wants to edit my manuscript, great. If they want to write the book and put my name on it, not so great.
Cheryl Malandrinos
I haven’t dealt with this from a manuscript perspective, but I have from a position of article writing. It was a mere title change, but it altered the entire meaning of my article. That said, I worked with this editor for years and only that once did I have an issue, so it wasn’t worth making a stink over.
I try to be as flexible and open as I can to editorial changes.
David Porter
The idea of bringing your agent in is excellent. A good agent will be able to help you get perspective and perspective is worth its weight in gold.
Barbara Blakey
The first book I ever wrote was accepted for publication. It required a lot of editing, which I was willing to do. As a newbie, I trusted that the editor knew more than I did, and I could see how her suggestions were making the book better. Same for the second editor. But the third editor’s requests had me undoing some of what I had done in response to the prior editors. I talked to my agent about it. I didn’t want to be a problem author, but I was confused. She handled it beautifully.
Charise Olson
I’m kind of excited about getting suggestions and professional feedback. Maybe because I haven’t had anything way off base come my way (yet). If I felt like the editor/publisher GOT me and my voice, then I could be okay. But if my story was changing so much that it wasn’t mine anymore, then it would be really difficult. Remember when they changed Pheobe’s Stinky Cat song on that episode of Friends?
Linda
As a humble beginner in this, often times, overwhelming process, I appreciate your excellent advice. I’ve hired an editor for my little mystery, and I think it’s the best thing I could have done. We’re working together to make it the best it can be. She is a gift!
Mark Kennard
Would that I got that far.
Ed Hird
Thank you for these helpful cautions, Rachelle. It is very easy to lack teachability when being edited.
While recently finishing my doctoral thesis on strengthening marriage, my advisor encouraged me to add a glossary, bar graphs and pie charts. I found myself being initially resistant for no good reason. He said: “That’s all right. You might want to think about it.” His gentle response left me questioning why I was being so stubborn. Deciding to be flexible, I said yes.
Since then, I discovered that many of my readers go first to the glossary, bar graphs and pie charts. I am so grateful that I chose not to be stiff-necked in that editing moment.
Ed Hird+
https://carey-edu.academia.edu/EdHird
Diane Stortz
Having edited for years, I know a lot about editing and can edit myself pretty well–but not so well that I don’t need a good editor at times. EVERYONE does. I love getting insightful comments that let me make my work better.
Janet Ann Collins
It’s not only book editors who demand changes. I once had a magazine editor require changes that made the article sound as if he had written it himself. I did as he asked, but hide that article in the back of my clips file.
Lynn
I see no problems with changes if it makes the story better. Where I would draw the line is when the story becomes something other than the story I want to tell.
Wendy Macdonald
Rachelle, I’m really appreciating the helpful posts about the book publishing journey.
The only situation I can think of that would make me want to give up a contract is if an edit was requested that went against biblical values. This is not likely to happen since I’ve pretty much concluded that I’m only going to query agents familiar with representing Christian authors.
Blessings ~ Wendy ❀
Kim Richards
It’s also helpful to realize the editor has specific style guidebooks and company styles they must adhere to so arguing against those is fruitless. Sometimes those are there to ensure ebooks pass validation checks by distributors or to keep all books by the company with a similar ‘feel’ that their regular readers expect. To the publisher, it’s about making the book marketable across multiple platforms.
Dale Harcombe
Like your point Rachelle about teachability and a humble spirit. Actually helps in solving a lot of problems in other areas of life as well.
Olga Godim
Having “a humble and teachable spirit” is good, but sometimes, an editor demands the impossible. I was involved in such a dispute once. I had a contract, and the assigned editor disliked my story and my protagonist. She disliked them so much she couldn’t even finish the novel. She wanted a complete re-write, wanted me to change the story from a personal growth to a romance. She also wanted me to change my protagonist, make her more ‘likable.’ I refused, and the publisher cancelled my contract.
I think the problem was in the editor’s literary preferences, not in my story. I’ve found another publisher since, where the editor accepted my view and my heroine, and the story is published now. Some readers even like it.
The disagreements between editors and writers happen, but I think it’s not all one sided, and not always the writers should submit to the editor’s whims. Sometimes it’s important to fight for your story as you see it, not let anyone dictate what it should be.
Tom Olbert
Makes you wonder why that editor was working for that publisher.
You’ve said it very well, for all writers. As has been said earlier, you have to pick your fights. Yielding to an editor’s “fine-tuning” on grammar, sentence structure, phrasing, etc. is a growth process for the writer and usually improves the story. But, I agree 100% if the editor/publisher doesn’t like your concept or share your vision, then it’s a pity the submission was made to them in the first place. Some potential problems can be spotted in the publisher’s guidelines, but other times, the writer’s in for a nasty surprise.
I’m glad you ultimately found a publisher who shared your vision. Congratulations, and thanks for sharing.
Olga Godim
I was upset by the entire conundrum in the beginning but then I started thinking. If that editor disliked my heroine so much, I must’ve written her well, ‘alive’, so a living woman hated her. She would be indifferent, if my writing was bad. So in the end, the reaction of that editor was actually encouraging. Does it make sense?
Wendy Macdonald
Olga, what you’ve said makes perfect sense to me. I hated Scarlett O’Hara, and yet, look how successful that book was. I couldn’t put it down.
I believe 99% of editors are good-willed;however, they’re also human–like some protagonists especially are.
Blessings ~ Wendy ❀
Laurean Brooks
Olga, I had the same problem with a story. The editor thought my heroine was too quick to lose her temper. Too quick with comebacks. But like Wendy, I enjoyed hating Scarlett O’Hara, and to be honest, she is the heroine I patterned mine after. Only…in a Christian way.