You devoted so much time and sacrifice to writing your book.

You reworked the content over and over, and now you feel so proud of what you have accomplished. You have typed “The End” both literally and mentally. You can sit back and enjoy the feeling of “done”, right?

But is your manuscript really “done”?

One phase is complete–the writing part–and you certainly are due congratulations for that. Take the time to relish in your accomplishment because most people cannot do what you have done. You’ve climbed “Mount Manuscript” and reached its peak!

However, another mountain looms ahead, and it’s called “Mt. Editing.”

Should You Have Your Book Edited?

To answer that question, ask yourself another question. Why not have your book edited? What if there is a misspelled word, incorrectly used phrase, punctuation issue, or a fuzzy sentence?

You‘ve worked so hard on your book. Now it’s time to ensure your book perfectly reflects the message you are passionate about. All it takes is a few sneaky manuscript errors for your reader to question the professionalism of your entire book.

Having another set of eyes on your book is essential. While you should always consider the source of any and all feedback, having an editor for your writing will provide you with needed perspective. Editors will see issues that you will not, including errors and phrasings that need clarification.

There are several different kinds of editing. For now we’ll just look at copyediting and proofreading. Both are extremely important.

The Editing Experience    

A good copy editor will read your manuscript, line by line, for text errors, confusing passages, continuity, incorrectly used words, and the like. Sometimes this requires more than one pass through the manuscript for both you and your copy editor.

It can be discouraging and, I’ll just say it, even a bit aggravating, to see all the markups on your hard work. Just remember this is all about making your book the best it can be.

Once you have made the revisions you want to make and everything is to your satisfaction, it’s time for a proof editor to step in.

The proof editor takes over to search out misspelled words, errant commas, added spaces, and poor sentence breaks. The copy proof editor looks for all those annoying little things that can make your book look less than professionally done as well as making it hard to read. 

Choosing Your Editor/s

The challenge becomes finding the right person or persons to serve as your editor(s). For best editing results, chose editors who are not friends or family. Choose people who actually can provide you with guidance and who will give you an unbiased editing report.

Professional editors are an investment, but they’re worth the cost. They will work with you to help you make your book even better which, in the long run, will help you get good reviews and bring in more sales.

If you are not ready to pay a professional editor, choose several people to read your book who can reliably search out writing errors. Be clear with them what your expectations are for their editing work (specific things you want them to look for as well as the usual general things in copy editing or proofing).

One Writer’s Editing Experience

I hired three people to read the completed manuscript for my first book. One was a person who had a professional, literary background. The second was a librarian who previously had edited several professional articles, and the third was a colleague who worked in the field I was writing about.

The feedback I received from each was helpful, although quite varied. Sometimes their suggestions agreed and overlapped. Sometimes comments or suggestions were opposite of another’s point of view.

From this I learned to ask an editor/reader about the reason for an edit suggestion if I was not clear or if suggestions were opposed to each other. Asking questions can be a learning experience and can help you evaluate the relevance of the suggestion for your book.

While many of the edits were excellent and needed, I didn’t agree with every suggestion. I took the time to consider each one and then made decisions on what changes to accept and what changes to reject.

As I went through this process, I realized that editing is not always only about grammar, sentence structure, and organization. The writing style, personality, and personal preference of the reader/editor can play a role as well.

Choosing the Right Editor Is Crucial

All these things are important. That’s why it is crucial for you to choose editors carefully and select someone who is familiar with your book genre. A business book editor might not be the best choice for that thriller or memoir you wrote!

Overall, receiving editorial reviews for my first book was invaluable. The editors provided carefully thought out assessments, many of which I incorporated for the enhancement of my book. They also caught over a dozen misspelled words I had overlooked. That was a first-hand lesson demonstrating that after reading a manuscript so many times yourself, you begin to see what you expect to see!

There was another important benefit from the editing process. It let me see my book from another reader’s perspective. There were several eye-opening moments with that!

When you have your book edited (as I know you will now!), weigh each suggestion carefully, consider what’s best for your readers, and stay true your message vision. Make your book the best it can be.