How To Find An Editor For Your Book

In today's blog post I am going to give you a few pointers on how to find an editor for your book.

There are lots of people out here in the internet streets who have decided to hang out a shingle and call themselves book editors; and they have been taking many unsuspecting authors for a ride.

These so called 'editors' have been bleeding authors dry, while leaving them with a poorly edited book; often resulting in numerous complaints from readers and hundreds, if not thousands, or dollars lost in the long-run. 

You should know that not all editors are created equal.

Not everyone who calls themselves an editor works with books.

This is why it is so important that you as an author take the time to educate yourself on what an editor actually is, the types of editors, and which editing services you need in order to produce a professional book.

So how do you find a good editor who won't take you for a ride and really knows what they are doing?

First, look for someone who has experience in editing the types of books that you write. It would be a good idea to look for someone whose job it is to edit. 

A book editor will be well-versed in the various manuals of style (i.e., The Chicago Manual of Style), and will understand what it takes to make a story flow correctly.

A person who edits textbooks may not necessarily be a good fit to edit your fiction book, and vice versa.

Your book should not be a guinea pig for anyone because you want to make sure to put your best foot forward when you are presenting your book to the world.

Do a Google search for an editor in your genre. Most professional editors have a website and contact form. Some even offer free edits of a few pages to allow you to decide whether they would be the right editor for you. 

You should also know that there are different types of editors to address each level of editing your book may need. I will share that in a different post.

Ask to see samples of their work first and reach out to some of their former clients if that information is available to you.

You can reach out to your local colleges to connect with creative writing students who are looking to build their portfolios around editing. Often times you can negotiate a fair rate in exchange for a testimonial.

Another route you can explore to find an editor would be to find a retired English teacher. I say retired because they will more than likely have the extra time to invest in editing your book properly and may be willing to work for a negotiated rate.

You can visit online forums that center around writing and publishing to find editors looking for work.

You can post your job for an editor on sites such as upwork.com or fiverr.com.

As I stated earlier in this post, I will talk about the different types and levels of editing your book may need, in a later message here on the blog.

Until next time,

How to find an editor for your book without breaking the bank

As a self-published author, one of your biggest tasks will be finding a good editor for your book. You are going to be trusting what you have written in the hands of someone that does not know you or your work. This can also be a rather expensive task. A vast majority of editors charge in one of three ways: by the word, by the line, or by the page. So how do you find a good editor without breaking the bank? The answer could be as close as your local college or university.

One thing I have learned from being an English major myself, is that it is good to have a portfolio of your work. You as an author can help provide the opportunity to gain some experience by posting your need for a proofreader or editor for your book.In most cases, a college student will be more than willing to take on this task in exchange for the opportunity to list you as a reference and include a sample of the work that they performed on your behalf in their portfolio. You can make the opportunity even more enticing by offering to pay a fee for their services.

Another inexpensive route you could use to find a good editor or proofreader for your work could be to find a retired English teacher, or even a high school English teacher who has enough time to devote to the task of book editing.

I say English majors and teachers because they learn various things about sentence structures, grammar and the like, which could really give your book the advantage it needs to compete in the industry.

If you do decide to go with a company to do the proofreading and editing for your book, be sure to ask to see samples of their work and check out their credibility with others. If they have a long list of unsatisfied customers, this may be a sign that you need to take your money, and your manuscript, elsewhere.

Until next time,
Sandra

Join me on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter