Editorial feedback (Part I) -- Reducing the word count
News from Friday: For those of you who got an early start on your weekend, and didn't stop by on Friday, I was finally able to announce the big news I'd hinted at back in December. The contracts are signed, so it's official -- AST Publishers in Moscow bought the Russian translation rights for both Magic Lost, Trouble Found and Armed & Magical! Both books will be printed first in hardcopy (woot!) and then in paperback. Believe me, when I get my sample copies, I'll definitely post plenty of photos.
Now on to today's topic. For those of you who are on the verge of getting an agent, or signing that first publishing contract, I'm going to take a few days (or maybe the entire week) to cover the what's involved once you start working with your agent and editor, and what you can expect during the editing process. I'll be using snippets from my editor's "editorial letter" for Magic Lost, Trouble Found.
Before I begin, a word of disclaimer. Every agent and editor handle feedback differently, and each book is different, so in other words, no two books or editorial letters are alike. Kristin Nelson (my agent) preferred to give her feedback on MLTF using track changes to insert her comments directly into my manuscript. Anne Sowards (my editor at Ace Books) sent an letter (actually it was an email) that was 7 pages, single spaced. Anne organized her comments by topic, and then called out specific pages where she had questions/suggestions. This was for MLTF. For Armed & Magical, there was no editorial letter from Anne; she had two questions and we were done. Wow! Like I said, no two books or feedbacks are alike.
One of the first things both Kristin and Anne addressed in their comments to me about MLTF was shortening the book. MLTF (then called Thief of Souls) weighed in at 122,000 words. It was a big puppy. Each publisher is different, but Ace Books prefers books in the 90,000-100,000 range. When the dust had settled and I'd finished with Kristin's edits, I'd cut 43 pages from the original manuscript. Then we sent it out on submission. Anne bought it. Anne's suggestions resulted in me cutting another 65 pages. I know it sounds like a lot, but it was all needed, and most importantly it was for the good of the book. An agent or editor isn't out to slice and dice your baby; they want what will put the best possible product on the shelf. Fortunately Kristin, Anne, and I were all on the same page. I loved their ideas, and incorporated most of them into what you've now read as MLTF.
That brings up one more thing. A lot of people have no idea what (or how much) an editor does once they get a manuscript. I certainly had no clue. An editor works with the author to get the best book possible. They make suggestions, the two of you brainstorm -- I loved the entire experience. Both Kristin and Anne are a joy to work with, and just plain fun. ; ) And if there's a suggestion that you don't agree with, simply give a good reason why you can't do it, and more than likely your editor will be cool with that. It's your book; you're the author. But at the same time, the author needs to have a completely open mind. You've been working with this book seemingly forever, so sometimes (actually most of the time) you're too close to it to be truly objective. I know I was. Your editor doesn't have that problem. Listen to her (or him) with an open mind. They've got your best interests (and your book's) at heart.
So how did I shorten MTLF? Anne suggested three ways (and I'll expand on these tomorrow).
1. Take out a big subplot or two to help focus the plot.
2. Remove scenes that don't move the plot forward.
3. Take out extraneous dialogue, characters, and descriptions that don't move the plot forward.
In a nutshell, anything that doesn't propel your plot forward needs to go regardless of how much you love it.
Coming up tomorrow: Editor Feedback -- Saying bye-bye to minor characters (and incorporating their roles into your main characters). Trust me; it works. ; )
I know it's Monday, but try to stay awake for it anyway.
Lisa
Now on to today's topic. For those of you who are on the verge of getting an agent, or signing that first publishing contract, I'm going to take a few days (or maybe the entire week) to cover the what's involved once you start working with your agent and editor, and what you can expect during the editing process. I'll be using snippets from my editor's "editorial letter" for Magic Lost, Trouble Found.
Before I begin, a word of disclaimer. Every agent and editor handle feedback differently, and each book is different, so in other words, no two books or editorial letters are alike. Kristin Nelson (my agent) preferred to give her feedback on MLTF using track changes to insert her comments directly into my manuscript. Anne Sowards (my editor at Ace Books) sent an letter (actually it was an email) that was 7 pages, single spaced. Anne organized her comments by topic, and then called out specific pages where she had questions/suggestions. This was for MLTF. For Armed & Magical, there was no editorial letter from Anne; she had two questions and we were done. Wow! Like I said, no two books or feedbacks are alike.
One of the first things both Kristin and Anne addressed in their comments to me about MLTF was shortening the book. MLTF (then called Thief of Souls) weighed in at 122,000 words. It was a big puppy. Each publisher is different, but Ace Books prefers books in the 90,000-100,000 range. When the dust had settled and I'd finished with Kristin's edits, I'd cut 43 pages from the original manuscript. Then we sent it out on submission. Anne bought it. Anne's suggestions resulted in me cutting another 65 pages. I know it sounds like a lot, but it was all needed, and most importantly it was for the good of the book. An agent or editor isn't out to slice and dice your baby; they want what will put the best possible product on the shelf. Fortunately Kristin, Anne, and I were all on the same page. I loved their ideas, and incorporated most of them into what you've now read as MLTF.
That brings up one more thing. A lot of people have no idea what (or how much) an editor does once they get a manuscript. I certainly had no clue. An editor works with the author to get the best book possible. They make suggestions, the two of you brainstorm -- I loved the entire experience. Both Kristin and Anne are a joy to work with, and just plain fun. ; ) And if there's a suggestion that you don't agree with, simply give a good reason why you can't do it, and more than likely your editor will be cool with that. It's your book; you're the author. But at the same time, the author needs to have a completely open mind. You've been working with this book seemingly forever, so sometimes (actually most of the time) you're too close to it to be truly objective. I know I was. Your editor doesn't have that problem. Listen to her (or him) with an open mind. They've got your best interests (and your book's) at heart.
So how did I shorten MTLF? Anne suggested three ways (and I'll expand on these tomorrow).
1. Take out a big subplot or two to help focus the plot.
2. Remove scenes that don't move the plot forward.
3. Take out extraneous dialogue, characters, and descriptions that don't move the plot forward.
In a nutshell, anything that doesn't propel your plot forward needs to go regardless of how much you love it.
Coming up tomorrow: Editor Feedback -- Saying bye-bye to minor characters (and incorporating their roles into your main characters). Trust me; it works. ; )
I know it's Monday, but try to stay awake for it anyway.
Lisa
Labels: editor feedback
posted by Lisa Shearin at
7:55 AM
6 Comments:
Wow; you're up early.
I have over 30,000 words that I've cut from Forging a Legend at some time or another. I never throw anything away. Sometimes those cut scenes have saved me, because more often than not, the events still happened and I just had to write them another way.
One time I was reassigning a role from one character (the original smith who forged Abriel's sword) to another more important character (her love interest) and I kept the original chunk of the novel, plus the rewritten scene. Just in case it didn't work. It did, or at least I thought so.
Thank you for this post. It was a great one.
Thank you, Tia! I'm glad it was helpful. I never throw anything away either and for the same reasons as you. I open a file and call it something like "MLTF unused copy." When you're a writer, being a packrat (at least of words) is a good thing.
This is such a great topic. I dont think most *ahem* "pre-published authors" think about what happens after the "OK, I'll buy" so thanks for shedding some light on this big mystery.
Looking forward to more.
It was a big mystery to me, too. I had no clue what to expect from my editor. So I had a couple of weeks of nail-biting while I waited for Anne's editorial letter. I had to keep reminding myself that if she didn't love it, she wouldn't have bought it. I thought you all would like to have some light shed on the topic, so maybe you won't have as much "waiting stress" as I did. ; )
Thanks, Lisa. I have to fight the urge to say, "Oh, right, like I'm ever going to need this advice." Not enough coffee yet, I guess. One day if I ever do need this advice, I'll probably go, "Lisa! Lisa! Help me! Whatta I do? Whatta I do?"
And I'll be right here, ready and glad to help you out -- WHEN it happens, not if. ; )
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