Book edits -- The good, the bad, and the unnecessary
I recently had a question from one of my regular blog readers. I won't say the name because the friend who was giving this individual editing suggestions might be a blog reader of mine as well. I don't want to cause any waves there. ; ) But I do have permission to post the question and my response as a blog entry. I know it has to be a question/situation/problem that many of you who are working on being published run into, so I thought you all might benefit. Here's the question:
I know when you get an agent and then an editor, they make changes/suggestions/whatever to the manuscript--but what if you disagree with the changes? What do you do? Are you even allowed to not change something they want you to change? I don't have any exciting reason to wonder this, I just have a really overzealous (but agented) friend reading some of my writing and I'm not sure how to react when I disagree, because I can't help but wonder if they know more than me since they have an agent. So, thought I'd ask someone published :-)
My response: I've been blessed to have an agent and editor who have been dead on 98% of the time, meaning that their advice is great and I should make the changes for the good of the book. You will know when you get good feedback, because your gut will tell you that it's the right thing to do. That being said, 2% of the time, I disagree with my editor or agent and I simply explain to them why I don't think that change should be made. And they're completely cool with that. My editor presents her comments as "suggestions" not something I have to change. But when you do get an agent and editor, you have to distance yourself from your book a little so you can tell what's good for the book and what's not. It's a product now, not just your baby. Just give your editor a good reason, and she'll usually accept it.
As to your agented friend knowing more than you -- no, they don't. It's your book and you know best. Just because your friend has an agent absolutely does not mean that they know what's best for your book. My advice is to thank them for taking the time to help you with your manuscript, and that you really appreciate their suggestions -- then you do what you think is good for your book. That way, your friend's feelings don't get hurt, and you don't maul your book on the insistence of someone who thinks they know better than you. As my editor always says on the rare occasion when I disagree with one of her suggestions: "You're the author."
Hope this helps some of you.
Lisa
Upcoming blog topics based on your questions:
I know when you get an agent and then an editor, they make changes/suggestions/whatever to the manuscript--but what if you disagree with the changes? What do you do? Are you even allowed to not change something they want you to change? I don't have any exciting reason to wonder this, I just have a really overzealous (but agented) friend reading some of my writing and I'm not sure how to react when I disagree, because I can't help but wonder if they know more than me since they have an agent. So, thought I'd ask someone published :-)
My response: I've been blessed to have an agent and editor who have been dead on 98% of the time, meaning that their advice is great and I should make the changes for the good of the book. You will know when you get good feedback, because your gut will tell you that it's the right thing to do. That being said, 2% of the time, I disagree with my editor or agent and I simply explain to them why I don't think that change should be made. And they're completely cool with that. My editor presents her comments as "suggestions" not something I have to change. But when you do get an agent and editor, you have to distance yourself from your book a little so you can tell what's good for the book and what's not. It's a product now, not just your baby. Just give your editor a good reason, and she'll usually accept it.
As to your agented friend knowing more than you -- no, they don't. It's your book and you know best. Just because your friend has an agent absolutely does not mean that they know what's best for your book. My advice is to thank them for taking the time to help you with your manuscript, and that you really appreciate their suggestions -- then you do what you think is good for your book. That way, your friend's feelings don't get hurt, and you don't maul your book on the insistence of someone who thinks they know better than you. As my editor always says on the rare occasion when I disagree with one of her suggestions: "You're the author."
Hope this helps some of you.
Lisa
Upcoming blog topics based on your questions:
- Making the magic work, or at least make sense.
- How long should you prepare before starting a book?
- Are outlines important? Should the entire plot be written out?
- How much time should you spend developing a character?
- Picking which story to write and how to stick to it.
- Am I moving my story forward?
- How do I figure out what happens next?
- Keeping your hopes up while looking for an agent.
Update on Bewitched & Betrayed: I finished the uber-difficult Chapter 22 on Saturday. I'd have done a victory lap, but I was too danged tired. I settled for a weak "woot" instead. ; ) That leaves probably three more chapters to be done before June 1. I'm officially writing like a crazy woman and the only way I can leave the house in the evenings is if the house is on fire. I'm pushing my writing into overdrive. Or as Phaelan would say: "Take no prisoners, accept no defeat." ; )
This just in: Pop over to Confessions of a Book Habitue for a really fun review of TTWD.
posted by Lisa Shearin at
6:36 AM
8 Comments:
Great post, Lisa. I've read other authors saying similar things before. I look forward to your future posts as well.
Congrats, again, on getting chapter 22 finished!
My experience with my first novel & two biographies was that editor's comments are just that: comments. They're questions that need an answer, perceived inconsistencies, points of confusion, and so on. You have to address the comments. You make changes if those changes address the comments.
As to comments from another author: you're right, Lisa, those are just opinions. But did the author ask the friend for an opinion or a critique? Opinions are opinions, but a critique is a more serious attempt to give good advice.
In the end, I guess you should say what you want before you let someone read your manuscript.
Great topic and answer. I would only add that one thing I've learned over the years is you owe precious few people an explanation for anything you do. Were an editor or agent offer a suggestion that I disagreed with, I would certainly give them an explanation (if they asked), because they have a vested interest in my book.
But I may or may not do the same for anyone else. I would say something like "Thank you so much for your feedback! You've given me lots to think about." And I would then proceed to do what works for my novel.
Whoohoo for finishing chapter 22! Virtual cookies and chocolate too. Balloons, streamers...I'm not getting carried away :)
Yes, its advice I've heard too.
Awesome post! I love reading stuff like this--it's so nice that you update every day, and that you're so attentive to fan questions. And hooray for finishing the chapter!!! :-)
Thank you, everyone!!
Great post! This went right along with what I've read from authors about the editing process. I agree with all the things you have mentioned. Most of the time editors are right, but in the end you are the one to decide what changes you will make.
I hope you finish Chapter 23 soon Lisa! I can't wait for you to be finished with B&B!
Thank. Sometimes this is hard to remember when I get a letter full of suggestions that just do not work for me. {lop-sided smile}
Not that I've ever finished a book. I've never held a story together that long. {Smile}
Sorry I disappeared without warning. I hope I'm back now, and I am trying to catch up. {Smile}
Anne Elizabeth Baldwin
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