When Is It Time To Get a Freelance Editor?

At the WD conference on Saturday, three independent editors, Alice Rosengard, Ruth Greenstein and Linda Carbone led a lively session on the freelance editing. I've blogged about this issue in recent weeks and decided to attend the session.

The freelance editors discussed when the need for their services arose, as editorial departments at various publishing houses began to downsize. They also provided several means of locating editors through other writers, Publishers Marketplace, and direct hire. They shared their individual approaches to editing, looking at technical concerns such as POV, sequence of events, character development and veracity; the average costs of such services, the length of time it can take dependent on the quality of the work, and the things a freelance editor cannot guarantee the author, such as a sale.

The topic is of particular interest to me because I've decided to hire a freelance editor, whom I had the pleasure of meeting two years ago at the Historical Novel Society. We've barely started but I'm already impressed by her professionalism and the recommendations I've had from her previous and current clients. What made me decide to do this? As Ruth Greenstein advised attendees today, I've reached a critical point in my manuscript; I've done as much as I possibly can with it. It's gone through a critique group and I've revised and edited until I felt I would go mad. Now, I feel is the time for fresh eyes to spot the difficulties I'm NOT seeing.

I don't know what the result may be, but for a work that is so precious to me, I've often referred to it as my baby, it's worth the investment.

A Dirty Little Secret

If you hired a freelance editor to help you re-work your manuscript, would you ever admit it? To anyone?

I've discussed this option with a friend of mine recently, who has hired a mutual acquaintance of ours. With the freelance editor's help, my friend is writing better than ever. There's a prevailing stigma against having a freelance editor, because people often associate them with scams. One of my favorite blogs, The Rejecter, posted a lively discussion about this same topic here. The consensus seems to be that most often it's a scam and that even if the freelance editor helps the author improve the work, there's no guarantee of a sale. Also, even if you hire one, never EVER admit to having done so to an agent or editor, because somehow this makes the work less worthy.

As with anything, I think you have to use common sense in considering a freelance editor and ask a few questions before paying someone to edit your work. What experience does the freelance editor have? Better yet, does he / she have a previous client list they're willing to share, preferably one with authors who've actually gone on to sell the work the freelancer edited? How much is the freelancer charging? Do they do sample edits, and if so, do you feel as though the freelancer is knowledgeable and helpful?

There's such a stigma attached to paying someone else to edit your work, but for those who see real value in it, I wonder, what's the harm?