Editing is Hard Work, So Pay Your Editors!!!

"I spend too much time editing."  That is a common thought of mine, sometimes even a verbal statement (though I live alone and no one hears me).  But it really is hard work, even if I am just doing basic proofreading.

To start things off, I may not really be "into" the topic of what I'm reading. I have no-nos that I won't edit: crimes against children, horror stories (they give me nightmares), and erotica. But sometimes I'm just not really interested in that piece on FOREX trading or that romance novel.  So in those times, when I am not interested, I have a tendency to "fall asleep at the wheel," and it is even more important than ever to have right on my desktop (I use two monitors) my code of ethics, which says I will be honest and complete in the editing services I provide.  That wakes me up and I continue, often actually becoming interested in what I am reading, after all.

So it is really hard for me, as a person who makes a living doing this editing stuff, to see Craigslist ads that say "no pay" or "this is a nonpaying job" or "I'll give you credit in the book."  What?  This is a job, not a hobby. I worked long hours for years to perfect my writing (as much as that is possible) to make myself an above average editor.  I don't want to get paid by getting credit in your book, I get that, anyway, from others who pay me to edit their books.

A few months ago, I even had a woman call me and talk to me for almost an hour about editing her manuscript, only to have her say after wasting an hour of my precious phone minutes that her pay to me was going to be changing the name of one of the characters in the book to my name.  I laughed out loud, thanked her for her time, and told her that if she wasn't going to pay me, then I wasn't going to edit for her.

My biggest advice to authors, whether you want to be published by a reputable publisher or go the self-publishing route, is to recognize that 1) you probably need an editor and 2) editing services cost money. So while you are writing, whether for hobby or to build yourself as a professional writer, you need to save some money to pay for editing services once you are finished.

I looked at the statistics. In the past year and six months, I have edited 84 books.  Of those, 83 needed editing and only one needed light proofreading.  As a literary agent, I have gotten five of these books published, eleven more have been published by publishers, and the rest have been self-published.  One author, who has let me edit five of her books now (or is it six?) is on a best seller list somewhere.  But if I had not edited her books, would she be? 

Pay your editors, please.  You won't regret it, I promise.