Editors and self-editing

I've been fortunate to have great editors in my writing career. They have the ability to give me an overview of how my story comes across and what I need to keep and what might be able to leave and best of all, give guidance about how to do that. Ultimately, it's my task to perform but a good editor makes all the difference. They ask the right questions: "I wonder what would happen if you had that character do this or that?" or "I didn't feel finished with that issues and maybe you could..."
I live too far out to really be part of a critique group even though one meets in Moro every week. I once signed up for an online group but realized I couldn't make the commitment to write a chapter or a piece a week for comment and also comment on all the others who were making submissions. If I sent in what I was working on for a publisher, I could see myself getting fifteen points of view and getting really lost in them. But I do think there are great ways to find a way to look objectively at our woek even if we aren't part of a group or don't have the gift of an editor awaiting the manuscript.
One of those ways is by reading books about writing and revising. Two that I'd recommend are Elizabeth Lyon's A Writer's Guide to Fiction (she also has a guide to non-fiction) and Renni and King's Self-editing for Fiction Writers. I haven't read James Scott Bell's book on writing but those I know who have also rave about it. He writes for Writer's Digest as does Elizabeth Lyon. Each offers practical ways to look at what you've written with a new eye.
That's what I'm off doing today: looking at my WIP with a new eye that this time includes my editor's eyes as well since we talked at length yesterday.
Stay posted, too, as I just completed an interview with www.Faithfulreader.com that will be posted sometime next week. Great questions I thought; I hope I did the answers did them justice. Be inventive in your writing! Jane

My Editor's Notes

Today I received my editor's notes from the manuscript of A Mending at the Edge, the third and final book in my Change and Cherish series. I crave this kind of feedback and am so grateful that she gives me both an overview of what she likes and what she hopes I won't delete and where she thinks the story lags or needs improvement. Both are valued. For some writer friends I have, their agent acts as an early editor but I've been privileged -- and I do feel it is that -- to have had really fine editors who give me their studied and experienced response so I can make changes before submitted for acceptance and meeting my deadline.
Before these comments arrived, I'd read Elizabeth Lyon's A Writer's Guide to Fiction so I already knew something I needed to work on: clarity of protagonist purpose. You'd think after spending months writing the book, then sending it off, that I'd have figured that out! But it was only AFTER I sent it off and have a few weeks away from it and had read Elizabeth's book that I realized what was missing. I'd highly recommend that book but also the use of freelance editors if you don't have the gift of a publisher's editor to work with.
I've printed my editor's comments out and will now let them "cook" as I drive the 100 mile round trip to the nearest store where I can access yogurt and sweet potatoes as part of my errand-running day. I do some of my best thinking in the car and often tell people if they see me pulled over to not stop as I'm probably making notes. For a writer, a hybrid is a good thing because when I do pull over to write a note or two, the car turns off!
But before I leave I need to write my monthly memo for my website, update some scheduled events I added over the weekend so my webmaster/niece can add them, send some addresses from my guest book signed at events I had last week (to my other niece who keeps the mailing list) and work on the class I've agreed to teach at Write! Canada in June and write the three posts I'll send to http://Charisconnection.blogspot.com a blog for those interested in Christian and inspirational writing. I'd best get at it. I hope your day goes well. Jane