I've been working with a few other people to edit a student's novel that he wrote during high school and revisited last year. For anonymity, we will call him John.
John was very gracious and constantly tells us that he is grateful for our help. And yet he has self-published his novel as an ebook and now a hard copy book.
So here's the question I can't stop asking myself: Why do we even bother?
Don't get me wrong, I see myself as an author as well, even if I haven't finished a book (well, I finished one once back in high school but it won't ever be published, believe me!). But I wouldn't send my book to an editor if I had the intention of getting it published regardless.
Here's my opinion--editor's are crucial. We're catching things in John's manuscript that need some serious revision. That's how any book is going to look when it is first sent to an editor. It should be a rough rock at first so that the editor can help you polish it into a diamond. So why send the rock to the publisher before it's all sparkly and shiny?
I can't answer these questions; only John can. Not that I would ask him (that would be impertinent and rude to boot). But I still can't help but wonder why people don't take advantage of certain services, like those of an editor, but they will take advantage of other things, like an editors time that they are essentially wasting when it's obvious they have no intention of seriously looking at the revisions. If you've sent your book to a publisher, it must be as good as it can get in your eyes, yes? If I knew my manuscript was rough and in need of a good red pen, then I wouldn't send it to the publisher just yet.
I hope if John reads this and figures out that it's him I'm referring to that I don't mean him any disrespect or rudeness. But it's an issue I feel passionately about and I think it should be acknowledged.
What do you think?
TGWLAE
Picture:
John was very gracious and constantly tells us that he is grateful for our help. And yet he has self-published his novel as an ebook and now a hard copy book.
So here's the question I can't stop asking myself: Why do we even bother?
Don't get me wrong, I see myself as an author as well, even if I haven't finished a book (well, I finished one once back in high school but it won't ever be published, believe me!). But I wouldn't send my book to an editor if I had the intention of getting it published regardless.
Here's my opinion--editor's are crucial. We're catching things in John's manuscript that need some serious revision. That's how any book is going to look when it is first sent to an editor. It should be a rough rock at first so that the editor can help you polish it into a diamond. So why send the rock to the publisher before it's all sparkly and shiny?
I can't answer these questions; only John can. Not that I would ask him (that would be impertinent and rude to boot). But I still can't help but wonder why people don't take advantage of certain services, like those of an editor, but they will take advantage of other things, like an editors time that they are essentially wasting when it's obvious they have no intention of seriously looking at the revisions. If you've sent your book to a publisher, it must be as good as it can get in your eyes, yes? If I knew my manuscript was rough and in need of a good red pen, then I wouldn't send it to the publisher just yet.
I hope if John reads this and figures out that it's him I'm referring to that I don't mean him any disrespect or rudeness. But it's an issue I feel passionately about and I think it should be acknowledged.
What do you think?
TGWLAE
Picture: