Over the past year, a debate over whether writers should pay for editing prior to seeking publication has (somewhat inexplicably from my vantage point) become a hot topic, particularly on Threads. Some prominent published authors are on the record more or less calling anyone who pays for editing a total rube or worse.
Before we get to the substance of this topic, let me begin with transparency: I am a freelance editor who accepts money from authors to edit their work. I do! You can reach out to me for editing if you want to, or, if you’re so inclined, simply believe I am biased here because of my chosen vocation.
But let me be transparent in another way: I’m also a writer, and for every single book I’ve written (eight in total, five of which are published), I’ve either paid for (or bartered for) an edit from one or more professional-grade editors with previous New York-based traditional publishing experience prior to seeking publication.
When my own projects are on the line, I have literally put my money and/or time where my mouth is every single time. What’s more, this isn’t even just about dollars and cents to me, I find the entire editing process incredibly meaningful.
The value of editing
Writers need editing. Full stop. That’s one of the only true “rules” involved in this process.
Even the best writers struggle to see their work clearly. They need someone to help them with their blind spots and reflect the true state of the work back to them.
The best editors out there have been steeped in storytelling and books for years, spent a great deal of time apprenticing with some of the top editors in the industry, and are able to guide writers to improve and elevate their craft.
I have been involved in the publishing industry for most of my adult life, first as a literary agent before I became an author, and I believe there’s a particular eye one develops working within the industry, where you shed the academic gaze you turned on books in school that’s oriented around “What does this book mean?” and instead develop a more commercial and artistic lens that’s more oriented toward “Is this book good? Is it accomplishing what it’s trying to do? Is it striking chords that will resonate with people? Where can it sit on a bookshelf?”
There’s also much more emphasis on plotting in traditional publishing than you’ll find in school or even in most MFA programs. Traditional book editors are much more attuned to harnessing stories and the nuts and bolts of plotting craft than nearly anyone else out there.
Now, this traditional publishing editing eye is not without its blind spots and problematic received wisdom due to the industry’s homogenous history (please support the wonderful organization We Need Diverse Books, who is trying to rectify this). Still, I personally have seen the value that industry expertise confers on the editorial process, and I have never sent out one of my books without first seeking an edit from someone with extensive traditional publishing experience.
But even beyond the nuts and bolts of craft and that blend of artistic/commercial gaze, there’s just something extremely meaningful about having your work really and truly seen by someone else. I firmly believe that writing changes the world (not least of which for the effect it has on the writer), and editing does too.
I love writing books, but I also really love helping writers take their work to the next level via editing.
Seek feedback prior to pursuing publication
If you’re self-publishing, you probably know you need editing (or, well, you should). First a developmental edit, then, when the manuscript is finalized, a copy edit to catch all your typos.
With traditional publishing, you may know that there are hands-on agents who will help authors edit their work prior to sending it out to publishers, and then there are editors at the publishers who will edit your work as well.
BUT. Sometimes writers hear this and think they can get away with not having their work edited prior to sending it out. Why should they, if it’s going to go through so much editing later on?
Seeking traditional publication is immensely competitive. Only a tiny fraction of the books submitted make it through the process. It pays to make your work as strong as you possibly can before you submit.
The literary agents who edit (and not all of them do) are trying to take a book project that’s 99% of the way there to 100%. They’re not going to take on some unpolished mess of a book and turn it into a diamond.
Slow down and take the time to get your work edited before you seek publication.
Good feedback comes in many forms
Now. Do you have to pay for a good edit? NOT NECESSARILY.
Don’t listen to anyone who says you must pay for editing or that your chances are doomed without a professional paid edit. It’s not true.
There are lots of people with good taste out there, and even some “civilians” who aren’t writers themselves and haven’t worked in publishing can give astute feedback.
That said, having shared my work with a number of people over the years, I do believe the most actionable, sophisticated advice tends to come from editors who have previous traditional publishing experience. Expertise really does matter. But even there, you don’t necessarily have to pay.
I didn’t shell out cash every time I had my work edited! I have at times exchanged edits with other writing and publishing types. But, of course, I have a built-in advantage there because of my network: Half of my friends and acquaintances are writers or current/past publishing employees.
At minimum, getting good free edits will likely require quite a bit of time and energy over the course of several years or more. You may need to invest in a local writers community, work those online or offline networking muscles, befriend writing and publishing types, and/or pay it forward by giving feedback yourself.
Or? Maybe you have funds to spend, very limited time for networking, and you would rather just pay a professional who you can trust to do a thorough job. (When I’ve paid for editing in the past, it was to ensure thoroughness).
That’s fine too! Here’s what to bear in mind if you’re considering a paid edit.
Don’t spend any money you can’t afford to lose
Do you hear me? Don’t spend any money on editing (or any part of the publishing process) that you can’t afford to lose. Don’t do it. Assume you will get zero dollars back from seeking traditional publication or by self-publishing. Treat anything you do end up getting as a very nice bonus.
Top editors with previous industry experience can be extremely expensive. And the publishing process is wildly, wildly uncertain and there’s no one on the planet who can predict with total certainty what will happen commercially with a book. You, the world’s most biased person about your passion project, absolutely cannot predict what’s going to happen.
The ROI in publishing is inherently murky. You want to make a living from your writing? Oh, and you want that really really badly? Yeah…get in line. Nearly everyone on Earth who writes a book wants that.
So is paying for editing all just a waste of money then? No! Absolutely not! It can be immensely valuable and gratifying for a number of personal, non-financial reasons, and, in some cases, it really is the boost that takes writers to the next level. I’ve worked with lots of authors who went on to find successful publication after our work together.
But I would be thinking about paying for editing more along the lines of “should I spend my discretionary income on a ski trip this year or should I spend it on a manuscript critique,” rather than seeing it as some kind of a sure-fire investment that’s guaranteed to pay off.
You’re investing in your writing because it’s one of the most meaningful ways possible to treat yo’ self.
You do you
At the end of the day, you have to chart your own course around all of this and do what feels right. There are so many different ways of going about the publishing process, and you have to just trust yourself.
As you move through the process, try to block out the strident voices who tell you it MUST or MUST NOT be done this way or that way.
Paying for editing is not mandatory. It can absolutely help. Don’t spend any money you can’t afford to lose. But it’s your call, at the end of the day.
Here are some more resources that might help:
- When to get feedback on a novel
- How to find and work with a book editor
- What to expect when you work with a freelance editor
- How to respond to a manuscript critique
Need help with your book? I’m available for manuscript edits, query critiques, and coaching!
For my best advice, check out my online classes, my guide to writing a novel and my guide to publishing a book.
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Art: Apple Harvest by Camille Pissarro
Some bestselling authors who are producing several books a year do not have any editing by their traditional NY publisher. Personally, I’d be so embarrassed by the poor sentences structures, bad grammar, and spelling mistakes I’d pay for the editing myself.
Well, I personally don’t think it’s fair to pin that on the editors unless you saw where the book started: https://nathanbransford.com/blog/2022/09/dont-criticize-a-books-editing-unless-you-saw-the-original-manuscript
Agreed! There’s a lot of stuff getting published by the big houses that shows little evidence of editing, by the author, the agent, or the publisher. (Of course, a lot of that is a result of the demise of education in this country, which has been going on for at least 50 years. We can’t blame the ignorant coming out of today’s public schools for their lack of education in the 3 Rs. But that’s another story …) And where do these best-selling authors get off telling the rest of us that we are ignorant suckers if we pay editors for their work? Have these elites gone to the market lately and obtained their groceries for free?
Thanks for this, Nathan.
I’ve written non-fiction how-to books and had them published without paying for editing, but I strongly believe in the benefits of ‘paid’ edits of one kind or another for fiction, memoir and serious non-fiction. However, I don’t think you will always get better advice the more you pay. You’ll just get a different opinion, and some people whose fees are not the highest have a knack of providing a lightbulb revelation or two – ask other writers for recommendations. You don’t have to pay top dollar to gain massive benefit.
If you have spare cash and pay more than one editor for advice at any one point in a book’s development, you’ll probably get confused. Each will have their own taste and offer a unique opinion.
You may consider paying a young person to review dialogue between 13 year-olds. Cheap and valuable.
I’ve paid only about $60 for a plot critique from an agent – excellent value and pages of feedback.
Your friends may swap beta reads with you, but to save my time in considered reading and the possibility of fraught feedback if I believe a lot of work is needed, I’ve paid for a beta read by a publishing professional and made changes as a result. One was enough for me—cheaper than an edit and nearly as useful (depending on who you ask).
If you are on a budget, you may get cheaper editing if you limit what you ask for. Instead of a complete line edit, you could ask where dialogue is unrealistic; where are the slow points with potential for cutting; is the ending satisfying; are there points where I should consider making additions? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. “…Add another chapter at the end…”
If an editor gets overworked/ill and can’t finish editing your work on time, don’t panic and abuse them. There’s no rush in publishing. Give them as much time as they need…and if you’re lucky, they will be more thorough and may reduce the price.
I write for children—shorter books with less editing to pay for. Yippeee! Our local SCBWI branch in Australia and other organisations stage events where editors from Big 5 and other major publishers will read a chapter or two and a synopsis, and provide a critique and one to one discussion for 15 or 20 minutes for less than $100. Organisations often get grants to help subsidise costs. Totally wonderful and I value meeting editors. “…Drop character X and consider starting later, at point B. And send it to me when it’s finished.” …Hmm. It’s since had a complete paid edit from a freelance editor who once worked at a publishing house. Do I send it now, or wait until I have a new agent (my last for 10 years has retired and it’s taking a while to gain new representation)? Sigh!!
As a former editor I would no more dream of sending my ms. forth unedited than I would go out in public in my underwear. I’m self publishing my first novel in June and it’s been through three levels of editing, all of which I paid for. An investment in a book I can be proud of.
My first thought upon reading your title of this piece, “Should writers pay for editing?” was of course they should! A part of my philosophy of life is, “The workman is worthy of his hire.” The writing/publishing world is not a charity…..
But then your comments led me to understand there is complexity here I didn’t understand. Nevertheless, when I need an editor I expect to pay. I’m not quite sure why “prominent published authors” think they shouldn’t pay for editing and believe those who do are fools. I guess when I am one of those effete snobs I’ll understand what makes them that way.
Meanwhile, I’m perfectly fine with the idea of paying for editing. If someone I don’t know came up to me and asked me to write something for them for nothing, I’d say Get lost.
I self-published 27 children’s books but wanted to do more, so I wrote something with more than 300 words. That turned into 7 manuscripts, 4 MG ‘s, 1 adult, and 2 collections.
I decided to try this, “Get a professional editor” thing. I found a developmental editor via Reedsy.
It crushed me.
It was expensive and I was angry. There were very few “change this” comments and quite a few “I like the way you did this” comments, but one comment, “Take out the guns in the MS manuscript” … was a doozy.
Now, I could just ignore that, fix the other “change this” comments, and just publish it myself, but I’d like my book to be Traditional publisher acceptable, if that makes sense.
I had to change what motivated my main character, and other characters, and in doing that it changed the entire book. I made it to chapter 5 on the rewrite before I paused it. It’s been 6 months and I read the new version again yesterday and it’s soooo much better than the first. Now I need my own motivation to complete it.
As a self published author, I have no grip on what’s acceptable or not and using an editor, especially one that used to work in a publishing house, should give you exactly what you need to make your book successful.
Now I just have to do it.
I’m sorry you had this experience! Getting mostly “I like this” and very few actionable pieces of feedback does not sound like a quality edit. I often hear from authors who have had very hit or miss experiences on Reedsy–too many editors simply hope to please the author by telling them everything is great, while perhaps giving them one or two things to consider. A typical edit will mostly focus on opportunities for improvement even/especially if it’s difficult for the author to hear! I also wouldn’t tell an author they MUST change something if they believe it’s an intrinsic part of the story. There just aren’t any hard and fast rules about what’s publishable or not and I believe authors should follow their own vision.
Here’s a post on how to know whether you have a good editor: https://nathanbransford.com/blog/2017/03/how-to-know-if-you-have-good-editor
I’m so lucky. My first beta reader (who I’m working with now) tells me the exact point in the narrative where she gets confused. So that’s obviously what needs fixing–so far, requiring more info which means narrative events revealing emotions which I’d been avoiding!
I’m not planning to pay for an editor but I am hoping to shell out some serious dough on a one-week Egyptology class in Egypt (run by amazing Bloomsbury Summer School, University of London.) So I’ll meet or reconnect with people who are experts on ancient Egypt, some of whom I hope will look at my ms., much of which is set in ancient Egypt. Because it’s so easy for mistakes to creep in and I don’t think publishers have consultant Egyptologists on call any more!
I’ve just retained a client who is a retired language arts teacher. She is working to polish her first novel. She gave me three chapters to look over, for me to assess how much work was involved. In strict copyediting and proofreading it, I found very few things that needed attention. What I did find was passive prose, lots of gerunds, repetition, “crutch” words and phrases, and other elements of style that I thought she’d like to handle herself. Once I pointed out these tips to improve the narrative, she was very interested in going through the manuscript herself again, to make these little tweaks and adjustments. The fact that she is experienced in language arts (she has taught foreign languages and ESL) is very helpful for both of us. Her novel, intended as a “beach read,” will be much more polished.