Editing thoughts, exciting news

Now editing: The Bone Key by Mary Rajotte (releasing October 2024 from Quill & Crow Publishing House)

Now drafting: Mistress of Night: A Ship's Haven novella (release date coming soon)

Now listening: This Place Will be Your Tomb - Sleep Token

Hello, hello! Glad to see you, dearest readers. I've been thinking a lot about editing lately - especially as work ramps up over at Quill & Crow as we polish our upcoming releases. Editing is extremely important in the book world, especially as an independent author or small independent press. There are countless book reviews on Goodreads, Amazon, and other review sites that slam indie authors for editing issues - sometimes unfairly.

Before joining Quill & Crow as an editor, I freelanced with one goal in mind: making editing affordable for indie authors. As an indie myself, I saw firsthand just how expensive editing packages can be. I'm lucky to have a network of creatives who were willing to trade professional editing services back and forth as we each finished our books. Not every independent author is that lucky, and I was proud to bring affordable editing services to the authors I worked with when I freelanced.

Editing is vital, and these are my thoughts on the importance of doing your homework before hiring a freelance editor or editing service:

1. Look at the average going rates on The Editorial Freelancers Association website (found here)

2. Check out your potential editor's website. Is it professional and well-formatted? Do they have samples of their past work available to view or do they offer a sample edit?

3. What education do they have? While a degree isn't everything (some of the best editors I've worked with don't have a degree at all), some form of education surrounding English or editing is a good thing.

4. How clear are they about their process and the style guide they follow?

5. Does the editor work with your genre? Not all editors can edit all genres. Someone who specializes in fantasy may have a difficult time with a mystery or thriller set in contemporary times.

6. Do they provide you with a contract outlining the specifics of their services that sets expectations surrounding your rights? Does it contain a clause protecting your intellectual property from being used in any way by the editor beyond the bounds of the contract itself? While you may not require a full non-disclosure agreement in your editing contract, it is very important to ensure that your editor will not share details about your novel or quotes from it without your permission.

By doing your due diligence and researching your potential editor, you can save yourself a lot of time and heartache - and ensure that you have a professionally edited story for queries or self-publication.

One more thing to look out for with editing... Be wary of vanity presses. There are many "editing" companies out there that will charge you for editing services, then try to convince you to sign with the "publishing" arm of their company. A publishing company, even a small, independent one, will not charge you for editing your work. It is considered the publisher's responsibility.

Above: Mini-playlists for Daughter of Shadows and Tiffany's upcoming novella, Mistress of Night

And now for some very cool news.....

Fantasy Book Boxes are coming soon! The listing is currently live on the shop, but I'll have photos up early this week! These book boxes include the following:

• Signed paperback copies of Into the Shadowlands and Daughter of Shadows

• A bookmark handmade by me

• Bookish and witchy stickers

• A few other little surprises picked out by me and my assistants

Fantasy Book Boxes will be a limited run (only 8 available) and are available, while supplies last, for $39.95.