Editing: The gold standard of professional writing
I teach Basic Skills Writing to adults at the College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas.The most difficult part of teaching non-professional writers is convincing them that the editing stage is where their writing evolves from ordinary to extraordinary.Yet for all you wanna-be professional writers, editing is the key to selling that article, book, or short story.Your goal should be to submit a product as close to perfect as possible. It is not the job of an editor to correct grammatical, punctuation, or capitalization errors.Their main concern is the information you impart to readers. (Content rules!)If you have completed a longer piece of work--novel, memoir, or non-fiction book--do not hesitate to pay someone to edit your manuscript.I know. It is scary. Suppose he or she questions your writing choices.The fact is professional writers submit their work for the advice, critiques,or revisions of an editor.Look upon editors as your First Readers.Better to find out what doesn't work from them, rather than from the public or critics.Most serious writers have concerns about what others will think of their writing.Consequently, we often avoid sharing our work in writing groups, with friends and family, or with professional editors.You must develop a thick skin.A successful career as a writer often requires having editors--copy editors, senior editors, managing editors, executive editors, and editors-in-chief--comment on your work.So, buckle up and share your work with the world. It just might be the next big literary success..