Editors

There are times when I wonder if editors are friends or foes. I mean all they seem to do is pick apart my writing, pointing to every little misplaced comma and misspelled word. They don’t like my sentence structure, my word choices, or my idioms. If I write that I saw a bear on the way to work this morning, some editor will ask me how I knew the bear was going to work. And how do they remember from five chapters ago whether characters made a left turn or a right turn to get to the saloon?

I don’t remember the last time an editor said, “Wow, that chapter was a nice piece of writing”. Come to think of it, I don’t think that has ever happened except in my dreams. What’s with all the negativity? Writing may be work, but it’s still supposed to be fun.

I really do know the why and wherefore of having an editor. I’ve heard them say, “I work for the reader”. That’s only partially true. In reality, they work for the author. They make us look good in the readers’ eyes and teach us to write better in the process. We then turn around and take all the credit for the continuity of the story, correctly spelling words like paleontologist, and knowing when to use affect versus effect.

Editors stand quietly in the background while writers take the bows. Some do so because they got their fee upfront. Others do it because they are invested in the book and the author. I’ve always chosen the latter. Jack Benny (Google him) has nothing on me. I don’t like expensive hired guns. I prefer cheap armed allies.

Jack LaFountain

Author of Pandemonium