Should I get a professional editor?
Should indie authors pay for professional editors?
Does one need a professional editor? A question that comes up with almost every client. "I had _____ look over it for me," they say. Well, fill in the blank with anyone. Aunts, uncles, children, friends, and the list goes on. Nowadays, it is easier to become an author than ever. With drag and drop publishing, aka amazon, writers can type up a document, copy and paste it into an editor and have it published in a short amount of time. The issue comes with the quality that our readers deserve. Hear me out, how often have you gotten something less than satisfactory and thought this could be better? Imagine if it were your food, you would be pretty disgusted if someone brought something sloppy that you paid for and expected you to consume the mess without saying a word about the presentation. Many indie authors may need to embrace the art of writing before releasing their book. I know you're creative, and inspiration flows from heaven to your fingertips, but a poor presentation can make your divine message undesirable.
I've had some writers use unqualified family and friends over professional editing and proofreading services. It may seem less expensive to go without the formal edits, but it is indeed costly. Sure, when you look at the big-name authors in the mainstream media, an error or two might get through, but the book never has too many. What we see on Amazon is, in many cases, a disgrace. I've seen books so short it's more like a handout and read books that went nowhere. It didn't even talk about the topic it listed. If you haven't figured it out, Amazon is on out to get your money. They will let you come with your poorly edited book, place it in their store and sell it to your friends and family to collect most of the money from the sale. You might think, why would they need my little bit of sales? It's simple. They profit from the numbers. Excuse me while I am myself and start to over-explain without the need for it.
In 2017 1.19 million books were published through Amazon KDP. In 2018, that number jumped to 1.68 million book titles published. Let's say each of those authors purchased one proof copy of their book. Amazon would make a huge profit from each author only purchasing one proof. Now let's say half of those authors got their friends and families to buy books from them through the amazon website, which happens more than a little. Amazon makes money whether you purchase a book or someone goes to their website to buy it. It seems fair, right? or is it? The bar is so low to publish a book through Amazon. Anyone, I mean anyone, can do it. So often, I've searched for good reads on Amazon only to end up disappointed. Imagine the reader, your reader, looking through the items on Amazon. Do you think it would make them feel differently about the quality of authors that come through? Well, it does.
If I had to choose an example of why you get your book professionally edited when you self-publish without calling out names, this was it. Knowing that customers expect books from some indie authors to be of lower quality should make other authors push even more to ensure our work is of the highest quality, right? I wish everyone would take heed. While I'm not talking about the cover design and other needed elements, I can speak to the benefits of professional book editing.
A good editor will not only correct your work but will, over time, help you to edit your work better. I've become better at editing my work because of the editors who suggest rather than edit. Editing enables you to find your kryptonite. What better way to discover your weaknesses than to have someone keep pointing them out over and over? I know it sounds like I'm making a joke here, but if your editor has to repeatedly point out the same thing, you may need to work on it.
Editors do more than check for errors. They read your work to make sure it makes sense. What good is it if your document passes spell check, but what you feel are profound words sound more like gibberish? Yeah, editors can help with that. They make sure your story is evenly paced and mentor you along the way.
Experienced editors will make you look good as an author. Remember the example of the food earlier? Presentation means a lot, now the editing is a huge part, but others need attention to detail.
Well, that was my three cents. Anywho, to self-edit may be worse than giving it to someone else. It's easy to catch the mistakes of others, but do we see ourselves as flawed as we are? There it goes, one more reason we need someone who doesn't mind speaking the truth. Now that I said that, you still need to edit your work. Don't give the editor something you haven't looked over a second time. If we are honest, you may not even know what's all on it. And some things won't pass the 2nd edit. Friend, your book should be edited multiple times before handing it to the editor. You need to edit, let it sit a few days, and come back to it. That is how you discover those errors that seem to keep popping up out of nowhere. Are you working on a book and need help? If so you've come to the right place. Click the photo above and you will be carried to a link to purchase my book, How To Keep Them Reading, It helps authors through all the steps to write a book from start to finish.
I've had some writers use unqualified family and friends over professional editing and proofreading services. It may seem less expensive to go without the formal edits, but it is indeed costly. Sure, when you look at the big-name authors in the mainstream media, an error or two might get through, but the book never has too many. What we see on Amazon is, in many cases, a disgrace. I've seen books so short it's more like a handout and read books that went nowhere. It didn't even talk about the topic it listed. If you haven't figured it out, Amazon is on out to get your money. They will let you come with your poorly edited book, place it in their store and sell it to your friends and family to collect most of the money from the sale. You might think, why would they need my little bit of sales? It's simple. They profit from the numbers. Excuse me while I am myself and start to over-explain without the need for it.
In 2017 1.19 million books were published through Amazon KDP. In 2018, that number jumped to 1.68 million book titles published. Let's say each of those authors purchased one proof copy of their book. Amazon would make a huge profit from each author only purchasing one proof. Now let's say half of those authors got their friends and families to buy books from them through the amazon website, which happens more than a little. Amazon makes money whether you purchase a book or someone goes to their website to buy it. It seems fair, right? or is it? The bar is so low to publish a book through Amazon. Anyone, I mean anyone, can do it. So often, I've searched for good reads on Amazon only to end up disappointed. Imagine the reader, your reader, looking through the items on Amazon. Do you think it would make them feel differently about the quality of authors that come through? Well, it does.
If I had to choose an example of why you get your book professionally edited when you self-publish without calling out names, this was it. Knowing that customers expect books from some indie authors to be of lower quality should make other authors push even more to ensure our work is of the highest quality, right? I wish everyone would take heed. While I'm not talking about the cover design and other needed elements, I can speak to the benefits of professional book editing.
A good editor will not only correct your work but will, over time, help you to edit your work better. I've become better at editing my work because of the editors who suggest rather than edit. Editing enables you to find your kryptonite. What better way to discover your weaknesses than to have someone keep pointing them out over and over? I know it sounds like I'm making a joke here, but if your editor has to repeatedly point out the same thing, you may need to work on it.
Editors do more than check for errors. They read your work to make sure it makes sense. What good is it if your document passes spell check, but what you feel are profound words sound more like gibberish? Yeah, editors can help with that. They make sure your story is evenly paced and mentor you along the way.
Experienced editors will make you look good as an author. Remember the example of the food earlier? Presentation means a lot, now the editing is a huge part, but others need attention to detail.
Well, that was my three cents. Anywho, to self-edit may be worse than giving it to someone else. It's easy to catch the mistakes of others, but do we see ourselves as flawed as we are? There it goes, one more reason we need someone who doesn't mind speaking the truth. Now that I said that, you still need to edit your work. Don't give the editor something you haven't looked over a second time. If we are honest, you may not even know what's all on it. And some things won't pass the 2nd edit. Friend, your book should be edited multiple times before handing it to the editor. You need to edit, let it sit a few days, and come back to it. That is how you discover those errors that seem to keep popping up out of nowhere. Are you working on a book and need help? If so you've come to the right place. Click the photo above and you will be carried to a link to purchase my book, How To Keep Them Reading, It helps authors through all the steps to write a book from start to finish.
