Think It Through Thursday
Before you get put out money for a down payment on an editor… make sure he or she, sometime they are your fit. If you write in a genre where slang is incorporated make sure they can understand the culture of the language.
When a foreign language is incorporated or a dialect the editor must be knowledgeable of how it is used. In my book Eyes on the Pryze the main character is Jamaican. I did a lot of research because The Jamaican dialect Patios has various uses of one word. So, in order to edit Eyes on the Pryze correctly I took out the dialect and explained it’s usage.
Ex:
Patios Dialect: Wha’um mi Yout!
Translated: What’s up youth? Or what’s going on young one?
The voices in your story are important. They tell their story…your story. So, it is best that the editor is able to hear them speak.
Your editor is just as important as your characters, because they give them the power to speak to your readers.
I know you know what is coming next. I couldn’t say it enough. Research. Research. Research. Understand what type of editing you need. There are several types and to know the difference is imperative.
Types of Editing
Developmental Editing
This form of editing covers the structure, organizing, coherency, and consistency. The editor may eliminate scenes, paragraphs and sentences so that the storyline was clear and precise.
Copy Editor
The editor corrects grammar, style, repetition, word usage, and jargon.
Proofreading
Proofreading is the lightest form of editing. Minor errors are corrected. Minor errors include: grammar style like verb tense, when to use 5 or five. Cap use, punctuation. For instance,
This form of editing also helps correct your spelling and word usage, too/to.
Make sure you get an assessment of the condition of your manuscript. Most editors evaluate their costs by the damage control they have to enforce. (LOL) my advice and “damn good advice” is to send your work through Grammarly or a similar software to at least get some of the errors corrected..