I recently finished my very first draft of a novel--and I must say, I was quite excited. So excited, in fact, that I posted it all over my Facebook page, emailed my family, and sent text messages to several of my friends. (It was a big deal.) But now I am embarking on a new journey. I have dabbled in writing for years now, and going through my Creative Writing program in college introduced me to the world of editing--editing others' work, and also getting my own work edited (the very thing that started me down the editorial path). This is the first time, however, that I will be delivering something that took so much time and effort into the clutches of other people's opinions and feedback. And I am very excited about it.
I am also afraid. Horribly, terribly petrified. But I am mostly excited, because this will allow me to take a peek at the other side of editing. Receiving feedback from my beta readers and eventually other editors will, I hope, allow me to become a better editor in turn. I know how delicate the process can be to make changes to something that required so much work, so much heart and soul, but now I get to experience that firsthand.
I am setting aside my manuscript for a few months, and then I will go over it and do a thorough edit of my own first. I know there will be a lot I can improve on before I have anyone else take a crack at it. But then it will be off to my beta readers, and hopefully they will provide an objective look and provide suggestions for improvements that I understand and agree with. I will, of course, follow my own advice and take every suggestion with a grain of salt. Getting feedback from readers provides invaluable information, because you will never be able to see your own story from the perspective of your readers--you know too much. So hearing suggestions from people who only have what is on the page in front of them is, I am sure, going to improve my story in leaps and bounds. It may, occasionally, be difficult to hear. But I hope I am up to the challenge of experiencing editing from the other of the manuscript.
I am also afraid. Horribly, terribly petrified. But I am mostly excited, because this will allow me to take a peek at the other side of editing. Receiving feedback from my beta readers and eventually other editors will, I hope, allow me to become a better editor in turn. I know how delicate the process can be to make changes to something that required so much work, so much heart and soul, but now I get to experience that firsthand.
I am setting aside my manuscript for a few months, and then I will go over it and do a thorough edit of my own first. I know there will be a lot I can improve on before I have anyone else take a crack at it. But then it will be off to my beta readers, and hopefully they will provide an objective look and provide suggestions for improvements that I understand and agree with. I will, of course, follow my own advice and take every suggestion with a grain of salt. Getting feedback from readers provides invaluable information, because you will never be able to see your own story from the perspective of your readers--you know too much. So hearing suggestions from people who only have what is on the page in front of them is, I am sure, going to improve my story in leaps and bounds. It may, occasionally, be difficult to hear. But I hope I am up to the challenge of experiencing editing from the other of the manuscript.
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