Benevolent Dictators: The Truth About Editors

By Kelly Boyer Sagert

You must be:

Wildly creative, while following the precise rules of grammar, spelling and punctuation

Assertive with editors, while sticking to their exact guidelines

And you must be willing to:

Keep an editor up to date with your progress, without bothering her

Work hard on a project, with no guarantee of another assignment

For seven years, I worked as a freelance writer, toiling under that unspoken job description – and it was tough treading those invisible boundaries with editors. Then, in 1997, I became the managing editor of Northern Ohio’s Over the Back Fence. My position is extremely rewarding – and it is also enlightening, because I now see the unique challenges inherent in the other side of the publishing equation.

Editors must ensure a magazine chock-full of quality writing and attractive photos, while adhering to tight deadlines and a strict budget. Editors are balancing the needs and wants of freelance writers, photographers, graphic designers and advertisers, and they may also be writing for the magazine and generating its publicity.

And most editors, contrary to what you may have heard, are decent human beings, sympathetic to the writer’s plight. They want you to succeed in producing a fine article for their magazine and they understand when your child catches the chicken pox, when you get called for jury duty or when your source stands you up for a vital interview.

An editor, however, is also the dictator of the magazine. Fudge a few facts, invent fictitious expenses or pester the editor during crunch time – and buss that publishing relationship good-bye. No court of appeals exists.

So, use common sense in your conversations with editors, and do NOT allow these phrases to exit your lips:

Editor B at Magazine C allows me to do this. (Fine. Go work with him.)

Next year, Magazine Q is publishing my story on termites. (Blabbermouth. What are you telling other editors about us?)

My formatting idea is lots better than yours. (Start your own magazine then.)

I’ve never read your magazine before. (But you think that you can write for it?)

This concept cannot be expressed in 1000 words. (Then it can’t be published here.)

You can’t do this to me! (Sure I can.)

And consider these words an editor’s symphony:

Thanks for the terrific editing job you did on my last article. I Hope it’s okay that I turned my article in before the deadline.

After carefully reviewing your writer’s guidelines and a couple of sample issues, I’d like to submit the following query.

What else do you need from me to complete this assignment?

The newest issue of the magazine looks great!

Then, there’s the touchy issue of money. At this point, you can consider the editor your benign adversary and you must think carefully before issuing any ultimatums. The reality is this. Editors have some flexibility in negotiating contracts and pay rates, but they, in turn, answer to the publisher. There are definite limits as to how far an editor can go – or will want to go, with a particular writer.

It’s perfectly reasonable, however, and good business practice, to discuss financial issues and concerns with an editor. Calmly point out why you feel you should receive more money. Acceptable reasons include:

I’ve produced quality material for you in past issues and my articles have required little editing.

My clips prove that I am a seasoned professional.

This upcoming assignment will require extensive research.

Understand, however, that a certain magazine may not pay the rates you’d like to receive. At this point, consider the intangible rewards of working for a specific magazine, such as:

This editor is pleasant to work with.

The quality of the publication is top rate and it affords me good clips.

This magazine is a stepping-stone in the direction I’d like my writing to take.

If, after evaluating non-monetary factors, you decide the pay rate offered is not acceptable, fulfill any outstanding contracts with the publishing company and gracefully decline any future assignments. A decent editor will respect your decision and wish you well.

The editor-writer relationship is an intriguing symbiosis, one that evolves over time. Enjoy those times when your goals mesh, resolve inevitable conflicts in a professional manner and always remain true to your own personal writing missions.

How to Avoid Copywriting Rewrites

Alex Writes:

Thank you for your wealth of information on writing. I’m an aspiring copywriter, and on top of my day job, dabble in freelance writing for brochures and corporate websites. The thing is, I occasionally encounter clients who change my copy so much (admittedly, for the better) that it makes me doubt my writing talent and potential. My numerous job applications have also been rejected by ad agencies – both big and small.

How do I know if I have what it takes to be a good copywriter? I know I have the passion for advertising copy, but when do I draw the line between passion and reality – that I should just stick to my 9-6 job and leave the writing to the pros?

Appreciate your time and advice, John.

First off, lets dispose of this, “do I have what it takes?” question. If you’re still in there trying, you have what it takes. Once you decide that it isn’t worth your time, then you don’t. I’m sure there are many better copywriters than you, and I’ll also assure you that there are worse ones than you who are making a great living. Don’t let the rejections get you down. The market is flooded with writers but it is also flooded with opportunities.

Your main concern seems to be that people are rewriting your copy. You need to understand that rewriting is part of the process. Your clients, because they are usually much closer to their product than you, will often have input into whether your copy will work for them. Often, their decisions will be best, but sometimes they don’t know what they’re talking about. Either way, they are the clients and your first job is to make them happy.

Here are a few ways to improve your chances of getting through the editing process unscathed:

Make sure you are clear on what the client wants

Don’t be afraid to ask questions as part of the process. Get the job requirements down in writing and if you are unsure of something, check. The more work you do at the front end of the process, the less work you’ll have to do at the back end.

Write carefully and edit carefully

I could recommend a dozen books to you, especially those by Robert W. Bly, but I don’t want to overload you so start with Line by Line: How to Edit Your Own Writing. This is a great resource for learning to fix your errors, and I don’t just mean bad grammar or spelling. This book covers the whole process of getting your documents right.

Test

Take the time to have others, not just your client, review what you have written. You can use other writers, or just friends who have any perspective on the product. Have them look over what you’ve written and ask them questions. Test to see if you have gotten the response you are looking for. Is the document persuasive? Does the document leave them with unanticipated questions? Are any instructions easy to follow? Do they understand what the desired result is? Your questions may vary depending on the document. The most important requirement is to listen to what your testers have to say.

Study and Practice

If you want to be a better copywriter, then dedicate yourself to improving. Study other advertising copy. Create a library of quality copywriting, both to study and to give you ideas when you set out to create a new document. Rewrite other copywriter’s materials in your own style. Study books on copywriting AND visual design. Take classes. In other words, make an effort to get better.

Copywriting is a learnable skill. Some people have more to learn than others, but if you are already getting clients, then I think your chances are pretty good. The question is whether you feel the career is worth the work.

Here are some sites about copywriting and web writing that are must-reads.

• Copyblogger: You could spend a year reading all of their articles about copywriting.
• Men With Pens: Great articles on copywriting and the writing business.
• Copywriting Maven: Good information about the business of copywriting.
• Remarkable Communication: A great site for marketers.
• Writing White Papers: Michael Stelzner specializes in white papers, one of the highest paying specialties in copywriting.

Good luck.

Will The Recession Hurt Your Writing Career?

The recession is starting to get painful

I know that there are some people out there who don’t think that we’re in a recession. Some of those same people believe that a 700 billion dollar bailout of the financial caretakers who made bad bets with our money is a good idea. What I know is that my 401k is down 18% over the past year and it wasn’t due to me taking a whole bunch of chances. I chose the most conservative portfolio my company offered. I know that my company’s stock value, despite the company making its financial projections, is down by half. There haven’t been any layoffs in the past year, but hiring at the company has become anemic. They aren’t replacing the people who leave unless the absolutely have to.

As a person who posts job openings across the writing industry on my site, I know that it is getting harder for me to find good jobs to post.  I know that at least one writing career path, newspaper reporting, is experiencing a record number of layoffs. Take all that together and we’ve got trouble. If you don’t want to call it a recession, or a “slowdown”, feel free to call it “that lack of jobs thing” or something else that makes you comfortable.

Whatever the case, it is time to look at where the jobs are and where they aren’t, at least from what I have observed so far. Let me clarify that I base my opinion on three things: articles I am reading, trends I have observed as someone who posts jobs, and conversations I have had with other writers. This is not a newspaper report, it is my view of the situation. Call me a pundit, if you will.

Newspapers are doing badly

Newspapers, of course, are the hardest hit employers of writers. Their industry-wide payrolls were declining even before the general economy went into the tank. Newspaper circulations have been down for years. People don’t read the newspapers as much as they used to, and when they do, they generally read them online where revenue is tough to come by. Poor circulation reduces both newsstand income and advertising revenue. Now that the economy is bad, advertising income is dropping even more sharply as companies cut their advertising budgets. In the United States, the election season is helping offset some of those losses, but after the first weekend in November, that income will dry up. This is a terrible time to be looking for a newspaper job, there’s no way around that. Other media outlets such as television and radio stations are also feeling the pinch, but to a lesser extent. Their markets aren’t on the ropes the way the newspaper market is, but they are experiencing the same downturn in advertising as the newspaper industry is.

Copywriting isn’t too strong either

The copywriting industry is experiencing the slowdown as well. When companies cut their advertising budgets, it hits the people who create the advertising. There are some layoffs and a significant reduction in hiring. I’ve noticed a definite drop in the number of positions being advertised in this field. The only area that seems unaffected so far is direct mail, which still seems to advertise for writers at about the same clip as they have for the past three or four years.

Technical writing is still holding up

Technical writing and information development positions have stayed relatively stable so far. While there are technology companies that have had to cut their budgets over the past year, I am still seeing plenty of new positions opening up and no reports of layoffs. If the recession gets worse, which I suspect it will, then you can expect that this field will dry up too. Most companies view documentation as a “nice to have” rather than a “must have”, so if the cuts start to get severe, you’ll see this job market go down as well. For now though, it is healthy.

Proofreaders and editors have their own problems

Proofreaders and editors are facing hiring slowdowns as well. Magazines have been failing frequently over the past year, due in equal parts to reductions in advertising and increases in both paper costs and mailing costs. On the plus side, many of them are converting to web publications, but that generally means lower paying jobs for writer, proofreaders and editors alike. Medical and legal proofreaders are still getting steady work because neither of these areas has been hit by the recession yet and there is no major expectation that they will be hit.

There are some bright spots

If you are looking for some bright spots, resume writing is always a good place to find work during a recession. More and more people need good resumes as they look for work and if you know how to write resumes, you can be very helpful either as a freelancer or working for an employment agency.

In general, because it is such a low-paying industry, finding work writing for web sites isn’t difficult if you know what you are doing, it just doesn’t pay very well. Freelance copywriting is also still providing steady work as companies look to bypass agencies or internal writers and find lower-priced options for their copywriting needs. In general, freelancers tend to do well during a recession because many companies need things done but don’t want to hire someone permanently or go through a high-priced agency. The down side is that as people lose their jobs, more and more of them turn to freelancing so you competition increases.

Bad but not terrible, yet

So far, most of the writing fields are feeling the slowdown, but only newspaper writers are at a crisis point. The next year may lead to more widespread problems. The economy isn’t going to magically turn around any time soon. Next time, I’ll discuss some strategies for surviving as a writer in a down economy.

So Much in Common: The Truth about Editing and Bull Riding

Article by Suzanne G. Fox

I’m an editor and publications production manager of longstanding, and I’m also a rabid fan of the Professional Bull Riders. There’s nothing I like more than parking my fanny before the television or on the bleachers and watching the boys and the bulls slug it out. This puzzles people who think editors are uptight characters who never turn loose of their dictionaries, but editing and riding bulls have a lot of similarities. Here are just a few:

1) In both editing and bull riding, you work in tight quarters with another individual who may turn out to be a sweetheart or may decide to stomp your guts out.

The bucking chute is a physical space, and the arena in which editor and writer work is a psychic space, but riders and bulls, and editors and writers, are pretty much on top of one another when they’re trying to get their work done. And in both cases, all participants are trying to get inside one another’s heads. The possibilities for stirring up trouble are endless. Some writers are easygoing and appreciative of editors’ suggestions, and some bulls just want to have their heads scratched when the ride is over, but both writers and bulls have sensitivities that astute people acknowledge and try to work with-or around. An insensitive editor (and there are some, unfortunately) may not break any bones, but broken and bruised egos go with the territory.

2) You have limited time to do your work, which never seems very long when you start, but it may end up feeling like an eternity.

All publishing projects have deadlines, and the deadlines always come too soon, but at least once in the process, an editor will wish it was all over. Right now. When a bull rider climbs atop a bull and nods his head to the gateman, that eight seconds may not seem like much, but sometimes it seems like forever before the buzzer sounds.

3) At some point, you will probably be covered with dust, or worse.

It’s a given that clouds of dust, clods of dirt, bull snot, and bullshit fly through the air when the gate swings open, and if dust is the worst you get hit with, you count yourself fortunate. Recently a ranked rider got thrown back into the chutes and emerged with a big bull pie stuck to his helmet. Editors generally don’t have to worry about that, but they will always find themselves buried beneath big piles of paper, and sometimes they get pelted with panicked messages or even profanity as the deadline looms. It’s all in a day’s work.

4) Technology helps, but in the end, it’s talent and training that make the difference.

Bull riding doesn’t require a lot of fancy equipment-a rider could probably get by with just a bull rope, a cowboy hat, and a set of spurs, and no amount of fiddling with these basics seems to make much difference in his performance. The great “Razor” Jim Sharp didn’t even wear chaps-he always rode in blue jeans. Likewise in editing-fast computers and access to the Chicago Manual of Style online may save some time, but in the end, it’s what you’ve learned and how you practice it, plus your innate command of the language, that determine your success.

5) When the ride is over, all parties go their separate ways and may never see each other again. Which can be a good thing.

In more than 20 years in this profession, I have only sworn twice never to work with an individual again, but it’s also not uncommon to have a wonderful experience working with a writer and then lose touch forever. As in bull riding, it’s the luck of the draw.

6) A perfect ride and good editing both look effortless.

When everything is right, a bull rider’s chin is tucked, his toes are turned out, and he stays over the center of the bull, rising when the animal jumps and settling back in exactly the same spot, free arm lifted in rhythm with the dance. A great ride is more than the sum of its participants. A good editor works the same way-s/he can make a good writer look great, a less talented writer look competent, and help a great writer become immortal. Good editing is seamless, invisible, and it always helps a writer sound exactly like him/herself-only more so.

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Suzanne G. Fox is president of Red Bird Publishing, an editorial and production service in Bozeman, MT. Her blog on professional bull riding can be found at http://turnhimout.blogspot.com.

“A small sheik escaped” and other editing exercises to energize your writing

Article by L.A. Ramsey

Of all the things in human existence to be ignited by-a skylark, Picasso’s man strumming a blue guitar, a flapper wobbling to the tune of the Charleston, a kid’s gap-toothed grin-mine was a small sheik.

It was somehow fitting that my inspiration would derive from a typographical error (it was supposed to be “a small shriek escaped”) I ran smack-dab into while editing a book.

We writers are crafty indeed. Male or female, we have to be connivers, collectors, coquettes, and charlatans. At least if we are successful we do.

The same goes for editing, for to be a good editor, one must be a good reader (meaning: a devout devourer of texts both arcane and profane). A writer, by the opposite token, need not be an excellent editor-something just now causes me to remember that F. Scott Fitzgerald couldn’t spell his way out of a paper sack of Cutty Sark, but that’s another story best left to the 3 a.m. of the soul.

Nonetheless, I have read enough schlock, 99 percent of it spilled from my own fingertips like soda on a keyboard, to know that being a good editor can only strengthen your writing. I can only imagine that despite his genius, Fitzgerald’s editors (not to mention Faulkner’s, Joyce’s, or Eliot’s; bless their tidy little hearts) would sometimes throw their hands up in sheer failure, such was the task of deciphering his hieroglyphs without a Rosetta Stone.

Here, however, I want to talk about the daylight yoga with words that we editors-contortionists all-perform, to the hum of our mantra of yearning for the perfidies of the English language.

My father would likely call out this piece for its being riddled with “75-cent words.” But that is no matter.

I would like to begin at the beginning, which I reckon starts right about at Juneau. And I don’t mean Alaska.

My wrestle with mama tongue, uh, I mean English, is perhaps best typified in the young dork carbuncular. That is, me in sixth grade. I had ascended to likely my greatest, if wholly bathetic, moment in life thus far: the county spelling bee. And there fell flat with a sloshing of precociously preteen armpits slickened with sweat.

“Juneau,” I stammered. “Can I have that in a sentence, please?” Oh, I know this one! j-u-n-e-a-u. I’ve got it! I paused. Something wasn’t right. All the adult faces that pointed at me were just askew somehow. Again. J-u-n-e-a-u. I know that’s it. I have to make a decision; man, everybody’s looking at me. I have to make them stop. Now!

Incorrect!

What? I stepped down in confusion, much like an impeached president Nixon flashing “V for victory” and every bit as popular.

I had forgotten to uppercase the word, and, thus, didn’t capitalize on the opportunity to continue my inert flirtation with fame.

To this day, I kick my own backside-as I said, contortionism-around the room for missing that one. Who knows what yawning infamies I might have cavorted with? The weakly wrist of Coke bottle-thick (much like me at the time), glasses -faced Jason, the boy I had dubbed “asparagus lips” in a moment of anger.

To crank my kite down to reality for a moment, lest I get zapped by some editorial lightning (mind you, I didn’t write “lightening”; one of my pet peeves as a copyeditor), perhaps you also have a tête-à- tête going with the English language. For that, I can only offer my praise and some unrequited jealousy, I suppose.

Surely, it can only make us better. (I think I heard somewhere that what doesn’t kill us tends to have that sweet effect. And don’t ever call me Surely.)

As it stands, the craft of writing, humor or otherwise, dovetails elegantly if not eloquently with the exercise of editing and the relish of reading.

I won’t here regale you with other tales of whines, tongue-twisters, faux pas, neologisms, or the just-as-sweet roses that I’ve seen in texts or e-mails that have come across my editorial desk.

I can only advise this: devour words! Become a consumer of product labels, newspapers, magazines literary or otherwise, music lyrics, a love note fat pencil-scribbled in childish hand that by Serendip’s sweep lands in your yard.

Like me, you just might stumble on some sort of treasure in a “small sheik” you find singing its shriek there!

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Bio: L.A. Ramsey is chiefly a copyeditor and fact-checker, but she still hears the winged chariot at her back, and, so, makes time to write while caring for her 7-month-old daughter, 30-something husband, and dog of indeterminate vintage. She has been published in 52^nd City magazine, in local newspapers, and on a satirical Web site. She’s a sometime-blogger at www.zofolitblogspot.com.

Get Rid of Ugly Wordiness: How to Cut Your Novel Down to Size

Article by Lillie Ammann

When a writer contacted me to edit his 164,000 word novel, I told him publishers don’t like books that long. We discussed the possibility of breaking the novel into two separate stories. However, when I read the manuscript, I realized the word count could be cut dramatically. He was appalled at the thought-he’d worked hard on every one of those words, and he knew each one had to be there.

We agreed to experiment with the first chapter. Although I usually use Track Changes to show my suggestions, we decided I would send him a clean copy with all my recommended changes incorporated. If he thought cutting words destroyed his story, we would start over.

He called me after he read the revised first chapter. “I thought you were going to cut it down. Everything is still there.”

“Everything important is still there,” I answered. “But all your words aren’t there.”

Since he couldn’t tell I’d cut anything, he gave me permission to continue.

This is the process I used to cut his novel from 164,000 words to 118,000 words. You can use these same steps to lose excess wordiness from your own writing.

• Eliminate repetition. “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them” may be good advice for giving a speech. However, a novelist seldom needs to repeat information.

If a scene is described in action, inner thought, and dialogue, cut out the repetitions and leave the action. Although you should show more than tell in a novel, sometimes you need to tell. If one character needs to convey information that the reader already knows, simply say Character A told Character B about …

Trust your readers. If they’re smart enough to read your book, they’re smart enough to remember the defining event in the protagonist’s life. You can connect a thought or an action to what happened before without repeating all the details.

• Eliminate unnecessary words. Write in active voice rather than passive to make your writing readable and interesting in fewer words.

You can cut almost every instance of some words-such as very and that.

Use strong verbs rather than weak verbs supported by adverbs. He trudged is both more descriptive and shorter than he walked slowly and heavily.

Don’t overuse adjectives. Be specific. The red Corvette is more effective than the flashy, fast, brightly colored sports car.

• Eliminate backstory. Almost every manuscript I’ve read from beginning writers-including my own!-begins with too much history before the real story starts.

Begin with action and let the readers meet the characters as we meet people in life. We learn their names, see what they look like (if we meet in person), maybe find out a few details such as what they do for a living. But we discover more about them only as the relationship develops.

After several rounds of editing the long novel, we removed the first four chapters. We introduced what readers needed to know when they needed to know it instead of bogging them down with history before anything happened.

• Eliminate anything that doesn’t reveal character or move the plot forward. This novel was filled with tidbits of information, cute dialogue, interesting characters, and amusing incidents.

“We’ve never heard of this character before. What part does he play in the plot?” I asked.

“Well, this is the only time he appears. But this was just such a funny scene.”

“How does the scene fit into the rest of the story?”

“Well, it really doesn’t. But it’s so funny!”

Cut! If you’ve included a character or a scene or a quaint historical fact just because you liked it, get rid of it. Of course, you can have a character who appears only once-if he does something that moves the plot along or that shows something about your protagonist. But if the character or scene doesn’t add to the story, eliminate it.

In short, when you edit to cut your novel down to size, remember the words of Elmore Leonard: “I leave out the parts that people skip.”

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Lillie Ammann is a writer, editor, and consultant specializing in working with self-publishing authors. She blogs at A Writer’s Words, An Editor’s Eye.

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