Editing a book is a skill that many people believe they have, but very few people actually possess. Editing a book is not easy. It is more than just removing a few words here, adding a few words there. Authors have to be very careful when they are hiring an editor. Many authors have no idea how they should assess an editor’s work, what they should expect from the edited work and how much license should they give to the editor with their work.

These are some things that an author needs to decide and discuss with the editor before they hire anyone for editing their book. There are some rules that should be followed while editing a novel or a nonfiction book.

Things to Consider Before Hiring an Editor

The first thing that an author needs to decide is what he or she needs from the editor. Do you want the editor to correct your expressions, add to your story or simply give you suggestions? Mostly, authors like it when editors simply polish their written content and do not make any drastic changes. If there are more changes to be made, make it politely clear to the editor that they need to discuss the changes with you before doing anything else.

Another thing that the author should consider is being flexible. Simply being too easy or too harsh on the editor is not good. An author should always keep calm, consider the changes and see what needs to be done. At the end of the day, it is your work and you must decide if you should accept the changes or not. The best you can do is keep an open mind so that if there are some changes that need your careful consideration, you must at least look at them and see if they are worth it.

Share the level of edits you need done. Set your boundaries right from the start. If you are not sure if you and the editor are a good match, you can always hire the editor on a trial basis. Basically, you will pay the editor to work with you for three to five hours in which the editor will follow your requirements. If you like their edits, you can hire them; if not, you are not obliged to work with them at all.

Many times, editors would be working as a team with proofreaders and copyeditors as well, so if you are not comfortable with sharing your work with more than one person then you should make it clear from the get go. Last, but not the least, you should keep your budget in your mind. Editing is not a cheap service and there is no set rate that the industry follows. It is based on the experience of the editor and their skill set. So make sure that you have set your budget before approaching an editor and starting a project. Simply keeping these simple tips in mind will help immeasurably.