By Sydney Swallow
If you’re someone who likes to read fiction stories, whether fantasy or thriller, and like me always enjoy the thrill of guessing the plot, what’s going to happen in the next book, etc., then developmental editing might be a career you’d want to learn about. Avid readers have all read a book or two that they know they would’ve loved to change that 3-star rating to 5 if there were just a few tweaks here and there. Developmental editing is the first and biggest part in the editing process for writers. It helps them clarify what to focus on and evaluating plot holes, pacing, tension, character arcs, and more. Why not see if it’s worth making a career out of?
These editors look at all those elements in a story including overall organization, inconsistencies, POV, voice, and scene development/effectiveness. They are the “big picture” editors and help authors indicate the symbolism and meaning more directly for the readers experience. This is done by restructuring a manuscripts discourse either by coaching the author chapter by chapter or in sections for better direction of the story. Sometimes they can have a more hands-on approach with editing paragraph by paragraph and sentences if needed, but that teeters on the cusp of line editing and is only done if it was previously discussed. Overall, how these editors denote a manuscript is dependent on the story and each editor has their own style.
Writers and Developmental Editors primarily use an editorial letter with a collection of all this information that discusses changes/suggestions made, in-line comments, and when to expect potential deadlines. The editorial letter is a great tool for setting the tone and building a relationship with the author to get their work to the best of its ability. How many other jobs do you get to say you’re the first to read a book and where you get to brainstorm ideas back and forth? In this kind of partnership, you create trust with your author to make their vision come to life!
Depending on how long a story is this can be quite extensive or overwhelming work for the editor and knowing their own style or method is key to achieving the story’s goals. A couple of examples are the Pomodoro and Eisenhower Box Method. These techniques help editors prioritize what they are focusing on at the moment and what tasks are most to least important. The Eisenhower Box is a great way to start an edit with a story because this method helps you categorize the priorities needed and why, what tasks go with each category, timeframe and action plans, and then you can delegate it from most urgent to least. This would be best effective for novels and helping guide authors throughout the process. A Developmental Editor would need to schedule timelines for the publishing catalogs, mapping out revision due dates with the author, and release dates including cover art or special editions.
Pomodoro is another method that works for a more difficult or longer edit to break up the tasks. It has interval sessions for working anywhere from 15-30 minutes and breaks for 5 minutes. After a few intervals you can start taking longer breaks of 25 minutes. This method is also great for an editor to work on emails, check-ins with the authors you’re working with, and drafting your editorial letter. It’s also beneficial for avoiding procrastination to work on a harder task while simplifying it as well. You can take a moment to grab more coffee, take a walk, stretch, eat, and maybe even look for your next read! Whatever it takes to help fuel your mind and body to keep you energized.
Staying focused on the edits needed for books can make all the difference in making a book successful. Of course, mastering the art of storytelling doesn’t come overnight. You can gain experience by learning about the industry and getting mentored with an entry level job at any big or small publishing company; some are Penguin Random House, Bloom Books, or even FairyLoot that’s a book subscription service but is expanding more into publishing. If you don’t live near big publishing companies, you can also start as a beta reader, proofreader or copy editor, or even freelance for indie authors or platforms like Reedsy to gain experience and build a portfolio! Being a Developmental Editor may have moments of drudgery work and needing grit, but it’s negated by getting to read new books no one has gotten to read yet, form opinions on what needs work, and make it better. With all the new ways you can find a space in the editing world, maybe you can be the person that streamlines creating a meaningful impact that all readers crave!