Hard to find Editor

[Unfoldingdesires]

I recently finished my first Loving Wives story, and have been trying to find an editor. After eight unsuccessful attempts, I’m at a loss. Some editors don’t get back to me, others have replied that they don’t edit any more and two have asked for payment. One always took up to a week to return my emails. Any thoughts?

 

[Todger65]

The editors programme doesn’t function as you would expect. A lot that sign up for it, either change their minds or just disappear without updating their profile and removing themselves from the list.

Editors here are supposed to be voluntary, therefore payment shouldn’t be requested, as that makes them professional. If you don’t intend to publish your stories on this site and wish sell your stories, then that is another matter.

You are more likely to find an editor here if you mention how many words are involved, and a rough idea as to the content, ‘Loving Wives’ on its own isn’t enough.

 

[Unfoldingdesires]

Thanks so much for your reply! I will certainly follow your lead and hope I have better success. Cheers!

 

[StillStunned]

Editing is hard work. I do it for a living, and my daily maximum is 5000 words. It's mentally exhausting.

I think a lot of people who sign up as volunteers don't realise that until they try their hand at it. And when they do, they're perhaps assume it's their own fault that it's taking so long, or requiring so much effort. Don't be too hard on them.

I suggest that you do your own editing. Look at your writing critically. Look for inconsistencies in content and in POV.

Check your sentences and paragraphs for rhythm. Make sure your paragraphs aren't too long - for online reading I usually stick to a max of about 90 words. Limit each paragraph to the speech, thoughts or actions of a single character.

In your descriptions, always move in one direction, like a camera panning across a room. With people, start with their hair, then their eyes, nose, mouth, chin, and then down over their body, or else the other way round: feet, legs, sexy bits, body, face.

Lose as many dialogue tags as you can. If you need to identify who's speaking, add an action instead. ("I don't know about that." Bob rose and poured himself another glass of wine. "What if we're wrong?")

Keep dialogue as natural as possible. People mostly speak in short sentences, without complete grammar. Read it out loud if necessary, and imagine yourself saying it in a conversation.

And when you're done, use a text-to-speech feature (Read Aloud in Word, for instance) and go through your whole text word for word. Sit and stare at the screen, watch the highlight jump from one word to the next. This will help you catch typos, inconsistencies, clunky sentences. Remember that you can adjust the speed, which makes the process more bearable.

Personally, I find the editing stage one of the most rewarding parts of writing. I get to see my story as a complete work. I can tweak the rhythm and find just the right word for a particular sentence. I get to add foreshadowing and callbacks. This is the step that brings everything together into a cohesive whole.

Good luck!

 

[Unfoldingdesires]

Editing is hard work. I do it for a living, and my daily maximum is 5000 words. It's mentally exhausting.

I think a lot of people who sign up as volunteers don't realise that until they try their hand at it. And when they do, they're perhaps assume it's their own fault that it's taking so long, or requiring so much effort. Don't be too hard on them.

I suggest that you do your own editing. Look at your writing critically. Look for inconsistencies in content and in POV.

Check your sentences and paragraphs for rhythm. Make sure your paragraphs aren't too long - for online reading I usually stick to a max of about 90 words. Limit each paragraph to the speech, thoughts or actions of a single character.

In your descriptions, always move in one direction, like a camera panning across a room. With people, start with their hair, then their eyes, nose, mouth, chin, and then down over their body, or else the other way round: feet, legs, sexy bits, body, face.

Lose as many dialogue tags as you can. If you need to identify who's speaking, add an action instead. ("I don't know about that." Bob rose and poured himself another glass of wine. "What if we're wrong?")

Keep dialogue as natural as possible. People mostly speak in short sentences, without complete grammar. Read it out loud if necessary, and imagine yourself saying it in a conversation.

And when you're done, use a text-to-speech feature (Read Aloud in Word, for instance) and go through your whole text word for word. Sit and stare at the screen, watch the highlight jump from one word to the next. This will help you catch typos, inconsistencies, clunky sentences. Remember that you can adjust the speed, which makes the process more bearable.

Personally, I find the editing stage one of the most rewarding parts of writing. I get to see my story as a complete work. I can tweak the rhythm and find just the right word for a particular sentence. I get to add foreshadowing and callbacks. This is the step that brings everything together into a cohesive whole.

Good luck!

Hello there! So wonderful that you have taken the time to read and respond to my post. Your guidance feels sound and true. You’ve given me a whole new perspective on what an editor goes through. I will review my story more critically then submit to Literotica to see if it will get approved. Blessings to you

 

[allenknott3]

I recently finished my first Loving Wives story, and have been trying to find an editor. After eight unsuccessful attempts, I’m at a loss. Some editors don’t get back to me, others have replied that they don’t edit any more and two have asked for payment. One always took up to a week to return my emails. Any thoughts?

Welcome to the world of trying to find an editor. Good free editors are nearly impossible to find. Most want payment, which I understand but also who has that much extra money in the day and age. As someone who has struggled with grammar (due to a learning disability) over the years, I have just given up on finding ean ditor.

 

[Unfoldingdesires]

Mmmm, what you said makes sense. I’m going to give editing a go on my own, and resubmit. Where I think I get a bit hung up on is punctuation for conversations. Appreciate your comments sir!