Looking to get back into editing

[ThinkerLover]

Getting bored about life and want something exciting to work on.

I will edit any genre. SF, Reluctance, GLBT, BDSM, Taboo, Fantasy, Romance. But what I love are rich, full characters. Characters who have needs to be satisfied and either really fulfill them or really don't.

I am looking to start a Queue of stories that I will edit as there tragically doesn't seem to be much out there in terms of reliable editors.

Send me a PM with a title and short extract and I will reply when I'm ready to give you a review. Yahoo chat me for basic questions. My handle is on my profile.

Here's what you need to know about the way I plan to edit going forward.

I am not a proofreader - I'm an editor. I'll give your work a spellcheck and grammar once-over but I'm primarily concerned with helping writers improve the flow of a story and have a fresh set of eyes read and help them to "flesh out" the characters and plot. This process can be very renewing for some. But a prima donna will find it uncomfortable or even painful. Just remember: I'm trying to help you.

To help this along, I will use a two-part process.

First I will send you a Review.

Naturally, this includes what I like about your story. But this review will also tell you what I think your story needs to be more compelling and interesting. From there we can go one of two directions. You can take it and work on it and I will move on to other projects while you make your changes and bring it back to me or you can ask me to make a suggestion copy wherein I post notes in MS Word that tell you which parts I think you should improve upon.

I want to help you create the best version of your story that you can. I am very gentle and very giving but very honest.

Thanks! I look forward to your excerpts.

 

[ThinkerLover]

It has been requested that samples of my work be provided.

(pasted from a response to one such author)

One of my favorites is a "May-November Romance" - as the author describes it - about Donald, a widower, who seeks out a young, pregnant girl to be his mistress/sugar-baby. I lent some good feedback to fleshing out the characters for Donald and Abby and it's some of my proudest work to have collaborated on.

http://www.literotica.com/s/donald-and-abby

Another story I am proud to have edited was the first chapter of a story called "Getting To Amp". It's a sweet story about a woman who becomes an amputee. The author had been rejected by Lit's censors and I helped him clean it up and work out some storyline details.

http://www.literotica.com/s/getting-to-amp

 

[snoopercharmbrights]

It has been requested that samples of my work be provided. ...

This sometimes raises a problem for me also.

I never feel that I can send out some author's work in its unedited and edited versions to a third party. What do other editors a) think, and b) do, about such (perfectly reasonable) requests?

 

[Etaski]

They can look at the editor's own posted stories, and they can look at the final versions of stories they helped with.

That's about all anyone could expect. Anything else is like a doctor giving names and explaining his various, detailed treatments on other patients---to another patient.

Call it "Editor confidentiality."

 

[_Lynn_]

It has been requested that samples of my work be provided.

What do other editors a) think, and b) do, about such (perfectly reasonable) requests?

I've never had anyone make that request.

 

[palisa]

No reason not to refer potential "clients" to stories you've edited, I guess, but no way do you violate an author's relationship with you by providing the unedited copy.

Etaski nailed it.