Greetings, Nerdlings!
So, I got my book back a few weeks ago from the third editor I sent it out to, and… well, I’ve been struggling with mixed feelings to be honest.
First off: she loved the story and my writing overall, which is a huge relief to me since I’ve never worked with her before this and I always get antsy showing new people my work.
Second: She made some point, I was already aware of and had planned to change anyway, but the time crunch with PitchWars last year meant I couldn’t go through with it. That said, about half that stuff is already written out and I just need to insert it. She also had some things she suggested to switch around, which again, I agree would make the story stronger.
However, she proceeded to give me a new possible outline for the story. And, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate with effort and care and time she took to try and understand my story. I honestly do, but this is why people (and she also strongly emphasized this point when she sent me everything back and in a followup email as well) say, editors, are there to suggest and guide you to make the story better. If their input clashes with the intent of the story, or they misinterpret something (which can happen, they don’t have the full vision after all) the author is free to disregard it. And if their nudging leads to the author getting a better idea, well, that’s ideal.
That said, her overall feedback regarding the timeline and the things I had already planned to change myself along with some added plot twists, I found very helpful and am working on implementing. But she also had an amazing amount of cliche and overdone and too easy to spot Outline points, that I felt would… I dunno I guess dumb down, is the best way to put it, the story. And considering the subplots, I wasn’t willing to go that way.
So, I spent a week taking notes and getting my head on straight and I’m now working my way through rewrites. Overall, it’s not much just extremely time-consuming and, honestly, a touch frustrating. But, I’m happy, because I have no doubt it’ll make the story stronger.
