Editing
You need a few characterisitcs to be a sucessful writer and they may not be what you think. You need discipline, perseverance, and the ability to process criticism. And it would be nice if you could string a few words together that follow some kind of grammatical standard... *g*
Editors can have it tough, mainly because they have to deal with writers or would-be writers. Writing can be such a personal form of expression (even in technical writing) that any form of correction can be taken as a personal attack.
When I'm asked to edit someone's work, the review process can sometimes be bogged down in debate. Instead of personally evaluating each comment, the author will try to justify the original version of every edit ("No no... We can't change that. I wrote that like that because of blahblahblah, so that has to stay that way"). Dude... you asked for my opinion, so here's my opinion.
There's a reason I don't edit student papers, especially in literature studies. There's a feeling among Lit students that their papers are supposed to be vague and unclear, as if it were hiding gems of insight that are better implied than actually stated. This is not completely the fault of the students because their teachers are the ones encouraging this practice of non-modern writing.
But that's a beef for another day...
I remember my first class at the Université de Sherbrooke (in the Professional Writing program): we were 20 writing students, all of us confident in our superior writing skills. When we received our first assignment back from the teacher, expecting it to have been well-received. Instead there was criticism scrawled in red all over our masterpieces! The gambit of emotions that each person was going through could clearly been seen on our faces: smug confidence, growing shock and dismay (as we counted the number of corrections), giving way to anger and indignation.
I'll never forget that day: the day we thought we were had reached the summit of our writing prowess, only to realize we were standing on a speed bump.
But we as writers need to learn how to accept, evaluate, and process criticism if we want to grow and refine our craft. It's important to be able to take a step back and evaluate our writing on its own merits (or demerits) and accept that it could probably be improved.
That doesn't mean we have to take every criticism and incorporate it into our writing! There are plenty of Yahoos out there will ill-informed opinions (and loud too), but we can use our own judgement to evaluate where these criticisms are coming from. Is this a person I respect? Is this person concerned about the quality of my work, or is he/she using my work as a way to put me down? Taking a step back, is this criticism applicable and would it really make my work better?
These are all valid questions, and going through the process of weeding out good suggestions from bad suggestions will certainly make you a better writer in the end.
But, as a writer, you have to be willing. You have to be willing to admit that there's always room for improvement (which is a humbling thought) before you can accept such criticism. Until then, you run the risk of getting stuck in your own perceived greatness and will evolve at a much slower rate.
When you are ready to bring your writing to the next level, find an editor that you trust and trust your editor. It's not a sign of weakness to have your work checked by a trained editor who can spot trouble areas that you cannot see, being too close to your own work.
If anything, it's a sign of strength and confidence in your talent as a Creator, as a Writer, and as an Artist.
The cover. The cover is being such a bitch. It's supposed to be a deep red with gold and white lettering. I've generated a PDF of the book and handed it off to the printer, but when the printer printed the proof, dark red came out as a muddy brown.
