I got nice notes from Liz Gorinsky and Cherie Priest this week about my copyedit of Cherie’s book Wings to the Kingdom. Cherie (who had to review copyedits the week before her wedding!) had these complimentary things to say:
Thank you–in a big and loud way–for handling Wings to the Kingdom with such panache. I loved the way you knew what to leave alone, and stopped me when I tried to do dumb things. :-)
(She didn’t actually try to do anything dumb that I remember, but the thought is nice anyway. :-))
She ended by telling me I’m fabulous, which, hey, who doesn’t love to hear that?
Being able to analyze each book individually and decide what to leave alone in that particular text (it was important to maintain the Southern flavor of the narrative in Cherie’s book, for instance) is a higher-level skill than simply applying the same set of rules to every book one handles. I know it’s one of the things that editors and authors really appreciate about my work, and it’s always nice when they tell me so. :-)
I have to say, one of the many reasons I want to get a novel published is so that I can request you as the copyeditor. :)
Pha. You have to stand in line! No cutting!
…you’re fabulous.
Yep, that’s always nice to hear!
Guess I should get cracking before the line gets too long, especially if there’s no cutting…
In all seriousness, its nice to know there are editors like you out there. People that know the rules and, more importantly, know when to ignore them for the sake of the story. Hopefully, if I can get myself to write something I think it worth sending out, I’ll be able to work with someone like you.