When you send your drafts in for editing, do you have your pick of who edits it, or is that up to the publisher? Also, when do you personally choose to stick with what is written or follow the editor’s advice?
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Good questions, Leoxander.
- No, you have no say in who edits your book. You are normally working with your editor as you go, but who you are working with is decided by the publisher. If you really can’t work with someone, you have to go over their heads, but if the person is the line editor, more likely you will be replaced than they will.
- You always have the option of arguing for your work, if you feel you have a case to make. Sometimes, if you can explain you have a good reason for doing things the way you did, you will win. But if you just refuse to make changes out of wanting to preserve every word you wrote, the odds are the publisher will just drop you. Part of your job, as a successful writer, is to make your editor’s life easier, not harder.
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A follow-up then, was there any difference when it came to editing your original works versus editing the Bionicle books with scholastic? I’ve been listening to several interviews with authors and I’m curious about your experience.
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My pre-LEGO works were only slightly different, because I worked for the publisher. But I still had an editor, and I still would have been off the project if I didn’t meet the deadlines, etc.
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