12 Questions from Your Editor

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So, you’ve written your masterpiece and think you’re ready to start your search for an editor? Great! But there’s a little prep work you can do ahead of time to make that process a little smoother.
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When you contact your potential new editor, there are a few things they’ll need to know to get an idea of how best to serve you. You can save yourself and your editor a lot of time and trouble by thinking through and having answers ready for the following questions.
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1. Do you plan to self-publish, or are you looking for help cleaning up your manuscript for submission to a traditional publisher or agent?
2. What genre are you working in, and what is your vision for the project?
3. What is your intended publishing format? (Print book, e-book, blog post, magazine or newspaper article, informational pamphlet, website copy, etc.)
4. What is the current and/or projected word count?
5. Is it part of a series? If so, is it the beginning, middle, or end of the series?
6. Has your manuscript already been through any editing or revision? (Peer review, beta readers, developmental editing, etc.)
7. Do you have a preferred style guide, either your own preference or that of your publisher? (Chicago style, AP style, APA style, etc.)
8. Do you have a dictionary preference? (Merriam-Webster, Oxford English, etc.)
9. Which dialect of English are you writing in? (American, British, Canadian, Australian, etc.)
10. Do you have any individual style preferences? (Spelling of certain words, capitalization, punctuation, etc.)
11. What kind of timeline/schedule do you prefer and/or need?
12. What are you hoping your editor can do for you? What do you want to get out of the editing process?

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​Depending on your specific circumstances, your editor will probably have other questions, but having the answers to these 12 beforehand will give you a head start.

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​Rebecca Miller is a professional copyeditor and general fan of all things having to do with the written word and the English language.
You can check out her website at Oakdale Editing or connect through Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, or Email.