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Originally Posted by caleb72
I've always wanted to try and post links to decent editing and cover art/illustration services on my site to help out indie authors looking for those services, but I wouldn't know a good editor if I tripped over one - and I wouldn't want to advertise sub-standard services.
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It is very difficult to determine who is and who is not a good editor for a particular book. Someone who was a great editor on your zombie book might be a horrible editor for your teen romance novel. There are, unfortunately, no for-certain methods for finding the right editor for your current project.
Using myself as an example. I have edited more manuscript pages over the course of my 30-year editing career than most editors -- hundreds of thousands of pages. I have edited several thousand books. I have an extensive resource library at my fingertips (I mean print resources, not online resources) and I have taught editing to others multiple times.
Sounds pretty good, I think, but I would be the wrong editor for most of you. My experience with fiction is limited; not nonexistent but limited. The bulk of my editing work is medical editing of books written by doctors for doctors. Could I do a good job for you on your novel? Yes, I believe I could -- depending on what you want by way of an editor. Are there editors who are better than me when it comes to fiction? Most definitely. But even someone who has only edited fiction for the past 20 years may not be the right editor for you and your book.
Finding an appropriate editor is a hit-and-miss proposition. This is one of the values of an established publisher like Random House. They have experience with numerous editors and usually do a good job matching the editor to the author and the book.