View Single Post
Old 07-17-2010, 11:25 AM   #11
DMcCunney
New York Editor
DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.DMcCunney ought to be getting tired of karma fortunes by now.
 
DMcCunney's Avatar
 
Posts: 6,384
Karma: 16540415
Join Date: Aug 2007
Device: PalmTX, Pocket eDGe, Alcatel Fierce 4, RCA Viking Pro 10, Nexus 7
Quote:
Originally Posted by Lemurion View Post
QFT.

I agree completely.

I'm making my living editing fiction at the moment, and I've written those letters. I've got both reactions, too.

However, I have seen disasters that were made worse by bad editors - especially those who advertise their services to unpublished writers.

(For the record, I'm not being paid by the writers whose work I'm editing).
Oh, there's a lot of charlatans and snake oil in the publishing game. Start with "vanity" presses, proceed through people like agents who charge a reading fee and "publishers" whose business model is to charge you for the various services that are part of publishing your book, and who make money whether or not your book actually sells, and stir in book doctors of dubious provenance.

If someone tried to get me to pay them for editing assistance, I'd want to see a sample client list. Who else used you for help? What books have actually been published by a major publisher because you worked on them? What is your background, and what makes you qualified to be an editor?

And for a lot of folks, admitting they could use the help may be the biggest barrier to seeking it. I used to peek in on various writers forums, and it became clear quickly that what the majority of posters wanted wasn't actual advice. They wanted to be told how great their writing was, and reacted badly to any suggestions for improvement.

Some folks decide to self-publish after getting nowhere submitting through the regular channels. Well, maybe there's a reason you didn't get anywhere with major publishers...
______
Dennis
DMcCunney is offline   Reply With Quote