10 THINGS

YOU NEED TO KNOW

BEFORE HIRING A BOOK EDITOR

- ONE -
If you know an English major or a retired English teacher, please do not ask him to edit your book.
Editing is not all about grammar. Editing is a strategic blend of voice, style, persuasion,
psychology, and (yes) grammar. A good editor will know when to break grammar rules, in favor
of the author’s voice, and a great editor will know when to rearrange the structure of the book to
make it more marketable to the audience. And they just don’t teach those skills in English 101.

- TWO -
There are three types of editing: developmental, copyediting, and proofreading. If you want to
put out a quality book, your book must go through all three levels of editing.

- THREE -
Developmental editing thoroughly examines the overall structure of your book and makes
sure that every story, argument, and point is logical, flows easily into the next section, and
contributes to the book’s larger purpose. This phase of editing helps you refine the breadth and
depth of your book’s message.

- FOUR -
Copyediting smooths out the sentences, removes repetition, adds variety, and gets rid of those
annoying writing habits you don’t even know you have. This phase of editing brings out your
authentic voice and what you’re trying to say in a powerful way.

- FIVE -
Proofreading scrubs the book of any remaining errors—misplaced commas, inconsistent
capitalization, split infinitives—those geeky grammatical concerns. This is the phase of editing
that makes you look like a true professional.

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- SIX -
You should have at least two editors for your book. If you only have one editor, that person
will inevitably fail to see a gaping hole in your structure or miss a handful of grammar errors.
Editors are humans, too. Your book will feel much more professional if you have two editors
working on your book—one to handle developmental editing and one to handle copyediting
and proofreading.

- SEVEN -
Have a Skype or phone conversation with your editors. Your editors should be cool people,
the type of people who you would like to hang out with. Why is this important? Because an
editor’s voice will unintentionally show up, somehow, in the manuscript. Editors pledge to
do no harm to a manuscript, but (again) we are human, and we make choices when we’re
editing your words. If we sound like tightly-wound grammar freaks, your book will be tinged
with uptightness. If we sound relaxed and savvy, hey, so will your book. 

- EIGHT -
Good editing takes time. You should plan for at least six weeks—two weeks for a developmental
edit, two weeks for you to make revisions, and two weeks for copyediting and proofreading.

- NINE -
Good editing requires money. There are a lot of unemployed English majors out there, eager to
accept $10 per hour to edit your book. But your book is worth more. If you’re building a business
and platform from your book, you should be willing to step up and pay for quality editors.

- TEN -
Great editing = a great book. So, if you want to produce a high quality book that will seriously
level up your business or platform, take your time, do your research, and find fantastic editors.

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 PAPER RAVEN BOOKS’
EDITING PHILOSOPHY
Paper Raven Books is a team of some of the best developmental editors, copyeditors, and
proofreaders in the industry. We work together, with authors, to shape first drafts into powerful,
bold books that will create impact in the world.
How we collaborate with authors is different than any other editing service out there. When
you bring on Paper Raven Books to edit your book, you get all three layers of editing—
developmental, copyediting, and proofreading—all done by the same team. We streamline
your structure, smooth out your sentences, and proofread. It’s as efficient a model as you’ll
ever find, and it’s all included in one, flat fee. We’re transparent, and we like it that way.
If you want to know more about how the Paper Raven Books team can work with you on your
book, click here:
paperravenbooks.com/editing 
We would be honored to help you turn your first draft into a book that you are proud to sell.

Morgan Gist MacDonald

Writing Coach & Editor
Founder of Paper Raven Books

PAPER
RAVEN
BOOKS