Is Developmental Editing Right For You?

 

Developmental editing is not copy editing, fact checking, or line editing (though some elements of line editing do come into play). A developmental editor’s job to enhance the author’s intentions; to dig deep into style, structure, word choice, sentence construction, and help identify plot holes or problematic characterization. 

 

A developmental editor looks at the whole and makes sure all the individual parts are working toward it. This is not done lightly, and frequently involves substantial revisions once complete. However, developmental edits should always be done with love and the author’s intentions in mind. In order for this to happen, an author must be able to clearly and succinctly explain what their intentions are.

 

A good gage for this involves being able to answer the following questions:

 

• What kind of story am I writing? 

• Who is my audience?

• How do I want my readers to feel at the end of the page, chapter, book? 

 

If you know the answers to those questions, you’re well on your way to a successful story. If you don’t know the answers to those questions, perhaps it’s time for you to consider them.