The Five Stages of Editorial Letters

Happy Friday, Operation Awesome! Today I want to talk to you a little about editorial letters. Whether you're working with an agent, an editor, or someone else in the business, it's a huge step to receive a professional editorial letter for your manuscript, and I hope you're really proud of yourself.

I'm here today, though, to tell you you're not ready. Oh, you're totally ready for the revisions. But you're so not ready for the amazing emotional gymnastics the process will put you through.

Stage 1: Adrenaline

You're doing revisions! THIS IS SO EXCITING! You have all these amazing visions of how perfect your book is going to be once you're done, and you can't wait to get started. You've got your document open, and you're all ready to dive into revising the heck out of it.

However, you don't have your editorial letter yet. You're not actually going to have your editorial letter for a couple weeks. Take a deep breath, lower your blood pressure, and try to work on something else, or take a mini-vacation in preparation for all the hard work ahead. Don't burn yourself out too early.

Then you check your mailbox, and you see an e-mail from the agent/editor/etc with an attachment. It's here. Which brings you to...

Stage 2: Paralyzing dread

You don't even want to open it now. You have convinced yourself that this agent or editor is going to hate your book, because apparently, according to the voice in the back of your head,  agents and editors use their free time to work with books they hate. (Yes, logic has no place in the Five Stages. You're going to be ignoring that little voice quite a bit.)

Then you tell yourself, "Get it together, Mahoney. You're a professional." (Or that's what you would say if we shared the same last name.) And you open the letter, which brings you to...

Stage 3: All the feelings

Get ready for some dramatic ups and downs as you read your letter. Happyflail as you read about the things your publishing pro liked and cringe in mortification at some of the silly mistakes you made - sometimes both, in very quick succession.

And if you can, try to read your letter in a private place, just so you don't get anyone overly concerned. Although watching all these emotions play out on someone else's face would probably be pretty hilarious.

You finish reading the letter, and you let it percolate for a moment. And then you arrive at...

Stage 4: TERROR

OH MY GOD, YOU CAN'T DO THIS.

If you're working with an agent, you might read their client books, and if you're working with an editor, you might read other projects they've worked on. But either way, those books are amazing. No way you could even get close to that kind of quality. And how are you even supposed to approach their suggestions, anyway? You don't know how to tighten the pacing in the beginning, or develop that certain side character, or make the romance more... well, romantic. The letter is probably right about all those things, but they're beyond your level of skill.

Except once you calm down a bit, you do finally pick up your manuscript again. Maybe you start with something I call "triage" - reading through your book and pinpointing the places where you could implement the changes your letter talked about. The more you think about it, the more everything starts coming together in your head. And you finally come to...

Stage 5: Determination

You've got this. You've got this 100%. Your original excitement comes trickling back, and you are motivated and ready to get down to business.

So set your cap at a rakish angle and go riding off into battle. You know exactly what you're doing, and your story is going to be so much better for it.

Best of luck, OAers, and have a great weekend!

The Dreaded Editor Letter: Confessions From Entangled Publishing Authors Rachel Harris, Lisa Burstein, Cindi Madsen, and Amy Spalding

Some of the authors at Entangled wanted to give other aspiring writers, or anyone who's curious, an insight into the editing process. We sort of interviewed each other and talked about how each of us handled our edit letters (spoiler alert: we all freaked out a little) Hope you enjoy!

AMY SPALDING, author of The Reece Malcolm List:

When I was a writer dreaming of having a book published, I had a pretty good idea for what the editorial process was like. But once I actually got my book deal and then…my editorial letter…well, it’s one thing to know what something is. It’s quite another to actually go through it. I got together with some of my editor Stacy Cantor Abram’s other writers, so we could share what we actually went through!

Ladies, the moment I got my edit letter and marked-up manuscript, I had what felt like twenty-seven anxiety attacks. I began reading the letter, and it was so overwhelming I could only skim it. I paged through the document but it made me so nervous I just had to print it and then pretend it didn’t exist. That night, I kept sneaking peeks at the letter, just a liiiiiiittle more at a time, trying desperately to get comfortable with it. THAT NEVER HAPPENED. A few days later, I knew that even if I wasn’t ready, my deadline said I had to be. I want to stress here that it wasn’t that I couldn’t take hearing what was wrong with my book. I was actually freaked out by the potential Stacy saw in my book. I was so worried I’d never get there!

Lisa, did you go through a meltdown too or was I particularly, uh, dramatic?

LISA BURSTEIN, author of Pretty Amy:

I’ve been fortunate enough to get two editorial letters from Stacy, one for PRETTY AMY and one for the upcoming DEAR CASSIE and just like you Amy, when I first got them I skimmed them. They were each 6 pages long- single spaced- far too much to read and absorb in one sitting. The thing is in both cases is that Stacy has been right on. What she notes as issues in my Mss are usually the things I *think* I can get away with, that when she brings them up, I know I cannot. She also pushes me to go deeper, which is what any good editor should do. Here is how the edit went for PRETTY AMY: I skimmed the letter, once, twice and slept on it. Then I printed it and highlighted the areas I knew I needed to attack in my first edit. Character issues mostly. Then I completed another edit for the smaller issues before I sent it back to Stacy. At that point she did a line edit and it came back to me. I did another edit and it went back to her. To tie up loose ends there was one more edit before it went to copy edits. Once I approved copy edits, it went to Liz Pelletier, Publisher of Entangled for a final read through. She had even MORE edits. It was not a short process, but I know both Stacy and Liz helped me make PRETTY AMY the most amazing book it could be.

Rachel, did you have a similar amount of edits and anxiety?

RACHEL HARRIS author of My Super Sweet 16th Century:

Anxiety over edit letters and revision? Of course not! And if you believe THAT, well, insert incredibly clichéd, sarcastic phrase here (*grin*). Yes, I think every author has a healthy fear of the dreaded editorial letter. I should be getting my second one from Stacy any day now for my sequel, and even after going through this whole process before, I’m still anxious over it. I remember we were driving home from the salon where my girls got their haircut, and my husband was in the driver’s seat. My phone did that spastic lighting up/vibrating thing, letting me know I had an incoming email, and when I saw it was my edit letter from Stacy, I about had a heart attack right then and there.

Obviously, because I’m a neurotic author, I opened my inbox immediately….and was promptly informed by my lovely phone that the email was too big to open. Imagine my jaw hitting the floor of the car here. There’s no way that could be good, right?? Well, it turns out that Stacy just rocks and gives tons of great info for you to use to make your book better. The reason it wouldn’t open was that in addition to the edit letter, she had printed out my entire manuscript, made notes old school style in pen on the pages, and then scanned them back in. Hence, an email that was too big for my then pathetic excuse for a phone.

But once I got home and dove into all the info Stacy gave me, all the previous fear and anxiety vanished, leaving me strangely…excited. You should know that I’m a bit obsessive, so I was able to turn my edits back in to Stacy about a week later, after first making all the changes from the scanned pages, and then tackling the bulleted list in her letter (all points I agreed with). Then about a month later, Liz Pelletier gave me her thoughts, along with two main issues to address, which I completed that day because, again, I’m a tad obsessive.

Fast forward to the end of April when I got copy edits. These were super fun because they made me sound smarter than I really am. I turned these in two days later. At the end of July, Stacy and I both did a mega two-day final read through of the manuscript to make sure it was how we wanted it before going to the printer, and then it was out of my hands. And into yours at home. Scary, exciting, crazy, and—weirdly enough—fun.

What about you, Cindi? Am I odd to think the editing process, at least with a super star like Stacy, is actually fun?

Cindi Madsen, author of All the Broken Pieces:

Why, yes, Rachel, you are extremely odd ;) I’m a tad on the obsessive side, too, where once I get feedback, my brain won’t let me think about anything but my WIP, revisions, or whatever process I’m in. Honestly, when I first opened the editing letter, I was overwhelmed. I’d done a couple different revisions with a couple different agents, who I ended up not signing with. Then I set my book aside for a few months and wrote a different book. But my manuscript kept calling to me, telling me it wanted to be a book people read someday. (At this point, you realize I’m also slightly crazy, in addition to being obsessive).

So I got it out and did a major revision again, heard about Entangled, and queried. So fast forward the yay, they want it! to the edit letter. I had to do ANOTHER revision. I worried that the book would no longer be mine. I worried I wouldn’t be able to do everything Stacy wanted. But after thinking and obsessing for the weekend, I dug in. Stacy’s suggestions led me to add things about my book I really love. She had me take out some things I’d added to make other people happy—I was actually glad to lose some of that. She challenged me and pushed me. I turned it in a couple weeks later, happy with how things had turned out.

But when I got the second revision back, there were still some things that needed work. I got super overwhelmed and thought that maybe Stacy didn’t want the story I’d written. As an author, I’d been waiting for an editor for so long, I was under the impression you just do everything they say, no questions asked. I was reaching extreme levels of anxiety. So I finally just wrote Stacy an email, addressing my concerns and where I wanted the story arcs to be, and how I felt conflicted on a couple of points. She emailed me back in record time, assuring me she loved the story, and that we could talk about any and all points.

The stress that had been building melted. It was such a relief to know that we were on the same team, that I could still be true to my story, and that I could talk to her whenever I needed to. So I worked really hard to get to a point that she and I would both be happy. Later came the read through by Liz and copy edits. By that point, it’d been a few months, so it was easier to read my book again and do some final touch-ups. I changed a couple more things, and when I finally got to read through the galley and see the entire transformation, I was giddy and so, so happy and grateful to Stacy for sticking with me through the entire process.

I feel like my book is now the book it was always meant to be. I’m not sure I’d say I’m excited to do it again—I’m just not great at the revision process—but I’m definitely excited to know that in the end, I’ll have a pretty book I love and can be proud of.

~~~
(Reposted with permission from Amy Spalding, Lisa Burstein, Rachel Harris, and Cindi Madsen)

You can find more information on the Entangled ladies on their websites:

Amy Spalding
Lisa Burstein
Rachel Harris
Cindi Madsen

BUY LINKS:

My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century by Rachel Harris - Amazon; B&N; Books a Million

On the precipice of her sixteenth birthday, the last thing lone wolf Cat Crawford wants is an extravagant gala thrown by her bubbly soon-to-be stepmother and well-meaning father. So even though Cat knows the family's trip to Florence, Italy, is a peace offering, she embraces the magical city and all it offers. But when her curiosity leads her to an unusual gypsy tent, she exits . . . right into Renaissance Firenze.

Thrust into the sixteenth century armed with only a backpack full of contraband future items, Cat joins up with her ancestors, the sweet Alessandra and protective Cipriano, and soon falls for the gorgeous aspiring artist Lorenzo. But when the much-older Niccolo starts sniffing around, Cat realizes that an unwanted birthday party is nothing compared to an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore. Can she find her way back to modern times before her Italian adventure turns into an Italian forever?

All the Broken Pieces by Cindi Madsen - Amazon; B&N; Books a Million
What if your life wasn’t your own?

Liv comes out of a coma with no memory of her past and two distinct, warring voices inside her head. Nothing, not even her reflection, seems familiar. As she stumbles through her junior year, the voices get louder, insisting she please the popular group while simultaneously despising them. But when Liv starts hanging around with Spencer, whose own mysterious past also has him on the fringe, life feels complete for the first time in, well, as long as she can remember.

Liv knows the details of the car accident that put her in the coma, but as the voices invade her dreams, and her dreams start feeling like memories, she and Spencer seek out answers. Yet the deeper they dig, the less things make sense. Can Liv rebuild the pieces of her broken past, when it means questioning not just who she is, but what she is?

Pretty Amy by Lisa Burstein - Amazon; B&N; Books a Million

Amy is fine living in the shadows of beautiful Lila and uber-cool Cassie, because at least she's somewhat beautiful and uber-cool by association. But when their dates stand them up for prom, and the girls take matters into their own hands--earning them a night in jail outfitted in satin, stilettos, and Spanx--Amy discovers even a prom spent in handcuffs might be better than the humiliating"rehabilitation techniques" now filling up her summer. Worse, with Lila and Cassie parentally banned, Amy feels like she has nothing--like she is nothing.

Navigating unlikely alliances with her new coworker, two very different boys, and possibly even her parents, Amy struggles to decide if it's worth being a best friend when it makes you a public enemy. Bringing readers along on an often hilarious and heartwarming journey, Amy finds that maybe getting a life only happens once you think your life is over.

The Reece Malcolm List by Amy Spalding (available for pre-order) - Amazon; B&N; Books a Million

Things I know about Reece Malcolm: 

 1. She graduated from New York University. 

2. She lives in or near Los Angeles. 

3. Since her first novel was released, she’s been on the New York Times bestseller list every week. 

4. She likes strong coffee and bourbon. 

5. She’s my mother. 

 Devan knows very little about Reece Malcolm, until the day her father dies and she’s shipped off to live with the mother she’s never met. All she has is a list of notebook entries that doesn’t add up to much. L.A. offers a whole new world to Devan—a performing arts school allows her to pursue her passion for show choir and musicals, a new circle of friends helps to draw her out of her shell, and an intriguing boy opens up possibilities for her first love. But then the Reece Malcolm list gets a surprising new entry. Now that Devan is so close to having it all, can she handle the possibility of losing everything?

Revisions from an Editor's POV - Erin Molta

What an editor is looking for. . . . . . a smooth plot.

And for category romance—the tropes need to be strong and follow through. Are the characters consistent? If your heroine is spunky in the beginning –is she spunky in the middle and in the end? If, as in a category romance we need three tropes, do all the tropes resolve and carry the characters forward? Remember in category romance the hero and heroine need to either be together or thinking of each other for 95% of the book. Their relationship is the primary focus of the story. They need to meet, have the spark, overcome their internal conflict—rake/reluctant virgin/different class/overbearing parents—resolve said conflict and fall in love. If all sentences lead to that, then my job is easy. :)

As you are reading your manuscript, consider whether you have set up the conflict—do you have enough back story or perhaps there is too much? What is going on in the middle of the story? How are the hero and heroine resolving the conflict? Are all the loose ends tied up? Even if it is a series, the story that you are telling needs to be effectively resolved with lingering questions acceptable for the overarching series but not pertaining to the hero and heroine.

Nitpicky things editors look for—words or phrases that are repeated often. Phrases such as “gazes collide or locked,” “stirring of desire,” when used a lot, stop a reader in the flow and she’ll start watching for them. That takes her out of the story. Also, overwriting. Short and sweet—even in historical romance—is better than filling your manuscript with purple prose. Some examples from Edward Bulwer-Lytton: As soon as the Promethean spark had been fully communicated to the lady's tube" (meaning: Once the lady lit her pipe), "a nectarian beverage" (wine), "a somnambular accommodation" (a bedroom), though there is nothing wrong with flowery prose when used sparingly, it’s best not to fall prey to the temptation, even though it is strong, especially while writing historical romance.

Speaking of historical romance – it is fabulous when the author has done research into the time period. There is nothing worse than referencing the wrong king or historical incident in a story or assuming that throwing the term ton in automatically makes a story a Regency. Words make a difference, too. For instance, when writing about women’s dresses – the term modiste did not come into circulation until 1840, so it is only appropriate to use in Victorian and Edwardian time period stories—not Regency.

If an author keeps the above in mind, then really there’d be no need for me :) though an objective eye is always helpful to smooth things out. There will always be an editorial letter because everybody sees a manuscript differently, however, it can be less arduous for the author if some of the tips above are considered.

Enjoy and happy writing!

Erin McCormack Molta has worked as an editor for more than 24 years. Her passion has always been romance and fantasy. She started out in the Scholastic Book Clubs, then moved on to Disney, where she acquired and edited Paul Zindel’s gruesome, but bestselling YA thrillers. Erin has worked on every genre imaginable—all types of novelty books, easy readers, and picture books, as well as chapter books, middle grade, and YA novels—and is now looking forward to working with adult romantic fiction.

For more information on exactly what Erin is looking for, check out the submission guidelines on Entangled Publishing's website. You can contact her at erin(at)entangledpublishing(dot)com.

Opening the Vault

Creak! *blows off dust*


I just cracked open the file for a novel I have thought about a lot but barely looked at since the last major revision last March.

It's DEADWOOD, the MG contemporary fantasy that will be published by Pugalicious Press, and I'm working through my editorial letter. I followed the usual advice not to revise while submitting, but now it's been a long time. What plot holes and clunky phrases were inserted over the past year? I'm a little frightened.

I'm not a patient person, so I don't usually let manuscripts rest like this. I write, then revise right away, and revise again. But I do love revising, so I have a couple manuscripts that aren't quite there yet that might make their way out of the vault to be revised after DEADWOOD.

Some of my writing friends, including my brilliant Operation Awesome blogmates, have had tremendous success writing and rewriting favorite old manuscripts, or even picking on the bones of old ones to come up with a new one. A lot of advice I've seen goes against revisiting or focusing too much on old manuscripts in favor of new ones, but different things work for different writers.

What's the longest you've ever let a manuscript rest between revisions? Do you have anything in your trunk that you plan to revive someday, or do you move on right away?