My Editorial Mentorship Scheme
One thing I’ve been thinking of setting up for a while is an editorial mentorship scheme. While there are loads of certificates and courses out there for budding editors to enrol in, I find that one of the most helpful things to do is shadow an editor.
I have therefore decided to offer such a scheme. This will specifically apply to developmental and line editing only–due to the technical nature of copyediting and the need to adhere to style guides, it makes more sense to participate in a course or class for copyediting, in my opinion.
So, how will this editorial mentorship scheme work?
Well, I do a lot of editorial work–freelance, for publishers, and on my own manuscripts–and I have plenty of opportunities for budding editors to shadow me. What I propose is a ‘four-unit’ mentorship scheme. Each unit would roughly take a month, and the work is asynchronous so it can be done at any time that suits you.
This course already assumes that you have some knowledge of how editing works and that you are familiar with concepts of showing vs telling, head-hopping, correct tense-usage, etc.
Unit 1: This unit is about expanding the new editor’s knowledge of story structures and plot patterns. We will analyse different structures, look at book-maps, and determine what developmental editing is (and what it isn’t). We will look at story bibles, character profiles, how to offer developmental editorial suggestions, and how to analyse texts as we are reading them. I will share previous drafts of my own traditionally published books and the developmental editorial reports that I received. The new editor has a choice of receiving the original editorial report at the same time as this manuscript, or after they have read it, should they wish to have a go at writing their own developmental report.
Unit 2: For this unit, we begin to implement our own developmental editorial ideas on manuscripts. I’m a firm believer that we learn best through doing, and as such, I will provide manuscripts in various drafting stages for the new editor to have a go at editing. These may be manuscripts that I have written or freelance manuscripts I’m working on (in these cases, the authors will have granted permission for these materials to be used in editor training). For manuscripts that I have written, I will also provide feedback to the new editor on their work and skill-level that may be used as an endorsement, when the editor is starting up their own editorial business.
Unit 3: Here we look at line-editing. I’ll give a run-down of what it is (and what it isn’t), provide examples of line-edited manuscripts, discuss style guides, and offer the chance for the new editor to co-line-edit a manuscript with me. We’ll use Word’s Track Changes and Comments facility, so the new editor can see exactly how I would line-edit the text. I will also provide a couple of short stories (or similar length works) for the new editor to line edit on their own, and I will give feedback on their editorial quality.
Unit 4: This is about the business of being an editor. I’ll discuss how to set yourself up as an editor, whether you should specialise in a particular genre/readership, the pros and cons of being freelance and/or obtaining a staff position at a publishing house, how to find editorial CPD workshops, and how to protect yourself as an editor. We’ll also look at what you should be charging, and how you can have work referred to you.
If you are interested in shadowing me and taking part in my editorial mentorship scheme, please contact me to discuss your needs and book into my schedule. While I will initially be offering this for free, donations would be very much appreciated.
