Maybe you're a writer interested in learning about the editing process. Maybe you're an editor interested in making that process better. Welcome to Edit Your Darlings, a show where I interview a different darling author each week about their experiences with having their work edited.
Music: Harlequin by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/3858-harlequin
Transcript
Hi there and welcome to Edit Your Darlings, a podcast that tries to take the sting out of editing by talking with darling authors about their experiences. What were the edits that they loved? What did they hope for? How can we make editing more human, more accessible? How much control do authors have? How do they find an editor? And how do they know when one is really good? How can we empower authors to make decisions that feel right for their manuscripts?
[Clip from Alice in Wonderland. Caterpillar asks: "Who are you?"]
Maybe you are a new author who’s just learning about the publishing and revision process. Maybe you’re an experienced author who’s curious about how others have approached getting feedback on their work. Maybe you’re an editor wondering how you can make your work less painful for your authors. Or maybe you’re just my very supportive sisters—thank you for listening!
[Clip from Alice in Wonderland. Alice asks, "Don't you think you ought to tell me who you are first?"]
I'm Ariel Anderson, a freelance copyeditor and proofreader. I am kind, but also fierce. I'm like a cat who is puffing up as big as I can possibly get to try to scare off the prescriptivist grammarists who would have you take your authorial voice and put it into their mold. I am a proofreader who loves red pens but can't find any, and I hope you don't mind me using this strawberry-scented silly marker. I am wildly enthusiastic about your project, and I'll try to say all the nicest things I know while I help. And gosh, do I want to be helpful.
Through my business, Ariel Edits, I've had the privilege to provide suggestions, sometimes numbering in the tens of thousands. And I often worry which one of those thousands and thousands of changes will be the one that keeps the author up at night. I want to know how we—the author and the editor—can work together better, can collaborate, and take the pain out of the process. Thank you for listening and subscribing and joining me in these conversations. I'm excited about the first three authors I have lined up, and I can't wait to get started.
If you loved this episode of Edit Your Darlings, why not share it with a friend? Remember to rate and review on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts fix. For show notes, go to edityourdarlings.com. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @EditPodcast, or I'm @ArielCopyEdits. Until next week, cheers!