What's the deal with editors?

[Patrickgay17]

Is it that hard to edit your own stuff? Why would somebody give out there ideas to somebody else to read over? I may just be being stupid but I dont get it.

[Myr]

It is usually very hard to edit your own stuff. Mainly because, you know what you wanted to say. Therefore you keep reading over the same thing and not seeing a problem with it.

 

You can generally avoid this by going a decent period of time between writing it and editing it. People rarely have the patience though.

[WoodCarver]

I've read the same mistake in stories I've written a dozen times and not seen it. Giving someone else a chance to read it the mistakes were noticed immediately. Spell checking doesn't always work either. Two, To and Too as a simple example slip past any good spell checker, some grammer checkers will highlight the error. But as Myr said an author can be too (or is it two or to) close to the story.

 

Additionally I use a wireless keyboard, I must have pissed it off in some former life because it likes to introduce it's own spelling errors. If I make nice do you think it will write the story while I watch?

[Bill W]

I reread and edit each chapter I write a minimum of three to four times, but my editor always seems to find mistakes I have missed. As others have stated, you tend to read what you think you wrote or should have written, rather than what is right in front of you. It's much easier to pick mistakes out of others' works, that's why having a good editor is so important.

[Crackerwriter]

Is it that hard to edit your own stuff?  Why would somebody give out there ideas to somebody else to read over?  I may just be being stupid but I dont get it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

It's sooooooo embarrassing having people point out the mistakes you made and didn't see.

 

If there was a list of the top ten of cock-ups, I'd be at No.1 I reckon.

 

Having said all that, I still do my own proofing / editing. I just try and not let too many mistakes through.

I'm well pleased to be able to haul all my stories off one site and be able to correct some of the more glaring errors I made before they're reposted!

 

Mike.g

 

Crackerwriter - he of the sticky shift key.