Ten Signs That You Would Benefit From Developmental Editing
In recent years, many academics have begun hiring developmental editors. These editors focus on big picture issues in manuscripts. They help authors think through argument, structure, style, voice, and organization, among other things. A developmental editor may do an overall evaluation of a manuscript or they may make detailed comments on a manuscript itself (or both!). Usually, they provide in-depth feedback on your writing, likely in the form of an editorial letter. You can learn more about what developmental editors do here as well as find out how to hire one.
But how do you know when a developmental editor would be helpful? Answering this question depends on where you are in your work and what kind of support you need. Below I detail some signs that indicate that you might benefit from developmental editing.
1
You are stuck. You have been working on your manuscript for a long time. You need to make progress, but feel like you are going in circles. Maybe it’s keeping you up at night. Maybe you’re embarrassed to talk about your writing with colleagues because you feel like you have so little progress to report.
Writing is hard, but there’s no reason to suffer. If you are feeling this way, having a developmental editor engage with your work can help you figure out what needs to be done and how to best approach it. Most developmental editors offer free consultations where they ask you about the challenges that you are facing. So if you’re having trouble moving forward, you can ask them to read your work with an eye to helping you form a writing and revision plan. Some editors also offer various coaching services to help you work through the barriers that are preventing you from getting your writing done.
2
You are having a hard time articulating your argument. You’ve written a book or an article, but you’re finding it difficult to locate your argument (see more on argument here). Maybe you feel like there isn’t quite one there or maybe there are too many and you can’t figure out which is most important.
A developmental editor can read through your manuscript and help you identify your argument and your scholarly contributions. Such editors may highlight an existing argument or suggest that you combine smaller arguments. They may pull out an argument that is underlying the text, but which you haven’t explicitly noticed yourself. Whatever the case, they will view your text with fresh eyes and can read for specific challenges like this one.
3
You’ve written a dissertation, but now you need to write a book. Maybe you’ve landed a dream job (I hope you have, anyway) and now you’re feeling pressure to get your book out. But how the heck is a dissertation different from a book? And where do you start? You might benefit from having a developmental editor evaluate your manuscript. They can read the entire manuscript and then provide specific suggestions about how to transform your dissertation into a book. This is a stressful process and there’s no need to do it alone.
4
You feel like having someone deeply engage with your work would be useful. Sure you have very generous friends and mentors who read your work. And you have peer reviewers who also can be helpful. But the first group of people is busy (and you’ve already asked them to read a lot). And the second of group of people can sometimes be very helpful, but they also can be adversarial and counterproductive. Furthermore, only the best peer reviewers suggest how you might actually implement suggested revisions. A developmental editor is able to devote significant time and energy to reading your work. Even better, their role is not just to point out areas that need revision, but to help advise you on how to best approach them. The best writing is often not done alone; editors can be true partners in your work.
5
You are on a tight deadline and need help coming up with a plan. You have a looming deadline and not enough time to get your writing done or to make all the revisions you feel you need to. A developmental editor could be helpful at this point in helping you to identify the elements of your writing that most need attention and to prioritize what you will work on in your limited time. Sometimes they can also help you with specific tasks, such as suggesting how to restructure your work or helping to identify arguments. They don’t write for you, but they can work with your writing in a way that makes your job easier.
6
You just got reader reports and are feeling overwhelmed. Your acquisitions editor just sent the reader reports for your book. One was brief and positive (but not very helpful in deciding what revisions to make). Another was fairly neutral and suggested several major alterations to your book. And the final one was 18 single-spaced pages and contained no less than 500 suggestions. Before your head explodes, consider hiring a developmental editor to help you work through this mess. They can read the reader reports along with your manuscript and help you to identify a pathway forward. They can also advise on how to respond to the reports in a thoughtful way that will appeal to your acquisitions editor.
7
You feel lonely in your work. Maybe you feel like you don’t have enough colleagues in your network who are willing to read your work. Or maybe you feel like discussing your book would be helpful. Developmental editors are here to be partners in your writing. They listen to your ideas, focus on areas of your work that you feel more attention, and discuss your writing with you. There’s no need to feel alone in this process. Having a partner can help you to produce your best work. (For other ways to connect with community through your writing, please consider joining one of my writing groups.)
8
You aren’t sure you’re writing to your intended audience. We’re trained in graduate school to write for a very narrow audience (PhDs who share our research interests) so it isn’t easy to transition to writing for the broader audience that publishers are often looking for (learn more about this here). This could include scholars in adjacent disciplines, undergraduate students, and members of the general public who have an interest in your topic. A developmental editor can help you figure out who your audience is. They can then read your manuscript with this audience in mind, giving you feedback to ensure that you are writing at an appropriate level and engaging with your material in a way that will work for your imagined readers.
9
You are feeling anxious about your writing. Maybe there is someone out there who doesn’t feel anxiety about their writing, but I haven’t met them! Writing is a stressful process. It’s even more stressful when you feel like you must publish to keep your job or to get a job or to get important research out into the world. But it doesn’t have to be so anxiety-producing. Having an editor can help you to keep your writing on track and ensure that you have the tools to write the kind of articles and books that you aspire to.
10
You want to produce the best writing possible. We don’t get many chances in life to write a book (at least most of us don’t!). So when you are lucky enough to have that chance, it makes sense to invest in an editor to ensure that your book is the best it can be. Developmental editors help identify your best writing and make suggestions about how to improve the other parts. They help you chart a pathway forward with your revisions. In short, they can help you realize your vision for your book.
There are lots of other reasons you might hire a developmental editor, including because you need help with job materials or grants, you are writing in a second language and you want to make sure your points are coming across clearly, or you have a specific issue with your work that you need help addressing. But the main point is that you don’t need to tackle every writing challenge alone. Developmental editors are out there to support your work, to be a member of your team, and to help you be the best writer who you can be.
Do you still have questions about developmental editing and whether you need it? I’m always happy to talk with you. You can set up a free consultation here.
*****
Like this post? Consider subscribing to my blog below to receive updates on new posts!
