“It’s not just about fixing your script, it’s about becoming a better writer.”
I may be biased here because editing is part of what I do, BUT, anyone who knows me, knows that I always try to give people the best possible advice without any regards to my involvement. For decades I’ve found that honesty and helping people always comes back ten fold.
Ok, back to the point.
I’ve seen a lot of free offers for editing in the forums lately. Folks charging $5 or less per page.
If you’re looking for COPY EDITS, spelling mistakes and grammar, you can get away on the cheap (with a “good” freelancer). Freelancer #1 and freelancer #2 are both going to tell you the correct way to spell doughnuts is doughnuts… not doenutz.
But when you’re looking for more involved EDITS, when you’re looking for Developmental Edits, which focus on your story structure, or Line Editing which focuses on your actual execution of the script, what you’re REALLY having someone do, is help you improve your writing.
And believe me everyone needs improvement. There’s always a higher plateau you can reach with a little guidance from a second good set of eyes.
And that’s the point of this post.
Skimming on your budget when it comes to an editor, is going to connect you with someone who will catch the rudimentary mistakes and maybe give you basic guidance, but probably not much more.
Under budgeting your editing is not going to attract someone with the skill set and experience to add value and really help you improve. And that’s what you’re really after when you hire an editor.
Keep in mind editing is time consuming. Just the other day I spent 30 minutes breaking down 2 panels for someone. Just 2 panels (out of a standard 22 page script, which we’ll call 110 panels) and I’m not a snail when it comes to editing, I’ve been to this rodeo before… many times.
But finding and articulating the mistakes… where the writer went wrong, how to avoid them in the future, how to fix them now… this all takes a lot of time.
And people with expertise and skill generally put a good value on their time. ▪
About the Author —
Nick Macari is a full-time freelance story consultant, developmental editor and writer, working primarily in the independent gaming and comic markets. His first published comic appeared on shelves via Diamond in the late 90’s. Today you can find his comic work on comixology, amazon and in select stores around the U.S. Visit NickMacari.com for social media contacts and news on his latest releases.