So, Who Is Really To Blame For Bad Books? The Author? The Editor? Or The Publisher?
Sunday, May 13, 2007Posted in: Who's to blame for bad books?
Angie had an interesting Romancing The Blog column up yesterday. It was all about the the pre-conceived notion that e-book publishers produce sub-standard work, in comparison to the big New York houses.
She writes:
As an industry, epublishing has gotten a reputation for poor editing. I’m not pointing fingers, I’m not saying my company is better than yours, I’m saying as a whole, we’ve gotten a bad reputation for typos, misspelled or misused words, wrong or missing punctuation, missing words and other technical issues.
That’s not even touching the other editing things people are more than happy to point out: awkward phrasing, bad dialogue, poor choreography and plot holes/character inconsistencies/bad pacing. We’ve earned that reputation and now we’re fighting to overcome it.
The thing is, those things happen in NY published books too. But I believe that readers are more hyper-aware of it in epublished books, because they’ve come to expect it based on past experience. So epublishers are, in essence, held almost to higher standards because of that bias.
I see it in the posts, like the ones above, that target epublishers. I see it in the emails we get from readers, telling us they found “a lot” of typos in one of our books and then listing the two or three they found in the 80,000 word book.
I can honestly say that I’ve never started reading an ebook expecting to find errors. It never occurs to me that I’ll find errors in any of the books I read, period. Seriously.
I was reading Nora’s Born In Death a few weeks ago, when I came across a minor typo. I noticed it, but it didn’t bother me in the least. Why? Because the book was bigger than that one error.
I can forgive typos, imperfect grammar etc, if the story pulls me in enough. The problem is, these things become a lot more noticeable if the book sucks ass.
I remember reading an e-book a few years ago that had spelling mistakes virtually on every page, bad punctuation, bad grammar, the works. You name a publishing no-no, and it was there.
I found out later that the author was dyslexic, so I let it go, but surely, her editor should have spotted these mistakes? There were so many mistakes in that one book, that I found myself wondering if the book had been edited in the first place.
It seems to me that editors should probably be held up to closer scrutiny, than they currently are.
Like I intimated in that now infamous review, as far as I was concerned, the problems in the book should have been picked up by the editor. She should have understood the distinction between porn and erotic romance. The authors of ER have been arguing about the distinction for long enough, but let’s face it, all it takes is one poor editor, to blow holes in the “It’s not porn, it’s erotic romance” mantra.
But then, there’s the argument that the publishing company should be more discerning about who they hire as editors, so in the end the buck should probably stop with them.
Why? Because the publishers are the ones who hire the crap editors who take on the crap authors, who write the sucky books. Seems simple enough to me.
What say you?
Alessia Brio
May 13
2:26 pm
The buck stops with the publisher.
Sarah McCarty
May 13
2:55 pm
I think it’s a team effort.
I think it starts with the author, continues with the publisher and then ends with the editor with a postscript from the reader The author because they create the book. The publisher because they contract the book, and the editor because they approve the final product. The post script from the reader is added on because they buy the books, decalring their satisfaction with the finished product by laying down their dollars.
And in E publishers, I will say there is a wider swing in story quality for me, not so much in the grammar, but in the demonstrated comprehnsion of the more complex areas of story structure, tension, pacing etc. This could be beacuse editors don’t comprehend this part of the creation process and can’t point out what’s wrong, or it could be because of a house policy not to touch what is considered “the author’s voice”. In my opinion, poor technique in pacing, structure, dialogue, etc, get in the way of an author’s voice, but there are many that will argue that into the ground, declaring the way an author lays out the story is the voice. *shrug* That’s a topic for a whole other post. *G*
Sarah McCarty
May 13
3:26 pm
I meant to add, there’s also the complication of what constitutes a bad book? That’s so subjective. What’s one person’s Keeper Shelf book could be another’s Wall Banger. I can’t remember where, but someone had a blog post about what matters more, Story or craft. Surprisingly, very few commenters felt for a book to be good, it had to have both.
Karen Scott
May 13
3:51 pm
The prize goes to you Sarah, for raising the subjective element as far as what constitutes a bad book.
I don’t think it really makes a difference. The point is, if any individual thinks a book is poor, who do they blame? It doesn’t matter if somebody else thinks the book is ok, it’s all about that particular reader.
As for the reader taking part of the blame, I have to say that it’s hard to know how bad a book is until you actually read it.
Having said that, there are readers out there who probably completely ignore bad editing, lightweight plots, and rubbish characterisation, in lieu of sexual titillation, (in the case of erotic romance) so in that scenario, I can see how readers could be blamed for putting up with crap.
Sarah McCarty
May 13
5:31 pm
Ack! *Frowning at Karen*
I wasn’t blaming readers. I was trying to point out the impact of sales figures. The goal of any writer writing is to produce a book readers enjoy. Not everyone is going to enjoy every book written, but no matter how *bad* some people perceive a book to be, if enough readers buy that book, that opinion is irrelevant to the publisher. The author sells. In the publisher’s eyes, that’s the definition of success. So in reality, a good book is different for everyone. And what defines good or bad, depends on where you are in the process and what your criteria is for the definition THAT was my point. Not made well, but, uhm, can I get a pass because it’s Mother’s Day over here? *G*
Anonymous
May 13
6:50 pm
Many errors in ebooks happened because of the technology involved in creating the ebook. For example, errors that had been previously corrected would erupt again in the final production of the book – this happens unless you completely strip the file of the formatting present in the document. Forget if it was Mobi…semi-colons and em-dashes were a nightmare on this format. Suddenly a publisher and an editor would be shaking their heads because apart of errors what some called “squiglies” would also appear… but that’s just one aspect of publishing that has nothing to do with why a book is bad.
Human nature doesn’t recognize the good as much as the bad. It gets more traffic into your site if you comment about a bad book than if you rave about a book, especially when others join the bloodbath. And I must admit that I enjoy the posts from readers and “anons” as much as whatever witty review a reviewer has posted on their site.
So who’s responsible of something that has become more and more the standard in the business – an explosion of bad books in ebooks as well as NY print? I believe the answer is simply greed. The publishers want to put as many books as they can to make money and they don’t care about the quality of the book or the talent of the author as long as they bring money into the vault. The editors are pressured to edit as fast as they can because the publisher needs that book released – and lets face it, they have so many books and authors to edit that mistakes will be made. Then you have the authors who don’t have an original thought in their minds, so they have copied and molded a concept from another author to get their story contracted. Forget about the elements of the story, including characterization and plot because most stories are interchangable and nobody cares as long As long as it has sex and the graphic language to go with it, hell, in fact start the story with a sex scene, then depending of the length of the book you need the vibrator or masturbation scene de rigeur, accompanied by an anal scene if you want the book to have a good rating.
And since when a passive writing style and friggin repetitives became so acceptable?
I feel for the newby author which unless he/she gets a caring editor will not learn the basics of the craft…though when he/she is contracted the author is supposed to know about that…
An author creates the story. An editor polishes the story. The publisher is supposed to give the final okay to a story that is deemed to be ready for publication. These channels have been broken for greed. That’s simply the reason, coupled by authors who don’t know the craft, editors who don’t know how to edit because they think that proofing is what an editor does and publishers who don’t give a damn as long as readers buy their crap.
linda
May 13
11:29 pm
I have been reading heaps of e-books lately, having just discovered Samhain and Loose ID. I have bought from EC for the last two years. I haven’t noticed any screaming editing problems, the worst book I ever read for lack of spellcheck/editing was Laurell K Hamilton’s “Incubus Dreams” and considering the book cost me $35 in australian dollars I was gobsmacked.
katieM
May 14
12:41 am
LKH’s books are so bad now, that I no longer read her. In her case, its greed, arrogance, no editing, and lack of talent that lead to those monstrosities.
I think that whether a book is “bad” or not is mostly a subjective opinion, although there are those that just plain stink (cough, LKH, cough).
Indida
May 14
3:43 am
This is just my response to everything that I have read since the Ben’s Wildflower Showdown Extravaganza (that’s what I’ve been calling it).
I think “bad book” needs to be defined.
For me, the only thing that is subjective is whether or not you like the story. I can read a well written story and not like it. I have, plenty of times.
When it comes to poor writing or editing, grammar and spelling errors, weak plots, flat characters, and so on, it’s pretty concrete. If a book contains all or most of these problems and more then, no question about it, it’s a bad book.
There is a structure, a layout to writing. When it comes to stories, you have the rising action, the climax, and the resolution. Please people, the resolution should not be half the damn book! You have conflict(s), antagonists, protagonists, supporting characters, all kinds of plot devices and so on. You have to develop the conflict and your characters to pull readers into the story. Develop, develop, develop! I want background, I want to know the characters and why they make the choices they do.
Another big point, you have to stay on topic. Don’t just jump into an entirely different story line out of nowhere and don’t leave loose ends. If a book makes me stop and say, “Wait a minute, what?” or causes me to backtrack to try to find out where the story is going, it’s probably a bad book. Leave me wanting more but don’t leave me hanging.
The structure is there so that readers can follow and understand what the author is trying to express.
Hell, I won’t give you an English lecture on the stuff even though the bad writers need it. I am, by far, no English major but even I know most of this stuff. They should take a class and learn, or refresh themselves on, the basics. They could even visit Morgan Hawke’s blog on writing (darkerotica.blogspot.com). She breaks down every part of a story and goes over it in detail. It’s free.
Abiding by the structure of writing doesn’t make up for talent but it makes a world of difference between bad writing and good writing. Talent is something different. I can only give an example, Sarah McCarty. Read one of her books.
I can see her characters. I can be in their world, taste what they are eating, feel what they are feeling. I experience her story on pretty much every level. Time flies when I read one of her books, which is why I only read them when I have hours to spare. Her stories are clean, precise, and well developed. The only question I have at the end is, “When is the next one going to be released?” (Well, Ms. Sarah, when?) That’s talent. That’s what I want every time I read a book.
I can settle for a little less but I will not settle for bad books.
A bad book can be improved but there is almost nothing you can do to make me change my mind about a story I don’t like.
Karen, would you like to remind us of how you feel about Paranormal and BDSM stories?
When I see minor typos and errors, I have an urge to correct them and email or send the corrected books back to the authors and publishers. Never followed through on it though.
Maybe I should have just posted this on my blog. It’s a tad long.
Shiloh Walker
May 14
4:25 am
If I write a crappy book, poor plot, little characterization, and flat dialogue, it’s my fault.
If an editor accepts it, then the editor and the publisher need to shoulder some blame when it’s released and people complain. There are major name best sellers out there with books even their die hard fans think sucks so we know that bad books get published.
If there’s grammar or punctuation or typo issues, the author needs to do their best to clean it up beforehand. But I’ll be honest, I sort of suck at that. It’s like I spent so long working the book, that when there is something missing, my mind only sees what I think is there… not what really is. Lately, I’ve been user an outside proofer~catches what I can’t catch and makes it easier on the editor. I also have weird things where I flip words…entire phrases, sometimes and again, my brain processes it as correct because I only see what I thought I wrote.
But because I am so very well acquainted with these sort of issues, I can imagine that many other authors do similiar things. So that makes it that much more important for the editors to make sure they are going over that MS with a fine tooth comb. So if a book is released with typos out the wazoo, missing punctuation and missing words, the editor needs to shoulder the blame.
If the editor isn’t experienced, or if the editor just isn’t any good, then the publisher needs to shoulder the blame… they hired the editor, they need to make sure the editor is competent.
Plot inconsistences~author needs to make sure the story is tight, but being so close to it can make it hard. The whole can’t see the forest for the trees thing. So the editing process should make sure there aren’t plot holes.
When it comes down to typos, punctuation and plot holes… if this is what is making the book crappy, then yeah… the buck stops with the publisher.
But if it’s a bad story…that’s going to be a matter of opinion. Although even a bad story can be techinically perfect.
not sure if any of that made sense. it’s late and i’m tired and I oughta know better than to do my blog hop this late
Nora Roberts
May 14
10:14 am
Shiloh may have been blog hopping late, and I’m blog hopping early, but I agree with everything she said.
Every writer needs an editor. No exceptions.
chandy
May 14
11:02 am
OMGoodness!!!. I’ve read some of your books Ms Shiloh walker. Karen sure is opening me up to “go outside my comfort (read=selfish) zone!”. You’re good!. Gonna peruse EC now for some more of your reads as I’m off from work today and it’s hardly sunny and nice, so gotta get my read on. Whereelse can I find your work?.
Just so you know, Karen, have ordered some Nora Roberts like you recommended and am just waiting for them to be delivered to good ole Swissland……
Chandra
MERLIN
May 14
12:38 pm
Ladies,
As I understand that one or two of you are best-selling authors and I know virtually nothing at all about the publishing business can I ask a very naive question ? (You can all fall around laughing at your leisure).
If I’m a competent author what – exactly – do I need an editor for other than to proof read my work for errors ?
And if that’s the only reason why don’t I hire a proof reader ?
Many Thanks,
M.
Karen Scott
May 14
1:15 pm
Nora/Shiloh, over to you guys to answer Merlin, seeing as you’re the experts!
By the way Merlin, the next time you go to a book shop, ask for J.D Robb or Nora Roberts, and you’ll notice that her books take up half the space in the book store. *g*
And yes, I’m annoyed that we lost yesterday instead of at least drawing! I had fun watching the celebrations on MUTV though!
I’m glad Sheffield went down, I was livid this morning when I heard the things Neil pissing Warnock was saying about Fergie. He’s too small-minded to be in the Premiership anyway. Arsehole.
The league table doesn’t lie, they were ten points clear of the relegation zone in March, but poor performance week in week out, led to them ending up relegated.
OK, rant over, back to the conversation!
Angela James
May 14
1:29 pm
Karen, my therapist asks that next time you’re going to mention my name on your blog, you give her advance warning. She doesn’t appreciate frantic phone calls from hyperventilating patients searching for “the good drugs” on a Sunday afternoon 😉
I hate this blame question, not because errors don’t exist, or I think I should be held exempt from responsibility, but because there’s no clear answer. I have authors who will tell you every error in their book is their responsibility. I have authors who will and have happily pointed their finger in my direction when someone asks how that error got through.
What do I think? I think I bear the largest portion of the burden, I’ve blogged before about how I both love and hate getting those copy edits back because every time it drives home what I missed. I think the final line editor gets a small bit of it. And yep, even the author should share the responsibility. Why? Well, because no book is released from my company without all of us working on it and trying to make it the best possible. I shouldn’t rely on the copy editor/final line editor to catch errors. The author shouldn’t think it’s only her job to write the story and let everyone else polish it. Team effort, we’re all responsible for making that book the best possible book, and we’re all responsible for putting forth 100% effort in every aspect of the book–from characterization and plot to commas and misspelled words. So who’s to blame? We all are, in different ways, on different levels.
But, hey, next time you read a great book, remember, we’re all responsible. We’re not just responsible when it’s bad 🙂
MERLIN
May 14
2:48 pm
Karen,
I’ve already done a bit of “research” in this area.
My local bookshop (the omnipotent Waterstones) does , indeed, have an entire shelf of Nora Roberts ( I’m sure Nora will be delighted).
It doesn’t seem to stock anything by anyone else mentioned on this blog so far , however, but I’ll take another look the next time I’m in town.
Naturally this research has to be conducted in a fairly brief and furtive manner because it just won’t do for rugged, masculine hunks like me to be seen loitering near the romance section : it sends out all the wrong signals.
Agreed about Sheffield United – bloody awful city anyway. High on my list of the UK’s “10 greatest holes in the ground “.
M.
Nora Roberts
May 14
2:54 pm
An editor doesn’t just proof a book. Writers write, and when telling a story can often get too close to it. Inside it. A good thing, and a bad thing. Often you might miss areas that could be beefed up, or you’ve put things in that need to go. The story is the better for it. Editor’s edit. An editor’s job is to help the writer improve the work, tighten it, expand it, dig deeper. Push a bit, or pull back a little.
It might be as simple as altering some sentence structure to make the story flow more smoothly, or suggesting a filling for a plot hole the writer missed (and often the writer will fill it another way, but the editor recognized the hole in the first place.) Or it may involve more major revisions or re-writes to redirect a character or a plot line.
In my experience, the editors I’ve worked with have been right 99% of the time when they make suggestions to improve the work. I don’t argue, so that when that 1% comes up, and I think she’s wrong and I’m write, she doesn’t argue.
No book is perfect. And no writer comes close to perfect without an editor. Competent wouldn’t be enough for me. I want to create a really, really good book, and I can’t do that without an editor I trust, and who trusts me.
The book is my responsibility at the end. My name goes on it. But my editor is an essential element in producing that final product.
Yes, editors make mistakes, writers make mistakes, copy editors make them. And sometimes the mistakes (typos especially) are somehow mysteriously made in the printing process.
So everyone’s responsible. But there’s only one name on the book. The writer’s.
Nora Roberts
May 14
2:56 pm
See, I needed an editor for the comment. When I’m RIGHT, not when I’m write.
Patrice Michelle
May 14
3:32 pm
Writing a book is a joint effort by author, editor, copy editor and line edtior. Editors can and do make a story stronger.
Authors spend so much time in their ‘story’ world that they don’t often see the book the way the first time reader (read:editor) does. (Granted, that’s when critique partners come in handy, too). This is especially true if the book is part of a series or a trilogy. The author might ‘know’ the details of the first book in her head, but the editor will point out if something needs to be explained or fleshed out more from the last book even in the case where the ‘love story’ in this book is written as stand alone. The editor will also point out areas where the book could be tightened or where the emotional conflict could be broadened, where the plot elements need to be better integrated, etc. In other words, sometimes we authors can’t see the forest for the trees and the editor make sure we don’t slam our head into the tree trunks as we’re plowing along.
Shiloh Walker
May 14
3:42 pm
My entire day has been made. I go fangirl over only two or three authors, and I just made sense to one of them~she even agreed with me! *G*
Okay, gleeful grin moment over.
Karen, I doubt I qualify as an expert on much of anything except rambling, being excessively opinionated and a general pain in the tail, but thank you. ;o)
Chandra, Thank you!
Merlin~totally off topic, but your comments almost always make me laugh.
I’m nowhere near a best seller, but I’ll answer as best as I can. I consider myself competent enough a writer…although i generally think most of my stuff sucks. Other people disagree, thank You God, because I am published.
But being competent at writing doesn’t always mean you’re competent at some of the more mundane, technical aspects, like punctuation, the occassional (or in my case frequent) missed word, or plot holes. I imagine almost every writer has written a book that somewhere had a gape in the plot… THEY understood what was happening because the writer almost lives the story as we write it, but just because we see it and understand it doesn’t mean a reader will. That’s what the editor is there for.
Things like plot holes or missed words are one of the most important reasons for an editor. They tighten the story, they make it better.
I have a bad habit of putting the wrong word in…for instance, once I used laps instead of lips. The spell checker never would have caught that, since it wasn’t misspelled. When I read thru, my brain just processed what I THOUGHT I had written, instead of what was there. The editor saw it… *G* considering where it was in the story, it definitely would have thrown a reader out of the moment. The editor laughed and had to email me over it, it gave her such a grin. But as amusing as it was to the two of us, that sort of thing is jarring to a reader and readers hate getting thrown out of a story.
I mentioned the whole forest for the trees earlier. Say one scene is the tree. The story is the forest. We concentrate on one scene, or tree, at a time and because we’re so focused on that, those individual trees get in the way of seeing the whole forest, or the story.
I’m actually more awake now so I hope I made a little more sense.
Bonnie Dee
May 14
3:44 pm
Authors spend so much time in their ‘story’ world that they don’t often see the book the way the first time reader
Exactly. The editor is much more than some glorified proofer. Their function is to point out the things an author misses from being immersed in the story for so long she can’t see it objectively any more.
Kristie (J)
May 14
4:11 pm
I’ve take a few creative writing courses and of all the things I learned – having an editor was one of the most important. We would write a short story and then have the rest of the class edit or critique it. They found mistakes I’d made, made suggestions to improve it, pointed out inconsistencies, overused words etc. I don’t think it would be possible to publish a book without an editor!
Selah March
May 14
4:22 pm
Yes, the publisher contracts the work, and the editor is responsible for making it readable. But my name is on the cover.
I can’t remember the publishers of the last five books I read. I never knew the names of the editors. I remember titles and authors. I somehow doubt I’m THAT different from the average reader in this respect.
When I see a typo that was missed in the finished product? When I read it and see that I somehow missed tying up a loose end with regards to plot? You can bet I’m kicking MYSELF, not the editor or copy-editor. They’ll never have as much time, effort or raw emotion invested in the work as I do. Nor should they.
I can’t speak for anyone else, but for me? The buck stops here.
Anonymous
May 14
5:06 pm
As a reader with absolutely zero writing talent, it’s great to see the authors accepting responsibility for the bad along with the good.
But as a reader, I usually blame the publisher. Much is currently being published that I consider “Not quite ready for prime time” and IMO publishers and their staff are supposed to be the trained professionals. The author is emotionally involved and often attached to their story. But in the end, it’s still about money for the publisher and some prefer quantity over quality. -dl
Anonymous
May 14
6:15 pm
Speaking as a publisher, I would say me.
Speaking as an editor, I would say me.
Speaking as an author, I would say me.
Kathryn Lively
Publisher, Phaze
MERLIN
May 14
6:15 pm
Many thanks for the explanation ladies ; I understand a little bit more (and Hi Selah – how’s things?)
I guess I understand this in terms of rock bands and record producers (I’ve often asked the same question of musicians) but with the major difference that top record producers receieve almost as much credit as the artist.
For example I could reel off a list of record producers but I can’t name a single editor.
But you see my confusion Nora ?
I think you need a proof reader to correct your “write” to “right”.
I spotted it immediately. And no – I’m not applying for a job ; I have an insane one already thank-you.
Best Wishes (and I really must try some of these books),
M.
Nora Roberts
May 14
9:33 pm
Yes, write/right=proofer. I was being cheeky.
But an editor is vital, for all the reasons cited.
I don’t know enough about the music business to know if there’s any correlation between an editor and a producer. But an editor doesn’t produce. I guess if a writer is like a music artist (for this comparison) a publisher is like a producer.
Personally, I want them all. Editor, copy-ed, proofer, publisher, managing editor, art department, marketing, sales force. I want the whole ball behind the book.
And I like it best when they all leave me alone while I write it. AFTER, they can all do what they all do, and I’m delighted.
April
May 14
10:25 pm
The music industry analogy is a mite imperfect. The writer would have to be both songwriter AND music artist, plus the instrumental musicians, too.
The editor would be the audio technicians, those guys on the other side of the glass in a music studio fiddling with all the knobs and buttons on the sound equipment — the mixers, the microphones, the amps, etc. — working to make the music sound its best while they lay it on the tracks. The editor would also be half of the producer … because the producer can often be pretty hands on when it comes to bringing the people and equipment together.
The publisher is the other half of the producer, as well as the record label. But perhaps mostly they’re the record label.
I can do a movie analogy, too, but the movie analogy works better for cover art — it’s a much more collaborative work than the writing of the book.
Ann(ie)
May 15
12:38 am
I have the same problem as Shiloh. I type pretty fast, around 80 wpm (and I write at the speed at which I type, which means occasionally my fingers get ahead of my brain. Then what I wrote and what I think I wrote are quite different, but when I go back through it, I just read what I think is there, so I miss the transposed words or words left out entirely. I really need someone to catch that sort of thing.
I also agree with Selah in that: my name is on the book. Sure, maybe I was offered a deal for it, but ultimately I’m mortified if I find a mistake when I was so sure the manuscript was completely clean the last time I went through it.
Gwen
May 15
12:53 am
Sometimes I feel an author can use more editing – a storyline that goes on too long, or is truncated. I’m generally content with editing in the novels I read, however.
What I don’t like is the complete and utter lack of proof-reading that I often see in novels. Not by authors like La Nora (love your work, by the way), but instead by authors who can’t afford those kinds of errors – little known authors on small publishing houses.
You don’t see errors like misspellings, spell-checker flubs, and the like with the “bigger” authors. Sure one or two will creep in, but generally free of typos.
You see these kinds of totally avoidable, perfectly catch-able errors on the small guys. It’s incredibly frustrating to me to read a book that has simple errors like this. I would throw more of them at the wall, if I could, except most of these are eBooks and I’d ruin my reader if I did.
Anonymous
May 15
2:33 am
I’m going Anon on this one, in case the author in question reads here. I don’t want to hurt her feelings by dredging this up again.
I’m a reviewer. Once upon a time, I reviewed a book by a new author. The book originally came out in eformat only, then later went to paperback with a small press. The setting? Great, original, good world-building, all that. The plot? Unique, different, not the same old thing.
The rating in the end was only mediocre. Why? Because I was coming across an average of two MAJOR grammar, syntax, punctuation, or spelling errors per page. I’m talking howlers. I’m talking about simple subject-verb agreement here. Quotes that never get closed. Words transposed. That kind of thing. It was awful and really destroyed what would otherwise have been a very good book.
I emailed the author and explained the problem. She got a little huffy (understandable, I guess) and said, “My mother has been a professional secretary for 40 years. She proofed it and didn’t find anything. Where are these errors?” So, I get she’s upset because I’m pretty much insulting her baby. I went through the first 15 pages and emailed her a list of 33 truly egregious errors. She said maybe next time she needs to hire an editor.
All of this leads me to a new question. Are small publishers operated so differently than larger ones? If you write for a small (not vanity)or epublisher, do you have to hire your own editor?? I would have thought the publisher would want editors on hand to avoid this kind of thing. Granted, this was a couple of years ago, and of course she could have been shading the truth a bit, trying to save face. But I thought that was really odd.
Karen Scott
May 15
5:25 am
All of this leads me to a new question. Are small publishers operated so differently than larger ones?
As far as I’m aware, even the smaller e-pubs hire their own editors. From what I’ve been hearing, the workload of these editors are ridiculous, and the time scales they work too can be a tad unreasonable. There’s also the fact that editors may be hired who aren’t up to the job, period.
Jenyfer Matthews
May 15
12:48 pm
It’s hard as a writer to separate yourself from the story enough to read it with the fresh eye that a reader will bring to it, which is where critique groups and editors are invaluable.
Still though, as an author, I feel like the buck stops here. When I finish a manuscript, I take a step back and then I go back and read it OUT LOUD. I catch all sort of mistakes that way – things my eye might just gloss right over. And I try to get it as perfect as possible before I give it to my editor.
I live for the day a review or reader compares me to Nora, LOL.
Jenyfer
http://www.jenyfermatthews.com
MERLIN
May 15
1:57 pm
I wouldn’t know the answer to Karen’s question but – as you might have guessed – I agree completely with “anonymous” on the spelling and grammatical error side of things.
I CANNOT read a book which has somehow been published with 20 spelling mistakes in the first two chapters.
How does this happen ?
And if I’m going to “take the plunge” and risk my reputation by reading a Nora Roberts book would somebody like to recommend one to me ?
Nora – which is your favourite ?
M.
Jane
May 15
2:14 pm
Northern Lights. While not my favorite by Nora because it’s light on the romance, it’s a book I think a guy would like. (assuming Merlin, you are a guy). It’s set in Alaska and it really is more of a love affair between the male protagonist and Alaska than one between a woman and a man.
Her book coming out in July is one of her best ones yet – High Noon. It’s the story of a negotiator and how one of her past failures imperils her life.
I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the Blue Smoke and Angel Falls.
The JD Robb series is also quite good, but its probably a series that needs to start with book 1.
MERLIN
May 15
5:22 pm
Thank-you Jane. Northern Lights sounds good to me. I like a bit of history/geography and I know very little about Alaska except that it’s cold and there’s a classic sleigh race (the Ititerod ?).
Yes – I’m a guy and what I’m doing in the middle of a blog that reviews romance novels is a great mystery to me.
It just sort of happened – as things do on the internet.
M.
Shelia
May 15
8:36 pm
Merlin, any of Nora Roberts books are good. I highly recommend the JD Robb series of books. I read one and got hooked. I’m all caught up and can’t wait for the next one.
Anonymous
May 15
11:10 pm
Are small publishers operated so differently than larger ones? If you write for a small (not vanity)or epublisher, do you have to hire your own editor??
I don’t think so. A friend of mine works as a freelance editor for an epublisher -fairly well known, I believe. What I think, however, is that perhaps epubs don’t hire full-time, professional editors. Their editors have other jobs, so their attention to the manuscripts are perhaps less than what a professional editor would have. Of course, this is solely based on just my personal exposure to the business.
–L