Using the services of a non-professional editor, as is the practice with some authors, comes with underlying effects. Some authors prefer to use the services of their friends who are non-editors mostly to cut costs and minimize the eyes that will have to see their book before it is published as a result of a lack of trust.
This is why we have a lot of published books that nobody wants to read twice and published authors who are not seen as experts in their field of writing.
In this blog, we discuss reasons why you should not let a non-professional do your book editing.
- Objectivity
Non professionals do not have the level of objectivity needed to give the best form of result. A professional is objective, and that is what your book project needs. The work of a professional is to give you the best because the result they give you defines their level of expertise.
Even though the professional is a friend, their level of objectivity will always be based on the credibility of their career, and as such, they would do everything to make sure the best work is delivered.
A professional is out to make sure that you are putting out a book that will truly give value and help people see you as an expert. Nothing spells doom for an author like having an amateur do their book editing.
- Professionalism
Professionalism comes with training, experience and the desire to establish a career as an editor. A professional here is someone who has repeatedly done the job over a certain duration of years and not someone who would casually decide to attend to your book. When you are dealing with a professional, there is usually a time frame that he or she would give you when you should expect your book back with all necessary corrections well attended to.
The professional works based on time and with their reputation on the line.
- Time management:
A professional is going to help you save time. When a non-professional edits your book, you can not be too sure if the best eyes have seen your book before it reaches your readers.
It is best to save time by giving your book to the best eyes that will make sure everything that needs fixing gets the much-needed attention.
When a non-professional is involved, you risk being rejected by a publisher, and that is going to put you behind your set timeline.
- Privacy and safety
Working with a professional for your book editing will help ensure that it is in the best hands. What most writers do not want is for their work to be stolen or shared with another eye, and every professional editor would not risk their reputation and career for whatever reason that might come up. This is why professional editors have contracts for clients, which will be signed before the contract kicks off.
You can rest assured that your book is in safe hands, and if by any chance, which is very rare, you see a part or the whole of your book someplace else, you already know who to hold responsible for that.
- Experience and best result:
A large number of professional editors have a vast knowledge of editing books in all genres. Even though there are exceptions with editors who, for some reason, choose not to edit some books for personal reasons.
Experience is what ensures the best result, just as it is with writing, the more you try your creative mind with a different genre of writing, the more you become better at it. Professional editors are the best option because they have the level of experience that is needed to put your book in the category where it needs to be.
- A professional will help you become a better writer
Aside from the experience of a professional editor, working with one ensures that you also become better as a writer.
Here’s why
a. They know word usage and placement, and these are the things that help you become better at writing. Once you read your work after it has been edited by a professional, it helps you build your vocabulary and improves your writing consequently.
It will actually benefit the writer more when they choose to hire a professional to do their editing.
Conclusion
Every author writes to give value and establish their profile as an expert in their field of writing. However, some others publish a book solely for the royalty. Whatever the motivating factor might be, it is risky to put the fate of your career as a writer in the hands of an inexperienced person when it comes to the editing of your book.