Are you a writer or blogger? When was the last time you made an editing mistake? If you find yourself missing typos or finding structuring errors in your work after publishing, you need an editor. Collaborating with a good editor makes a world of difference.
The results are night-and-day between self-editing and working with a professional. Let’s unpack the benefits of hiring an editor for your next blog post or writing project.
#1 Benefit from an Editor’s Professional Experience
A professional editor or editing service edits for a living; it’s how they build their career. When you hire an editor, you’re accessing the talents of an individual that spent thousands of hours developing their skill set.
Professional editors have years of experience revising, reworking, and polishing other people’s work; it’s all they do with their time. You need a professional editor or service, not a hobbyist. A part-time editor might be more affordable, but you’ll get partial results.
The difference is the part-timer has fewer hours of editing work. A professional might spend 60 to 70 hours a week reviewing up to 100,000 words. A part-time editor might only achieve 25% of that. Which one of the two do you want for your writing project? Choosing the professional makes sense, right?
#2 Fresh eyes on Your Work
If you’ve spent hours writing a blog or years building a manuscript, you need fresh eyes on the content to gain a new perspective on your work. It’s common for writers to miss mistakes in their work. It’s also surprising how many writers fail to re-read their work before publishing a blog post, magazine article, or manuscript.
A professional editor gives you a fresh perspective on your writing. They’ll ensure they correct any typos and grammar mistakes. The editor reviews your work for inconsistencies and poor sentence structure, returning a finished product ready for publishing. Editors spot any missed errors, ensuring you get an optimized finished product and securing your reputation as a writer.
#3 Find Your Writing Voice
Beginner writers often struggle with finding their voice. Your writing voice helps you present an authentic reading experience for your audience. Your writing voice combines the elements of storytelling, tone, and perspective.
Your writing voice should be as authentic and unique as your real speaking voice. Many writers find this the most challenging aspect of storytelling. Editors can change this for you. Editors identify inconsistencies in your narration attitude and how you relay information to the reader.
#4 Smooth Cadence and Pacing
Do parts of your writing drag? Do areas of your storytelling see you speeding through without adding enough context or content? Editors review your work for cadence, ensuring your writing has a consistent pace.
The editor evaluates the story, ensuring your readers get the best experience possible. They’ll identify where you explore characters in-depth or elongate scenes. Editors help you improve your writing to progress the story at an engaging pace, keeping the reader interested.
#5 Create Consistency in Your Work
Inconsistency in your work costs you reader engagement and loyalty. Hiring an editor or editing service creates consistency in your writing. You get dependable results for your writing voice, tense, characterization, and point of view. Professional editors take the inconsistencies out of your writing projects.
#6 Impress Your Audience
Whether you’re self-publishing a manuscript, entering a writing contest, or looking for an agent to help you break into the conventional publishing market, you need professional editing to help you achieve your goals.
Professional editing gives you a world-class product for your audience, agent, and publisher. It shows you’re serious about your writing and gives your readers a positive first impression of your work.
#7 Editors Cut the Waffle Out of Your Work
Editors cut the waffle out of your work. Editors remove the redundant or extraneous parts of your manuscript. You get a manuscript or article that enhances the reader experience, presenting a strong story. Editing improves reader engagement, building your reputation with your audience.
#8 Professional Editing Offers You Return on Your Investment
It’s worth spending the money on a professional editing service. The improvements to your writing help you climb the search rankings flawlessly, presenting your work to your audience for optimal results. How much is it worth to you to receive and publish work you can be proud of? Great editing is simply priceless, wouldn’t you agree?
#9 Your IP is Safeguarded
When you hire a professional editing team or service, you get complete peace of mind over your intellectual property. There’s no way the editor will steal your work and publish it under their name. Professional editors aren’t freelancers or hobbyists; they edit work for a living.
Most of them don’t have the time in their day to consider stealing your manuscript. A good editor is ethical and trustworthy and won’t dream of sending it to third parties. They value their reputation and their career as a professional.
#10 Learn from Your Mistakes and Improve Your Skillset
Working with a professional editor improves your writing skillset. When you re-read your work after the editor has their way with it, you’ll see where you’re making mistakes with your writing. The result is an improvement in your writing.
The next time you’re writing a vlog post or project, you’ll stop and think about where you made your last mistake, improving your cadence, sentence structure, word choices, and grammar. For example, if you always mix up ‘affect’ and ‘effect,’ and you know that the problem recurs, you can work to eliminate it from your writing. Live and learn.
Where Can I Find an Editing Service?
If you’re looking for book editors in New York, you have plenty of options. Before hiring a firm or independent editor, it’s important to realize that not all editors offer the same results. Hiring someone off a gig site like Fiverr will give you access to a different level of talent than you get from a professional firm.
The reality is you get what you pay for with your editing team. If you want the best results for your writing projects, you’ll have to invest in hiring a professional editor. It might seem expensive, but the results are worth it.