From the Editor's Point of View

Anna Genoese, formerly of Tor, now of Aleuromancy had this to say about editing.

You know, I don't think enough editors talk about how damn intimidating it is to edit. Forget about holding babies, whatever, etc. -- think about this: editing bestselling authors, authors whose work you've always loved, authors whose respect you want, authors whose books are so freaking good, authors you've been reading since you were a kid --

That is damn intimidating. Plus, it's rare that you even want to say to an author, "Hey, I've been reading your books since I was 12!" Plus, you know, you don't want to show any kind of chink in the editorial armor, right? You want to be a professional; there's a line between professional admiration and crazy fan behavior.

I completely understand how she feels. I enjoy reading other people's work, providing a critique, and discussing various plot points, twists, what have you. But everytime, I worry that the author will think that I'm being too harsh. Or that they won't understand what I mean. Or that I hurt their feelings. My own skin is reasonably tough, but not everyone appreciates my brand of honesty (in my writing life or in my working life.)

I was glad to find out that even the pros feel this way some days.