Description
Book SynopsisA field guide to the trade and art of editing, this book pulls back the curtain on the day-to-day responsibilities of a literary magazine editor in their role, and to the specific skills necessary to read, mark-up and transform a piece of writing. Combining a break-down of an editor's tasks including creating a vision, acquisitions, responding to submissions and corresponding with authors with a behind-the-scenes look at manuscripts in progress, the book rounds up with a test editing section that teaches, by way of engaging exercises, the nitty-gritty strategies and techniques for working on all kinds of texts. Generous in its insight and access to practicing editors' annotations and thought processes,
The Invisible Art of Literary Editing offers an exclusive look at nonfiction, fiction and poetry manuscripts as they were first submitted, as they were marked up by an editor and how the final piece was presented before featuring an interview with the editor on the
Table of ContentsBios Acknowledgments
Introduction How this Book is Organized The Focus of this Book
1) Aesthetic: You know it when you see it A Few Words About Mission Exercise: Mission and Aesthetic Vision Exercise: Build a Prototype Journal
2) Acquisition Solicited Subs Unsolicited Work Submission Guidelines Call for Submissions Strategies for Dealing with Submissions Case Study: descant literary magazine Case Study: Rose Metal Press
3) Responding to Submissions Unconditional Acceptance Conditional Acceptance Specific Conditional Acceptance Invitation to Revise and Resubmit Personalized Rejection Warm Form Rejection Form Rejection Best Practices in Rejection Dealing with Blowback
4) Correspondence Initial Contact Sending Edits Confirmation
5) Case Studies Julie Riddle Creative Nonfiction/Personal Essay Valerie Vogrin Creative Nonfiction/Personal Essay Maggie Smith Poetry Mark Doten Fiction Student Example: Grace Dillow Fiction
6) Test Editing Global Editing Editing with a Heavy Hand Editing with the Body Selection and Sequencing Editing with Lenses Scalpel Edit Crafting an Editing Philosophy: A Capstone Assignment
Appendix CPR Dummy Stories Dispatch from the Bunker We All Just Pretended To Like it So You Wouldn't Flunk Us Evolution Editing Philosophy Statements: Student Examples Chelsea Yedinak Mackenzie Thompson Lydia Gentry Index
