Why You Need an Editor

Why you need an editor and how professional editing could help you sell more books!

 

In the Beginning

Growing up, I wasn’t familiar with the word troglodyte but, if I had been, I would probably have taken a perverse pride in being one. I eschewed cassettes or CDs, preferring my grandmother’s old gramophone. I imagined I was Anne Shirley from Anne of Green Gables and I tried to make my own butter from the skim milk in the fridge – no margarine for me! I had pen pals on three different continents to whom I wrote actual pen-and-paper letters, and my first email address was the one assigned by my university. And social media, when it exploded? Quelle horreur!

I was thrust unceremoniously into the world of technology when I began my high school English teaching career. Suddenly, I was surrounded by words such as “Twitter” and “Tiktok.” The good ol’ overhead projector and plastic sheets that I used to write on were soon usurped by SmartBoards. I hated those things so much that I begged my department head to let me switch to one of the few classrooms without one. I was so relieved when she agreed that I never once complained about the cost of drycleaning my dresses from chalk dust.

 

A Slow Learning Curve

My students helped me tremendously when my laptop decided to go on strike, or I couldn’t get a movie up and running, or I had to request a “toggle” from IT. (Note: One girl took the classroom phone gently from my hand and explained succinctly to the tech what I needed.) They teased me a lot and we had quite a few laughs, but their knowledge and patience in teaching me were commendable and I admired them greatly.

Upon leaving teaching and focusing entirely on my writing and editing business, I was faced with the daunting prospect of leveraging both technology and social media to my advantage. It was a steep learning curve. There were a lot of tears. I never thought I’d miss a group of hormonal teenagers so desperately. Did you know that websites have to be created? And they aren’t free! You have to pay for the site and your domain name and, in my case, someone to build it for you. An Instagram business account requires that you pay for your ads to be boosted to reach a larger audience. A premium Canva account provides more options than the standard one and, of course, you pay for those selections. Programs such as Adobe let you work seamlessly between Word docs and PDFs, among other things, and cost a yearly fee.

Is it all worth it?

Yes.

The investments of time and money into your own business are necessary for growth – including your own. I’ve learned how to search for the YouTube videos I need to fix technical problems on my laptop, and my CV now includes a number of editing and correspondence programs that I can use successfully. I like to think that while I may always be a bit of a Luddite (I use a typewriter for my personal writing) I’m successfully staying abreast of what I need to help myself and my clients.

 

Get Thee to an Editor!

All of this is a preamble as to why you need an editor.

We’ve been there, and we understand.

I know that hiring an editor can be expensive. And it can be scary. You might have a lot of questions and maybe some doubt, and that’s all okay.

Professional editors have completed schooling and courses in the field. We stay on top of changing trends in writing and editing, but also in marketing and publishing. We have the most up to date knowledge in differences between writing for a scientific journal and the rules for writing a mystery novel.

You need an editor because you’re worth it. We’re proud of the training we’ve done to help you to the best of our professional abilities.

Happy writing!

Cassandra Filice

Editor @ Indie Publishing Group


Cassandra Filice has 20 years of professional writing and editing experience.

Before turning to her writing and editing business full-time, she taught high school English for nine years. Her poetry has appeared in several anthologies and been shortlisted for awards. Cassandra hosts week-long writing retreats with bestselling Simon & Schuster authors in Newfoundland, Canada. She loves working closely with her clients to help them understand the editing process and how to navigate the worlds of self-publishing, marketing, and promotion.Why You Need An Editor - Cassandra Filice

Cassandra also has extensive experience in the field of mental wellness and workplace mental health. From working with clients on their memoirs to writing for large nonprofits, Cassandra is passionate about bringing awareness and support to these areas of need.

Cassandra is available for manuscript evaluations, stylistic edits copyedits, and ghostwriting.


At Indie Publishing Group, we’re proud to assist Canadian and North American authors in self-publishing their work. If you are in the process of writing a book and need any assistance with paperback or ebook formattingcover designprofessional editing, or uploading to self-publishing sites such as Amazon KDP and Ingram Spark, please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us.

Our experienced and professional self-publishing team is standing by to assist you with your self-publishing dreams.

Do you have any additional ebook formatting questions? Don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us directly! One of our friendly and professional team members will get back to you ASAP!

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