What's On My Desk? An Editor's Perspective
Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at 2:00PM
So here’s my beautiful desk.
Made more beautiful by the photo of my kitten on my computer and the art samples on my walls.
Made less beautiful but far more interesting by the piles of paper on it. Editing is largely about managing those piles of paper. And about managing schedules. The four projects on my desk today are for books that are coming out on four different publication lists ranging from next winter (which is actually the first quarter of 2010, not the holiday months) to spring 2011.
Today I have to look at a set of blues and two manuscripts for novels that I’ve signed up.
Blues—which are no longer printed in blue ink—are the final stage of a novel before it goes to press. It’s our last chance to make sure that there aren’t any errors such as missing chunks of text, typos, etc. The thin manuscript is waiting for me to write out my initial editorial thoughts for the author so she can see what I feel is working really well and what could use some revising. The thicker manuscript is a nearly final draft that just need one last line-edit to make sure it’s absolutely perfect. I won’t be able to get through all of this work in one day, but hopefully I can make a dent.
Over here
is a book that has moved past the editing stage and is in the process of being designed. These are samples of different design possibilities for a young adult novel by Clare Dunkle called The House of Dead Maids. It’s a ghost story that blends Yorkshire lore and Brontë family history—essentially a chilling prelude to Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights—and we want the design to reflect that mood. Do we go with a classic typeface that feels right for the time period, or a desperate, blotchy font that is rather modern but captures the mood of the book more fully? Desperate and blotchy feels right to me.
One part of my job that no longer involves piles of paper is reading new submissions from authors and agents. Not long ago the company gave us ereaders, which makes it much easier to carry a dozen manuscripts home without hurting your back. It also makes it possible for me to read more of a manuscript in the subway rides to and from home or over my morning coffee than I was able to before. That’s a blessing, since these are pretty much the only times I can read new manuscripts to see if I’d like to acquire them. Editors generally can’t do that at the office—we’re too busy working on the books that we’ve already signed up.
From the Desk of Reka Simonsen, Senior Editor, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers
Reader Comments (9)
This post was SO interesting! I loved the peek at your desk and wow, I can't wait to get my hands on THE HOUSE OF DEAD MAIDS (I'm an Emily Bronte fanatic).
Thanks for this!
That was fascinating! Thank you so much for sharing! The magical word of editors always seems like it happens at Hogwarts, away from real life - so this was so fun to see!
I meant WORLD of editors :-)
Very interesting! I love the peek into the process, thank you for sharing. The House of the Dead Maids is now on my TBR list. :)
Thanks for the inside look. Very interesting. Hopefully one day, my ms will land on your desk too.
Interesting post and I have now also added House of Dead Maids to my wishlist.
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An interesting quick glimpse into the world of an editor.
Thanks