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#AuthorToolboxBlogHop, behind the scenes of writing, content edit, Fiverr, freelancer, line and copy-edits, Misha Gericke, proofreading, Publishing, self-publishing, South Africa, Upwork, writing
For the first #AuthorToolboxBlogHop post of the year, I thought we should find out more about the role of freelancers in getting our writing polished and sparkling (especially important when you’re self-publishing). To do that, I’m welcoming fellow South African, and author, Misha Gericke to share her expertise.
*This post has moved to a new home: http://www.ronelthemythmaker.com/why-you-need-to-hire-a-freelancer-to-get-your-novel-from-meh-to-marvellous/
Ronel the Mythmaker 
What a wonderful interview and info on hiring freelancers. It was very informative and I learn some things. Congrats and Thanks, Misha. Thank Ronel for a great interview with a wonderful writer and freelancer.
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I’m glad you enjoyed it 🙂
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Thanks Juneta! Glad you found it informative.
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I generally ask a couple writing friends whose work I admire and a couple non-writing but super reader friends to take a pass at it. I haven’t paid anyone yet, but I think this next one I will. Thanks for the advice.
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You’re welcome 🙂 It’s good to have the information for when you need it.
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Getting input from writing friends is an awesome way to edit, as long as you know they know at least as much as you do about writing. Otherwise, they won’t be able to give you accurate critiques.
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True. 😁
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Very interesting. Thanks for sharing that.
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You’re welcome 🙂 I’ve been wondering about the work freelancers do and thankfully I knew one who didn’t mind answering my questions 😉
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Thanks 🙂
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Some great information to consider 🙂
I’ve never hired a freelancer, but then I haven’t finished anything novel length yet. I know when I do I’ll need an editor. I don’t trust myself to catch every mistake!
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Absolutely 🙂 In Stephen King’s “On Writing” he mentions that one of his beta readers caught a mistake where he wrote “peasants” instead of “pheasants” — it changed the entire tone of the book! But it is LOL funny when you read “they hunted as many peasants as they could eat”. 😉
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That’s a great way to look at editing. Some writers seem convinced about their own talents, which means if they hire me, they’re really wasting my time. Although I guess if they pay me, it’s still worth it.
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Nice to meet you, Misha! It’s definitely a balancing act as a new author. We have to invest in ourselves, but there should be a method to how much or what percentage of our income that should be. Great post!
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I’m glad you liked it 🙂
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That’s true. I’d like, in the long term, for my writing to earn more, but I’m finding that doing freelance work is a better second job for me in the meantime, because it does help me keep my publishing skills sharp.
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What a great idea for a post! I wish I’d thought about this option when I started writing. I agree wholeheartedly with hiring someone to help reshape and tidy up one’s manuscript. Thank you, Misha, for the great tips, too 🙂
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Glad you enjoyed the post. 🙂
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I’m glad you liked it 🙂
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Great interview! I really do wish more self-published authors would avail themselves of editors. It’s a difficult market out there, and it’s absolutely saturated, so you need to find ways to stand out. Readers aren’t going to pick up your next book if the first one is poorly edited.
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I agree with you there.
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Absolutely. And with self-publishing booming, I’m sure writers are looking for different options and lots of information on the topic — I know I was curious 😉
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Great interview. I really appreciate that you explained the different types of editing. So many authors are confused about which type of services they need at which stage in the book’s development. Thanks
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Yeah people frequently hire me for the wrong stage. Sometimes it’s because they’re delusional about the quality of their rough draft. (Sigh.) Other times, though, it’s just that they think one type of edit is the same as another.
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And that’s why you had to explain it to us 😉
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Thank you 🙂 I didn’t know about a couple of things she mentioned — it’s great to know that there are different options available.
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Thank you so much for these clear explanations on the differences of editing manuscripts, Misha and Ronel. This is truly appreciated. All best to you both!
http://victoriamarielees.blogspot.com
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You are quite welcome 🙂
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No problem. Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
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Lots of good info! Thanks for sharing!
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You’re welcome 🙂
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Thanks for stopping by. 🙂
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Whenever I meet new writers who are planning to use vanity presses, I always tell them to get online and hunt up writers/bloggers who can do all the parts of publishing for much cheaper.
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Absolutely.
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Vanity presses are the worst. The hook writers by their search for validation, and it’s a mistake that’ll cost those writers so much. 😦
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I see an idea for my next post… 😉
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I was lucky enough t have Misha critiqued my short story for me is I know how good she is. If I didn’t write dark fiction with horror leanings I’d use her critique services without question.
So glad it’s going well for you, Misha!
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Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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Awe thanks!
Yeah I’m glad to see my freelancing is settling down.
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Freelance editors are great 🙂 I’m lucky in that I did a publishing internship when I was in high school, and met several people who are freelance professionals in the industry. By the time I was ready to work with them (well, contract them; it’s happening this year) I basically had my whole team figured out.
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That’s awesome 🙂
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That’s very cool. 🙂
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Hi Ronel and Misha – what a great interview with some fascinating insights into freelance work and editing per se … lovely to read it up here – cheers Hilary
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Thanks, Hilary 🙂
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Thanks Hilary!
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Great post! Hi, Misha! 🙂
I’m a freelance editor, too. I do what you do except for proofreading. When I attempt to proofread, I find things that fall under content or line edits (because I wasn’t the editor) and that means I’m doing more work than what I’m being paid to do. I did this once for a friend because I didn’t want her to publish those mistake. Because of that, though, I don’t offer proofreading as a standalone service anymore.
Hi, Ronel! I’m new to this blog hop. 🙂
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Welcome, Chrys! I’m glad you enjoyed the post 🙂
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I’m the same. If someone hires me for a proofread when I didn’t do at least the copy-edit, I charge copy-editing rates, and if the copy-edits weren’t up to standard, I do a copy-edit pass instead.
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This is great information, Misha, thank you! I think having clear expectations really helps. I just beta read a book for a friend and her clear questions really helped me know what to look for and what she expected.
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Beta readers are a great resource — mine always tell me what I’ve missed and what’s great about a story. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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Absolutely. I actually have a cheaper service for people who want me to look at say five things specifically. (Since that cuts down on a significant amount of work.)
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Thank you for sharing Misha’s advice. It’s very valuable and spot on. I’m always running into writers who don’t understand there’s more to the craft than putting together words. They have to be the right words.
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You’re welcome, Cheryl. I agree: it has to be the right words 🙂
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Absolutely. The most writing drafts I’ve ever done for a book was five. The least editing passes I’ve done for any of my books was 20.
I’m actually horrified when someone wants me to fix everything in a single editing pass. Editing isn’t an afterthought. It’s actually THE thing that makes a story worth reading.
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I doubt I’d be able to manage so many careers successfully. But I’m so Sagittarian it hurts.
Anna from elements of emaginette
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I hear you, Anna. Misha is an inspiration to us all: where there’s a will, there’s a way 🙂
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Hehehehe I’m a Capricorn, so maybe that explains something? 😉
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Great post Ronel, and thanks to Misha!
This is definitely important information to have as I get closer to the end of my revision process.
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You’re welcome 🙂
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Glad you found the information to be of use. 🙂
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And sadly there are a lot of authors out there who need your service – even though they’ve already published!
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That’s the sad truth. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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Sadly, yes. Sigh.
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Great post, Ronel. Editing and formatting is such an important part of the finished work. A freelance editor is a critical step for self-publishing. Thanks for sharing your expertise, Misha.
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Thanks, Erika 🙂
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No problem. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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I have to admit, I’ve very wary about having an editor look at my work. Not because I don’t see the value in it (even before this post) but mainly because I don’t have much confidence and I’m worried about having those fears confirmed.
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I felt the same way before I sent my first book in for an assessment — but afterwards I learned so much about the strengths and weaknesses of my writing. It is definitely worth it if you want to grow as a writer. Scary, yes. But totally worth it.
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Yeah I know the feeling. I’m always nervous when other people look over my work, but in the end, I prefer a straight-up assessment of my book’s faults, because if I know what they are, I can fix them in edits.
There’s nothing wrong with having an imperfect book. In fact, I think people who say they write perfect rough drafts are either delusional or they’re trying to sell you something.
So thinking about my writing like that, I’ve learned to be less frightened of critique.
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It’s so cool that you have found a second career doing freelance editing, Misha. And also sad that so many folks self-publish without any kind of editing. Those are the ebooks that still give self-publishing a bad name.
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Absolutely. Thanks for stopping by 🙂
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Agreed. I get that some people can only afford to self-edit, but by gum, shouldn’t they then do everything they can to make sure they’re freaking good at it?
Thanks for stopping by, Shell!
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Thanks for sharing your interview with Misha, Ronel! This is such a great insight into hiring a freelance editor, I’ve been wondering about the different types of services they offer for a while so this is really useful 🙂
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I’m glad it helped, Lyndsey 🙂
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Fantastic! I’ll keep her in mind, for sure. ☺ Thanks for sharing, Ronel.
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You’re welcome 🙂
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