Internet Site Helps Writers Say What They Mean
(PALMDALE, Calif.) “We all know that writers write, but what comes next? Editors Edit.” This is the mantra of a new Web business – EditorsEdit.com, created by longtime writer and editor Jim Crockett.
“A good editor is invaluable to nearly every writer,” says Crockett. “Think of Scribner’s Maxwell Perkins in the ‘20s. Words simply poured unabated from young first-time author Thomas Wolfe. When he delivered his initial novel, “Look Homeward Angel,” to Perkins, it came in cardboard boxes. After a mighty struggle, Perkins got Wolfe to agree to cut 90,000 words – 90,000! But the massive effort resulted in a 1929 best seller and a career that signaled Thomas Wolfe as one of the premier writers of his generation. Without editor Maxwell Perkins, there’d likely be no ‘Thomas Wolfe’.”
Crockett, with his partner Devon Maitozo, realized, however, that editing takes many shapes. He says, “No writer I’ve known wants to turn in to his or her publisher sloppy, amateurish work. For one thing, busy publishers can’t be bothered slugging through obvious misspellings, inconsistent tenses, unclear relationships, typos and the rest. Give them a clearly written, professional piece and you’re ahead of the game.” He should know, having written or edited dozens of books, numerous screenplays and thousands of articles.
Whether you’re creating a press release, a biography, a screenplay, a newspaper article, a romance novel or a thesis, he believes, the writer’s reputation, success and editorial future depends on top quality work. “Saves a lot of embarrassment, too,” Crockett smiles.
EditorsEdit.com charges writers just $35 per hour, with the first hour free to new clients. When they’re done with a piece, the writer receives a line-by-line detail of recommended error corrections and editorial suggestions. “We don’t actually make all the changes ourselves,” Crockett explains, “because we want authors to learn what they may have done wrong, and to change or not change as they want. I mean, after all, it’s their name on the page, not ours.”
Devon Maitozo, who handles the Internet marketing for the company, says, “Ours is an online world these days. Not all businesses need storefront facilities. Sure, if you’re selling mattresses or carpeting maybe – though maybe not – but in the 21st century, online business rules. And EditorsEdit.com is right at the forefront of providing what writers need: editing that helps them say what they want to say. And does it quickly and economically.”