[Out of respect for the author involved, I will not be publishing his name.]

I recently read a self-published book that desperately needed editing.  I’m talking about grammar mistakes galore, poor writing quality, a nonexistent plot, one dimensional characters…basically everything that give self-publishing a bad name.  I emailed the author and politely suggested that he needed a good editor and his reply shocked me:

“I have already had a professional editor look over my work.” (Not a direct quote.)

His reply got me thinking and, by extension, researching.  What I discovered was not all that shocking: many self-published novelists have been taken in by either malicious or clueless freelance editors.  Now, there are some excellent freelance editors out there.  But the big question is: How do you find editors who are competent? Continue reading →