Are Editors an Illustrator's Friend?

Professional editors are much like professional illustrators. Each wants a book to reflect his/her personal style and attention to detail. Working as a team from start to finish, creates a cohesive project. Illustrators must acknowledge editors input as the reader's perspective.

A professional editor has his/her own pricing structure and should commit from first edit to press proofing. Editors assist with: page count, layout recommendations, proofing, and of course text edits. Professional editing services are well worth the investment!

As an illustrator, demand the final edit before beginning illustrations. Have authors write a brief description of how they envision each page. Illustrators write a description of how you envision each page. From these written ideas a storyboard is created through words, rather than hours of drawing time. Thus minimizing sketch time and optimizing illustration time.

My favorite professional editor to date is Jennifer Thomas, Beyond Words Editing. We have worked on several award-winning books together.

Mark Wayne Adams
CEO, MWA, Inc.