An Editor With Conscience?

[inksplotter]

Should I feel guilty about this?

I was hired to edit a book, I ran out of time and I've dropped five thousand words or so, but I haven't improved the plots or the characters.

[inksplotter]

Well I have improved them a bit, but probably not enough.

[AB Editor]

Depends on what kind of editing you were hired to do. What was the brief? Were you paid enough?

[ichkeria]

A bit difficult to answer without more info.
For example, was it your fault you ran out of time?
How do you know you haven't improved the story?
If you've removed 5000 words and it really is no worse then that is probably a job well done ...

[inksplotter]

It's difficult to come with up with an idea of what I can do with the book without seeing it. I suppose if she doesn't like the finished work she can mark me down. Giving myself only three weeks was probably a mistake.

[inksplotter]

Of course there are probably worse editors out there...

[Old_Geezer]

Shows how much I know about editing. I thought they were there to edit, not suggest different plots, characters and stuff. Do the writers do anything then, aside from the donkey work typing it ?

[Mamyalynne]

How many words did the book have to start with ? 5,100?

[AB Editor]

"Do the writers do anything then, aside from the donkey work typing it?"

Some don't even do that :)

Lazy bunch those writers.

[inksplotter]

I know for a fact the AB Editor writes most of these answers...

I don't want to give too many facts away. More than 20K.

I may have felt better if they checked it before paying me.

[Mosaic]

Perhaps the matter to feel uncomfortable with is not appraising the client asap that time was short. It will depend on how your contract is phrased, and how much your client is willing to badmouth your services if they are severely displeased.
And Ed writes all the posts. eh? Always thought she was omnipotent.

[scorpiojo]

Will the bloke in the pub understand it?

[inksplotter]

Let's help so, Jo.

[Baldric]

help ^^^ ?

[inksplotter]

Beyond.

[Baldric]

;o)

[boxtops]

So which bits have you cut out? - were they extraneous description sections, unnecessary for the plot? Why (part from the shortness of time) did you reduce by so many words?

It's not your place to change the plot, only to remove or amend anything not strictly necessary, IMO. The editors I've used in my own experience haven't changed the content at all, only shuffled sections about to make the content flow better.

[kvalidir]

If I paid you 20k to do something I'd have been damned sure I was happy with it before you actually got the money because you seem not to give the proverbial rat's behind about your clients and that only ever ends one way eventually. Simply trashing 5k words is not editing, it's butchery if you can't even be bothered to finish the job. Very tatty work ethic 2/10.

[Baldric]

Surely you mean Below Average?

[Lie-in King]

If you've removed 5000 words, I'd be amazed - frankly, I find this all very hard to believe, but I've been called gullible before - BTW, 'gullible' has been taken out of the OED...