Last Monday I talked about what it was like to work wit Charlotte Herscher, my editor at Carina Press, on THE FIRST VICTIM.
This week I'll tell you what it was like working with the lovely Lucia Macro, my editor at Avon/Morrow, on CONFESSIONS OF A SLIGHTLY NEUROTIC HITWOMAN.
My experience with Lucia was quite different, in that my agent, Victoria Marini, brought the manuscript to her and Lucia came back with her offer. Because I felt that it was absolutely imperative to maintain the voice/tone of Confessions, I asked to speak with her before I made any decisions (since I did have another offer from another publisher on the table). I didn't expect her to tell me the book was perfect "as is" but I did want to make sure we shared a similar vision.
Lucia was absolutely delightful on the phone and I could tell pretty quickly that we were on the same page as to where the story should be headed. She not only "got" the quirky humor, she loved it.
Once I'd agreed to accept Avon's offer, Lucia sent me an edits letter that was less than 800 words, but chock full of great suggestions.
I made the changes, and she graciously allowed me to make some more changes when it came time to do the copy edits. I'm thrilled with how the book turned out...and if early reviews are any indication, so are the readers!
Tell me Killer Friends: Are there any questions about what it's like to work with editors I can answer for you? If you're a writer, what won't you budge on in your story?
If you've read Confessions of a Slightly Neurotic Hitwoman did you like the tone/voice?
2 comments:
I loved the voice you achieved in Hitwoman. I've always had a tough time putting my finger on voice, but I know what I like, and I liked yours. (If that makes any sense.)
Lucia sounds like a smart woman. And so do you for taking the time to talk to the editor before you accepted the offer. I don't know if I'd have the presence of mind at that point to do anything other than squee and ask for a pen. LOL
I'm not sure what I won't budge on specifically until the issue comes up. I guess anything that would turn my book into something I couldn't be proud of.
Again, thanks for sharing this! Your voice in CONFESSIONS was my favorite part of the book.
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