Tuesday's Two Cents: Behind Every Great Book

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I know we've all heard "Behind every great man is a great woman." In a past life, I was a freelance editor (I know, I've lived so very long...), and couldn't help thinking the above phrase during my time at that job. ;)

The general public sees a book when it's completed, but editors see them in a different state, sometimes a pretty rough one. The first book I ever edited contained no chapter names or even divisions for chapters--I got to decide where they went and name them accordingly, along with the 5,000 other usual editing tasks of course. One novel I was given liked to change characters' names as the story went on and misnumber its own chapters. Then there's always the completely wrong references given for Bible verses, misquoting celebrities, totally questionable statements, and the occasional heresy. In the 36 books I edited, I feel like I saw it all.

Now keep in mind that editors are only human too, and sometimes things will still manage to slip by. But all this to say, every book you love first went through the hands of someone (and often many someones) who helped make it what it is. Yes, the author brings the book to life, but the editor, whose name is often not given in the finished product, helped sand off the rough edges and polish up every single word so that its greatness can really shine through.

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P.S. Linking up with Wake Up Wednesday, Thinking Out Loud, and Be.YOU.tiful Link Party.