To Bendis, Gail, and other comic writers, about fame.

[Caley Tibbittz]

the best and most successful writers will tell you this isn't the right perspective.

I'm my own editor. I'm tough. I could go pro, but I'm too busy turning my plain amazing into SUPERAWESOME. ONEWORD. HELLYES.

[Treacle]

If I ever get famous for writing, I hope to become equally famous for ignoring what the audience thinks. I like Whedon's perspective of giving the audience not what it wants, but what it needs. If I need an opinion on my writing, I'd ask a writer.
This is also why I'm not interested in working with editors.

I think Joss also gives audiences what they want. Otherwise, he wouldn't sell anything. At all.

Re: editors, what do you think the role of an editor is?

[Caley Tibbittz]

I think Joss also gives audiences what they want. Otherwise, he wouldn't sell anything. At all.

They need some of what they want, and they want some of what they don't need. Bendis has a quote about Daredevil really enjoying a delicious sandwich instead of going through hell.

Re: editors, what do you think the role of an editor is?

Not feeling like failed or never-even-tried writers by sticking fingers in pies when they've never baked a day in their life. Generally. Some editors are of course nurturing and helpful Giles-ish creatures, aiding creative people in reaching their full potential. Others simply need to justify their jobs, or feed their egos.

There's a bit from the sitcom Just Shoot Me:
ELLIOT: It's gotta be MY vision.
PRODUCER (might as well be EDITOR): Okay, okay... but, what if, instead of a cop, the main character was a talking horse from the future?

Editors are also often there to play it safe for the good of the business -- take that racy content out please, more action in the opener please, do it like it's been done before because that's what sells please -- forgetting that the tried-and-true had to be tried for the first time at some point, and new ways are being made every day.

Editors can can be the sunlight for a fuller blooming, and editors can stifle like... something that's... really, really stifle-y. I'm not interested in finding out which kind I'll get, so I hired me instead. I keep the storytelling standards high, the pace flowing, and the really masturbatory fluff out of the final drafts -- I edit every page as I do the final letters, tweaking, tightening, and improving. And, knowing the meaning and intent behind everything, no one is more qualified.

That said, some people need editors. I have in a way in the past; the story I'm drawing now is from a 120-page screenplay. I had my classmate (a great visual storyteller) and art teacher (a pro) read the 177-page version and give me notes. But I did the editing.

This post could use an editor. I had Starbucks late, sue me.

[Caley Tibbittz]

On a kick:

I knew a friend of mine first only as one of my favorite writers, who wrote one of my favorite series ever. I told them this when we met, and they explained that they had been told to redo the first issue with "more action". Which completely changed the tone of what they were trying to do. And as much as I loved the first issue of that book, I wondered how much better it might have been if left to the writer's original vision.

That said, I liked the retooled Dollhouse pilot better than the original.

But that conversation stuck with me. I knew that I had to strive to make what I was creating not just be fanfic of my own characters to amuse me -- I had to be dead serious about working and re-working the raw materials until the final product was as professional as I could muster. I've tried really, really hard, and I know I've done a very good job. I also know that it's not perfect -- but whatever imperfections the final product may contain, at least it's mine. My idea, my vision, my hard work, my revisions, my execution. It's all mine.

No one told me where to put more action.

[Caley Tibbittz]

Yes, more: I'm home-educated, so I'm used to doing things myself. My mom taught me to put in the work and make it happen. She also used to tell me when she could tell I hadn't done my best on a given piece of art -- as a kid, I mean. She expected a high standard. I learned that high standard when I worked 2 and a half years in her boutique advertising firm. I helped put professional-quality presentations together as a teen -- graphic design and copy. After that, 10 years graphic art and comic writing instruction. Absorbed Whedon and Ellis as unofficial writing classes, took notes from McKee's Story... then wrote a 284-page screenplay and edited it down to 120 pages.

So, I don't need an editor. I know what I'm doing. I could use a colorist though -- not 'cause I can't do it, but 'cause I don't have the bloody time.

[c. page]

They need some of what they want, and they want some of what they don't need. Bendis has a quote about Daredevil really enjoying a delicious sandwich instead of going through hell.

Not feeling like failed or never-even-tried writers by sticking fingers in pies when they've never baked a day in their life. Generally. Some editors are of course nurturing and helpful Giles-ish creatures, aiding creative people in reaching their full potential. Others simply need to justify their jobs, or feed their egos.

There's a bit from the sitcom Just Shoot Me:
ELLIOT: It's gotta be MY vision.
PRODUCER (might as well be EDITOR): Okay, okay... but, what if, instead of a cop, the main character was a talking horse from the future?

Editors are also often there to play it safe for the good of the business -- take that racy content out please, more action in the opener please, do it like it's been done before because that's what sells please -- forgetting that the tried-and-true had to be tried for the first time at some point, and new ways are being made every day.

Editors can can be the sunlight for a fuller blooming, and editors can stifle like... something that's... really, really stifle-y. I'm not interested in finding out which kind I'll get, so I hired me instead. I keep the storytelling standards high, the pace flowing, and the really masturbatory fluff out of the final drafts -- I edit every page as I do the final letters, tweaking, tightening, and improving. And, knowing the meaning and intent behind everything, no one is more qualified.

That said, some people need editors. I have in a way in the past; the story I'm drawing now is from a 120-page screenplay. I had my classmate (a great visual storyteller) and art teacher (a pro) read the 177-page version and give me notes. But I did the editing.

This post could use an editor. I had Starbucks late, sue me.

Sometimes, that's all an editor needs to do. I am curious though, on your web comic you have two Editorial Consultants and one Editorial Assistant. So what services do they provide, and how you feel it differs from an editor?

[Treacle]

Editors are also often there to play it safe for the good of the business -- take that racy content out please, more action in the opener please, do it like it's been done before because that's what sells please -- forgetting that the tried-and-true had to be tried for the first time at some point, and new ways are being made every day.

Editors can can be the sunlight for a fuller blooming, and editors can stifle like... something that's... really, really stifle-y. I'm not interested in finding out which kind I'll get, so I hired me instead. I keep the storytelling standards high, the pace flowing, and the really masturbatory fluff out of the final drafts -- I edit every page as I do the final letters, tweaking, tightening, and improving. And, knowing the meaning and intent behind everything, no one is more qualified.

Editors also ensure cohesiveness and consistency of style, voice, and tone. In addition, editors work as a grounded, balancing act to writers. One side of the team can be creative and soar, while the other keeps annoying stuff like "How does this fit with what else we're doing?" in mind. They're both essential and necessary, and speaking as a writer, it can be very hard to edit your own work, especially if you have a quick turnaround/deadline or you're writing for a different publication/organization.

[Kelly Tindall]

Editors also ensure cohesiveness and consistency of style, voice, and tone. In addition, editors work as a grounded, balancing act to writers. One side of the team can be creative and soar, while the other keeps annoying stuff like "How does this fit with what else we're doing?" in mind. They're both essential and necessary, and speaking as a writer, it can be very hard to edit your own work, especially if you have a quick turnaround/deadline or you're writing for a different publication/organization.

Keep in mind who you're talking to; it's less important to him that you give him advice than you listen to him talk.

[Kelly Tindall]

I've worked with a cluster of editors over the last year; some gave great constructive notes, some were very hands-off to the point of being practically proofreaders, and some apparently wished they could do the work their bosses were paying me to do. I don't regret any of the experience. I do wish that either they or myself had better general communication, but that's true of almost anyone these days.

[Caley Tibbittz]

Sometimes, that's all an editor needs to do. I am curious though, on your web comic you have two Editorial Consultants and one Editorial Assistant. So what services do they provide, and how you feel it differs from an editor?

The editorial consultants are the classmate and art teacher, who gave me notes on my 177-page draft. I list them as consultants because I listened to their notes and thoughts, and then did the actual editing myself. Their input prompted to me to remove an entire subplot and the two major characters that went with it (all of which got saved for later). I was still in my learning phase at that point; it was my first feature-length script. I've written 61 TV episode-length scripts since, some multi-part.

The editorial assistant is my fiancee. She has sat around and hung out with me dozens and dozens of mornings as I've written and edited. I bounce ideas off of her. I almost ran page 13 of my comic silent, but we decided together the dialogue was important in further establishing the personality of Smiley. She also helps when I need to make sure I've got the feminine perspective in a scene right -- so far I always have, but it's nice to double-check.

I'm not saying I'm absolutely alone when it comes to creating and editing my work, but I do get by with almost no external input. It's just a skill I've trained myself to have out of necessity.