Addressing an Editor's Concerns

When an author receives a critique from members of a writers group, ours or any other, he has choices to make: what to keep in, what to take out. What to move, what to leave. Suggestions flow in as the author works toward final draft.

But what to do when an editor from a major publishing house has suggestions? The author faces the same decisions, but from a professional with the end goal of acquisition and publication. Such is the case with a recent submission I made to HarperCollins' imprint Balzer+Bray. Now I am mired in the middle of rewrites based on the editor's suggestions. Keep in mind that the editor loves certain parts of the story and is willing to read a resubmission.

As it applies to this particular story:

1. Editor said parts read more like a short story than a picture book. She's right. She suggested I work up a dummy, which I had done once before, but this time I gave it much greater detail, complete with sketches and separate pages and pieces I could rearrange. I trimmed nearly 100 words from the story, or roughly 20%, including my favorite phrase. In removing all those words, however, I discovered I could put in two more jokes that don't disrupt the flow of the story. Pulling out all those words makes it read much more like a picture book than before.
2. She thought the ending was too didactic, or preachy. She may have a point here, though no one else has said that. Removed the one most egregious line, but discovered that that ruined the rhythm of the final joke. Not sure what to do here, so the line, at least for now, remains.
3. She was worried about the main character's species. (Hey, it's a picture book!) Couldn't find a way around this until I sat down and just started making a list of animals that might work. After several false starts for which I could not conceive an ending, I finally hit on one animal that unfortunately requires a complete rewrite, but that doesn't change the story's basic formula. The jokes remain very much the same, but unlike the original story, it becomes a parody of classic fairy tales and pop culture. Fortunately the structure that the B+B editor liked is intact.

I am making choices here between art and commerce, publishing and personal preference. Working with a good editor should open your eyes to new possibilities, new considerations, new directions. That has happened here, and I've managed to address some of her concerns, make the story stronger, and still keep my original vision in place. Even if I have to rewrite it from top to bottom to meet point number three.

So that's where things stand now as I push toward publication. It is not as dire as it may sound because I see the possibility -- the very real possibility -- of publishing this story.