Someone asked me this a while back. What’s the right stage of a (game) project to bring in editing help? My responses ended up being a mini-thread so I thought I’d turn it into a post.
The first thing is that editing should be there to help you, so ideally you’d reflect on what you want to ask for and then explore it with someone. A good editor will work with you to make the project its best.
Process
There’s a skill in managing your own process. How long do you need to step away from the work before you can come back and make useful progress? That varies from one person to the next.
Part of that skill is being aware when you’re getting bogged down but the work can, or needs to, get better. Sometimes if you keep ploughing away at familiar ground you just dig in deeper, which can eat up time and raise stress levels. That can be a point to bring in a fresh perspective to get things moving again.
(But you should have the text worked up to a reasonable standard, overall. If you don’t have at least decent skills in writing to convey information, work on that first. Editors want to help, but not to take on a lot of extra frustration!)
Your process has to have an end point when you call the product done, which means it must move through steps, and hopefully there’s a plan for those. It’s easy to get caught up in endless tinkering and tweaking, with diminishing returns — but the project has to keep going forward, at whatever speed is right for you. There’s a time when you have to make yourself say ‘good enough’ and pass it over to someone, so it can move to the next step.
Stages
Let’s briefly mention stages of editing, just in case this is new info. Development editing is on an earlyish draft, and looks at structure/organisation and meeting the intent of the work. Copyediting is on a near-final draft, focusing more on accuracy and phrasing. Proofreading is usually on the laid-out version, doing final quality control (though sometimes people want proofing as a final check pre-layout). Cost is higher at the early stages, on the basis that there should be fewer issues to spot later on.
Those are the usual categories in rpg world, but terminology varies. From experience, in rpgs the lines between them get blurry. I’ve often given feedback in proofreading on things that should have been addressed earlier; I’d rather give the opportunity to fix it than let it be an issue later.
Resources and confidence
Small-press folk often need to be choosy about how much to use editing due to limited resources. That can mean bringing someone in at the one stage it’ll be of most benefit. Crowdfunders can open this up, as you can build the level of help you want into your plans.
Experience and confidence make a big difference to what you want and need. I’ve worked with people new to rpg publishing who wanted support at multiple stages; and with people who know the ropes and just wanted a check at one stage. Even larger, established publishers can benefit, though; and books made by teams of people with different perspectives definitely need fresh eyes to make the text smooth and consistent in the end stage.
How to approach an editor
Very carefully, with a chair in one hand and biscuits in the other…
It’s like any approach to open a conversation with a stranger. Make the tone polite, friendly, but relaxed — talk like a normal person. Make it reasonably short and well broken up, so it can be read quickly.
Say a little about yourself, your project, and what kind of help you’re looking for. That last part doesn’t have to be precise — hopefully you’re starting a conversation, so the important part is to know what you want out of it, and they should be able to help pin down the specifics.
Ideally you’ll be able to point to an online presence for yourself and where you’ve been talking about the project. If they don’t know you, they’ll want to check you out a bit to see whether you’ll be a good fit to work together. (That includes avoiding people with incompatible views, abrasive interactions or just very different vibes. Spotting problems at the start saves stress on both sides.)
Don’t trumpet about how your project is the best thing since sliced bread — stick to the factual level, like stating a couple of key focus points (for example fast-paced action mechanics, or a deep setting to explore). It helps if you have a good sense of the field and where you sit within it, even if you need some help with particular processes.
Ask any pressing things you want to know, but fine detail can come later.
You’ll want to ask about rates early on in the process: bear in mind they’ll need to get a clear picture of what you’re asking for, and possibly a look at the current state of the piece to get an idea of how much input is needed. The ttrpg industry tends to work in US cents per word, but it’s possible to price per hour or just as a project total. Rates vary wildly (and higher doesn’t mean you’ll get better work), so it’s more about finding a person and arrangement that you’re happy with.
Editing services
If you’re interested in getting editing help with your project, further info is here and we can have a conversation.