What is a Developmental Editor, and Why You Need One.

By Tierre-Lee Curtis

Last week, we met our first participant on the editing journey, the Alpha Reader. Today, we will meet another key player in any writer’s experience: the Developmental Editor. They have to work closely with you, the author, to understand your style and vision in order to provide feedback to help your writing meet its full potential.

The Development Editor’s responsibility is similar in essence to the Alpha Reader but focuses more on ensuring the quintessential elements of your text work in cohesive harmony. These features include story, characters, scene development, and pacing. Pretty big job, right? Well, that’s what makes them so important to your writing journey, think of them like the incubator of your story. 

 Without losing sight of the bigger picture of your story, here are the key responsibilities of a Developmental Editor:

• Evaluating the structure of your text to enhance its effectiveness.

• Improving the flow and readability of the piece.

• Assessing your story’s consistency (tense, following a style manual, character details, and history).

• Highlighting issues and suggesting solutions.

This information will typically be provided as in-document notes, an evaluation report, and/ or a chapter synopsis.For example, here at Blurb & Her, we love to provide in-document feedback and suggestions, and sometimes a report. General suggestions will often be found as annotations throughout the text, where the Editor will comment on the pacing, structure, and consistency of your writing. Some people will also offer a chapter synopsis, where they will provide a brief overview of what is and isn’t working within the chapter content. The most vital product of this exchange, in my opinion, is the evaluation report. This is where the Developmental Editor will break down exactly what is working within your story and what areas you may need to take another look at. Using examples to highlight their suggestions, they will provide a report that addresses crucial elements to further develop your work while maintaining its you-niqueness.