What Editors Really Look for in a Manuscript: An Insider’s Guide

Traditional publishing is difficult and can be the holy grail for writers looking to start their careers and create history.

In this process of creating history, they need to complete their book and edit it into a manuscript which is then sent out to different publishing houses.

The next stage of the process is that these publishing houses shortlist some of these manuscripts which are then passed on to the editorial team and finally to the chief editor upon which they decide if they want to go through the manuscript and turn it into a book.

After which the author of the book is contacted and a book deal is reached where technical details such as royalty agreements and other contracts are signed.

The most difficult stage of this entire process is convincing the editor that your manuscript is worthy of publishing.

The reason why this is so difficult is simply because book publishing companies and especially publishers that operate in the traditional model receive hundreds of manuscripts each month or even each week.

Among those only the best are chosen and there are a lot of general parameters and key indicators that editors look for and a lot of specific parameters that are individual to each publishing company.

Today we are going to talk about all the general key indicators that editors usually look for in a manuscript.

Key Indicators Editors Look for in A Manuscript

A Clear, Compelling Hook

One of the most important elements of a book is going to be a hook and it is basically what it sounds like, something that gets the reader hooked to the story so that they continue with the story.

This element is usually present at the beginning of the manuscript as well as in other areas of the manuscript such as in the prologue or introduction or some other place that gets noticed fast.

If that is missing then that might be a problem because a hook is a powerful opening line and usually a paragraph that determines the success of a book.

Strong Voice and Consistency

One of the other most important key indicators that editors look for throughout the manuscript is going to be a strong voice and consistency of voice that stays even throughout the book.

This means that the characters should be consistent in their actions so that they feel distinctive.  Apart from that, a strong voice should be a tone that matches the subject.

If this kind of consistency is not maintained then the flow of the manuscript gets ruined and you do not want that.

Narrative Structure and Pacing

The manuscript should have a clear narrative structure that is solid and editors look for that. The narrative structure should build over time as tension gets built and satisfies the narrative expectations.

This is something that is one of the most looked-for indicators because if you do not have a clear arc in the form of a clear beginning middle or and then your script might get rejected.

A Fresh Perspective

Perspective is something that you cannot compromise on and especially if you want your manuscript to catch the eye of an editor. You must understand that editors go through countless manuscripts of the same theme and genre so they have an extensive idea about topics.

If they feel that your topic is not unique and that it is not a new take then it will get rejected.  That is why ideas with a new cultural or even political lens have a high chance of getting accepted as well as ideas where a character presents a new kind of story and outlook is definitely going to work.

Technical Competence

Your manuscript, if selected, is going to be part of an economic endeavour that is professional in nature and this means that the technical aspect of the manuscript should have a professional level of polish to it.

This means you simply cannot have grammatical mistakes or punctuation errors or even problems with the syntax.

However, sometimes typos get into the best of manuscripts and you can get away with a few but they should be minimal with minimal formatting issues.

Speaking of formatting, your manuscript should have impeccable formatting such as double spacing, standard font and all the other usual stuff.

Market Fit

A book is ultimately a product that is going to be sold at a market which means that this product or the manuscript should be a fit for the market.

You must understand that every publisher has their own set of choices of themes and genres that they publish and that go well with their brand.

That is why you should keep that in mind while submitting your manuscript. This is because even if your manuscript is good, it can get rejected if it does not fit into the market gap that the publisher is looking for so you must do your own research too before approaching a publisher.

This is simple market economics because you are a seller in this case and if the buyer does not have a demand for your product, then you cannot sell it to them.

Originality

It goes without saying that one of the most important if not the most important key indicator that determines the selection of your manuscript with a publisher is going to be originality.

If the publisher finds even a shred of evidence that your work is not original, it will get rejected and might not even make it to the chief editor and get rejected in the process.

However, one of the mistakes new writers make is that they go too far with it and they create something very obscure without clarity in the hopes of keeping it original.

If you go too far with that then again, your manuscript will get rejected because if the reader cannot understand what you are trying to say then nothing else matters.

A Professional Attitude

Ultimately the editor is not only looking for a good quality manuscript but they are also looking for an author with substance and someone who is polite and concise as well as professional, someone worthy of collaborating with and starting a professional relationship with.

Editors look for authors with a professional attitude and they look for authors that respect the guidelines and make the effort to ensure proper formatting is maintained throughout the manuscript.

Editors do not like flattery or desperate pleas from the author because they are looking for a professional partner in their economic endeavour and not someone who is immature.

We hope this blog has helped you understand what editors actually look for when they are selecting a manuscript to be published in a traditional publishing model.

The truth of the matter is that publishing anything in a traditional publishing model is quite difficult and even if your manuscript has everything that it needs to be selected, chances are it will get rejected.

This is simply because a traditional publishing company does not have the bandwidth to accommodate every manuscript that comes through the door because they can only publish a certain number of books.

If you want to ensure your book gets published and you do not want to go through the headache of trying to appease an editor then the self-publishing model is the best for you.

However, some might argue that the self-publishing model is just not reliable enough and that is where you need a publishing company with the experience and foothold of a traditional publisher but with the convenience of self-publishing.

That is exactly what we are. We are Orange Publishers and we are a legacy publishing company with the convenience of self-publishing and we can help you publish your book in the most convenient way possible.

We welcome you to visit our website and check out more details.