What Editors Do

Book editing is by design an invisible art, aimed at creating books that are enlightening, seamless, and pleasurable for readers, while directing all credit to their authors. It is also a multifaceted craft, involving the selection of books to publish, the development and refinement of their contents, and the business of bringing them to readers--tasks sometimes vested in a single editor, sometimes shared among several. And the details of editing vary greatly depending on a book's publisher, genre, format, and intended audience. In this collection, Peter Ginna and a cast of 26 leading figures from all sectors of the book publishing industry demystify what editors do and why it remains important, even in an age of self-publishing and technological disruption. The individual essays cover a wide range of editorial functions and categories as well as topics such as career development, the value of diversity in publishing, and the ongoing evolution of the industry and the editorial profession. The book concludes with an extensive glossary and a list of resources for anyone interested in learning more about what editors do.