The Gift of a Good Editor

By Elizabeth Austin

In the early days of my writing career, sending a draft to an editor felt like unzipping my chest and offering up my insides to someone holding a pen instead of a scalpel. I’d hit “send” and imagine the editor on the other end squinting at my words, questioning each sentence. What if they think this is ridiculous? I’d worry. What if they’re not just critical, but brutal? More than anything, I feared feedback that aimed to reduce me somehow—a critique of some essential e...