Anthology Editing: Advice and Insights from Those Who’ve Been There

Photo by Edz Norton on Unsplash

Today’s post is by poet and freelance writer Lisa Timpf.

Having contributed to a number of anthologies, I’ve often wondered what goes on behind the scenes. I’ve thought about trying to land a job as an anthology editor, but so far, fear of the unknown has held me back. To help me make the decision—and to better prepare in case I did take the plunge—I decided to gather input from those who have been there.

Jamie Dopp, who co-edited Not Hockey: Critical Essays on Canada’s Other Sport Literature, Christine Lowther, editor of Worth More Standing: Poets and Activists Pay Homage to Trees, and Nina Munteanu, co-editor of Through the Portal: Tales from a Hopeful Dystopia, kindly answered my questions about their experiences as anthology editors. Margaret Curelas, publisher of Tyche Books, and Carol Hightshoe, publisher and editor of Wolfsinger Publications, also offered their viewpoints.

What the job entails

In the case of Tyche Books, Curelas says, “Anthology editors write the Call for the Submissions, expanding on their theme or idea that they pitched to me.” Anthology editors are also tasked with handling submissions (receiving, accepting, or passing), as well as selecting the stories to be included in the anthology and working with the authors on content editing. While some anthology editors also perform copyediting, Curelas notes that Tyche has “a separate copyeditor to go over the entire manuscript.”

Wolfsinger’s process is similar. Anthology editors decide on the stories to be included and work with the contributors to refine the selected pieces, and the publisher sends out final proofs so that any corrections that need to made are captured. Hightshoe also notes that, ideally, she hopes anthology editors and included authors will help to promote the anthology to their readers.

What skills are needed?

From the descriptions of the anthology editor’s role, it’s clear that content editing skills, the knowledge of what makes a story, poem, or nonfiction piece work, and some copyediting ability are among the basic requirements. But those who have edited anthologies note that other skills and attributes are also useful.

Storytelling: Munteanu says anthology editors should also be good storytellers. “Most anthologies have some theme or at least some logical narrative that they follow and the editor must recognize how a submission can fit into that ‘story’,”  Munteanu says. Dopp adds that storytelling applies to individual pieces too. In his case, working with a nonfiction anthology, he had to “challenge people who are writing in a more … academic way to try to get them to write something that was more of a compelling read.”

Organization skills: Curelas says organization skills are essential. “There’s a lot of information to keep track of and a lot of authors to wrangle … if you can’t keep track of deadline or where you’ve filed an author’s revisions, it doesn’t matter if you’re a stellar editor.”

Communication and negotiation skills: Munteanu observes that in many cases, an anthology editor “must act as a negotiator” by discussing desired changes and convincing authors of the desirability of those changes. The ability to communicate clearly and directly is important.

Flexibility: More than one of the interviewees noted that sometimes, despite your best efforts, you need to be willing to let go of a piece you might have liked to include. This could be necessary for a number of reasons, including the author’s unwillingness, or inability, to make the necessary changes to the piece.

The ability to deal with difficult situations: Rejecting pieces can be tricky, Lowther notes. She’s had the experience of having to reject friends’ work, while at the same time knowing “how hurt they were.” She’s also encountered angry retorts from writers whose work was not chosen.

Willingness to go outside your comfort zone: Dopp notes, “In my teaching practice, I’m more of a nurturer. I want to be encouraging. But when editing there were some writers who could not get to the quality of what we were looking for.” Dealing with that, he notes, was a challenge.

The payoffs of anthology editing

Though some anthologies don’t pay editors, many do. Some publishers compensate anthology editors with a flat rate, some pay royalties, and others offer an advance plus royalties.

But the benefits of serving as an anthology editor go beyond cash compensation. Interviewees listed skill building, a better understanding of the publishing process, and the opportunity to mentor other writers as benefits of anthology editing. There’s also the opportunity to explore a theme you’re passionate about, and the satisfaction of creating a finished product you can take pride in.

Landing the job

Among the interviewees, a number had pitched anthology ideas to publishers they or one of their co-editors had worked with in the past. Some publishers, like Beaches and Trails, invite individuals to apply for anthology editing roles, working on themes determined by the publisher. Others, like Tyche and Wolfsinger Publications, entertain anthology pitches during their submission periods. Curelas and Hightshoe offered suggestions for those wishing to pitch an anthology idea.

Do your homework: Curelas emphasizes the importance of being familiar with the publisher you’re pitching to. “Check out the website, read over submission guidelines, look at their catalog. Does your idea fit what the publisher is producing? Have you read any of their books, and did you like them?”

Show your enthusiasm: Hightshoe notes that “typically it’s the enthusiasm of the editor and whether the theme of the anthology appeals to me enough that I would want to write a story” that sells the pitch.

Advice from those who have been there

Read early, accept after the deadline: Lowther notes that when she edited Worth More Standing, she read submissions as they came in. “I was soon accumulating many poems that used clichés to describe trees, e.g., arms instead of branches; military language like ‘standing sentinel’,” says Lowther. “So I was able to send out requests saying ‘Please, no military lexicon.’”

She advises waiting until the submission deadline have passed before sending acceptances. That way, she says, “You will know how many pieces you have with similar approaches and can choose the best one.”

Stay true to the theme: Munteanu says anthology editors should “be flexible and ready to compromise but keep true to the theme and meaning of the anthology. This is of prime importance; if you waver on this, it will bite you in so many ways.”

When co-editing, set guidelines: Lowther says, “If you decide to co-edit, have processes in place that will save the day when disagreements arise.” Dopp says he and co-editor Angie Abdou divided the work, with “a little bit of consultation between us.” Munteanu, who co-edited Through the Portal with Lynn Hutchinson, notes, “When we disagreed, we discussed and came to an equitable conclusion that both could accept.” For Through the Portal, each co-editor also had one chance to override the other, which worked out well. As Munteanu notes, “Collaboration is not a zero-sum game; it is all about consensus and respecting others in a mutualistic scenario.”

Understand there are degrees of acceptance: Munteanu says it’s not always as simple as rejecting or accepting a piece. She notes several conditions she ran across: “unconditional acceptance (easy; very few cases); conditional acceptance (most cases); rejection but possible acceptance following conditions met (always a few); rejection (also an easy choice most of the time).” Munteanu adds, “Stories that fell in the middle were often the most challenging, given the necessary back and forth toward final acceptance and inclusion.”

Be patient: Editing an anthology, Dopp says, is “a long process.” Munteanu concurs, noting that Through the Portal “took three years from our initial call for submissions to the release of the book.”

Given the amount of time it can take from start to finish, Lowther says prospective editors should “make sure that working on others’ writing is your passion, and that it wouldn’t be merely keeping you from your own writing.”

Be sensitive to diversity: Lowther notes that anthology editors should “try hard to create diverse collections.” She adds, “We need to be able to spot inappropriate references and assumptions, both in ourselves and in submitted work that comes to us.” One aspect that was important to Lowther was making an effort “to stay current with honouring the Indigenous whose land we live and work on.” To assist with this, she kept a copy of Elements of Indigenous Style by Gregory Younging handy.

Be aware of generative AI: Curelas notes, “Some magazine publishers are getting swamped with generative AI stories, which are usually sub-standard in quality. Anthology editors and their publishers have to be alert for those submissions; I’m seeing an increasing amount of ‘no AI submissions’ in calls and writing guidelines.” If generative AI stories aren’t something you want in your anthology, it’s helpful to state that upfront.

Final words

Thanks to input from the individuals interviewed, I have a better idea of what to expect if I throw my hat into the ring for a future anthology editing role. Lowther’s advice about being honest about your priorities makes sense, and I’ll have to consider whether I can dedicate the time and effort to editing without resenting the impact on my own writing.

If you, too, are on the fence, consider Nina Munteanu’s reflection on the anthology editing process. As she explains it, “Watching the anthology emerge through the slow collection of many outside sources of individual creativity, style and message is akin to watching the birth of a galaxy full of stars—gathered and orchestrated by you but so much more than the sum of its parts—comprising many singular notes of a symphony that together create something wondrous and beautiful.”

How can you say no to that?