The ferocious looking beast on the cover of Linda Formichelli's Editors Unleashed is enough to give any writer pause, which is good-- it'll probably increase the likelihood you'll pay verrrry close attention to the unvarnished truth about the freelancers that these editors end up hating. Or at least, never calling again.

Some of these tales are over the top (Would you hand an editor you met at a networking or other professional event lip balm with your name on it? Yeah, me neither.), and all the more shocking because they're said to be true. While the editors of these newsstand magazines have been promised anonymity to protect the guilty, their stories will still make you laugh with incredulity or shudder with recognition. Either way, Editors Unleashed is hard to put down.

The format is clear and easy to follow ("The editor: the editor at a parenting magazine; The peeve: the diva who chafes at revisions") and the Q & A style of each chapter means you get to the good stuff quickly. Editors are asked a series of questions on writers' grammar, style, the best and worst they've seen in writers, contract negotiation, and what's the deal-breaker for them regarding working relationships with freelance writers. Each of the ten editors gets his or her own chapter in which to respond with details, save for the names of the offending writers. Rounding out each chapter is a bulleted list of do's and don'ts from Linda Formichelli, an experienced freelance writer and the co-author of The Renegade Writer: A Totally Unconventional Guide to Freelance Writing Success and The Renegade Writer's Query Letters that Rock.

For writers who'd like more information about Formichelli, she includes an "about the author" section where she shares her credentials, her website URL, and the URLs for additional resources and services she offers for writers (some of which are free, like a packet of one dozen successful query letters) plus more information about the online learning opportunities she offers, like her Writing for Magazines course (which is offered through Absolute Write).

Formichelli's Editors Unleashed is a quick and dirty peek into the real lives of editors working with real freelancers. Some may snicker at some of these writers' mistakes, while (hopefully only) a few will squirm with recognition. And lest you think that only newbie writers make these mistakes, the surprising thing to me was how many of these editors spoke of writers with excellent credentials and experience making terrible faux-pas. It's a bit of an ego boost-- if these are the kinds of errors in judgment that professionals are making, then I certainly could stand just as much chance of success as they do.

But rather than leave the squirming writers to wallow in their discomfort and shame, Formichelli does save the day, letting us all know how to avoid these editors' pet peeves and black ball-able offenses. While it's fun to read about the blunders of other writers, a careful reading of Editors Unleashed is a good opportunity for new freelancers to see what it's like on the other side of the desk, and for more experienced writers to brush-up on basic skills they may have forgotten or simply overlooked as they gained a level of comfort within the profession.

To order your copy of Editors Unleashed, send payment via PayPal to eric@twowriters.net or send a check to PO Box 2841, Concord, NH 03302. E-mail Linda at linda-eric@lserv.com to let her know which books you’re purchasing and how many, and she’ll send you your copies via e-mail.

The next session of Writing for Magazines starts May 21. Space is limited. Click here for registration details.

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