Have any questions about the group?
Think something would work better differently?
Let us know here and we will do our best to get back to you on it!

1809177
Hey there, just saw your group and went through your stuff. I really like the idea you have going here, but I have a few questions before I actually get around to signing up as an editor or looking for one.

First off, it seems like you need permission to view the sub-documents in your filing system. I understand that you maybe don't want unregistered users viewing the editors profiles, It's just that not everyone has a Google account that they are willing to display. Is it possible to change this so users can view the editors without having to create a Google account or having to show off existing ones?

Secondly, I have some experience in reviewing and proofreading, but I usually don't do heavy punctuation or dialogue editing as I feel that I am not qualified enough in these areas. Can I still sign up as an editor?

1811073
Thanks for the input. The sub document issue was a complete mistake and will be taken care of as soon as possible. Thank you for pointing it out.
You are absolutely qualified to be an editor. That is exactly what this group is for; people who don't have or do not wish to go the extra length required for proofreading. Even if you do, you are still welcome to become an editor.

We need people to start editing and being editors! We should work together to make stories by members within the actual group instead of just waiting. for people to ask for our help. We should have a thread or a space on the forum dedicated to people teaming up within the group to make stories.

2226935
That's a good idea. Actually, the new admin and I are working on something kinda like that.

Heres a question for all members did you all like the 1st episode of season 4??
I felt it jumped around a little but eh it wasnt bad.

Alright, I've got this. I've been to worse places.

Am I right to assume that this place is on its way to the other side, or is it just me and my unconventional shower habits? The forums certainly don't seem to be awash with color, life, hapiness and all that wonderful stuff.

2337443 That's because we just recently cobbled this group together. Everything is a bit chaotic right now.

2337443 Yeah, we're still a relatively new group.

What do you mean the group isn't full of "color, life, hapiness and all that wonderful stuff"?

Gah, I was just under the assumption that the place was dead, seeing how some threads clearly were looking a little bit dusty. Didn't consider that perhaps it only just got created, meaning that it's still going to take time for it to die. And that's great.

1809177 I think that there should be a.... I don't know what to say, scrutiny level, for the editors? What I mean is that a person with high scrutiny will tiny details, mistakes, word choices, etc. and will take more time in comparison to someone who has less scrutiny, who will go after the biggest things and will work faster?

3270724

How would that be measured and rated?

3270757 its subjective and would be done by the editors. Theres no need not to be honest. The idea is based on two experiences i had with two editors here.

The first was andy grey. I would say andy would be higher on the scale because they took more time on things like active and passive, heavy use of show, and went more in depth on word choice.

Secondly, there was fillyphill, who would be lower. While they were more keen on mu simpler writing, they were less focused on word variety, they still would point out noticeable poor choices and make suggestions. I actually enjoyed phill's services more, because it is what i feel more common with.

So, its not a good or a bad rating, just a level of appraisal. A low level would be a person who just looks for spelling and grammar and a high would be a purple prose, and would basically rewrite the whole story to get it perfect.

3270796 So the editors would "rank" themselves based on their own opinion of theirself?

I kinda feel like the amount of detail an editor is willing to go into with editing something is(or should be) stated within that editor's description.

3270817 on how they, themselves, go into detail in their editing jobs. A low person would be better for a job in progressto edit chapters before they are published or to do some quick help on a story while the higher ones would take more time, would work better with already completed works, and would probably reedit it multiple times. I feel like I did not have this in perspective based on the gdoc bios.

3270850
Well, maybe this "rating" should be next to the editor's name in the editor list? That could save the author a bit of time rather than having to go on the editor's own document to see the rating.

I'm not sure if just two options (high or low) or even a numbered rating system would work for each editor because everyone has their differences in what he/she is willing to do. Maybe instead, a color coding system where each color represents a specific task the editor is willing to do.

This is still just an idea but I think it definitely deserves to be looked into if it can benefit the group.
I also think 1811073 should join in this discussion and see what he thinks.

3273934 i was thinking if a 1-10 scale.

3276827
Well, one editor might be great with punctuation and grammar but might not do well with style while another editor might be excellent with dialogue but worthless in sentence structure.
Would a number scale be able to represent all the different abilities of each editor?

3278110

I like the way we handled a contest in the Bassie and Surry TwiDash army recently. Every story had six scores per judge, on a scale of 1-10 based on that judge's ideals about how the story did in terms of different areas.

Perhaps something like that for editors, so that editors get a X/60 or X/100 scale based on their different areas of expertise?

3278110 well, whatever you think is necessary. This probably would work, but I think that doing it like may make people think that your editors aren't good if they say that they can't check grammar very well.

Going back to just what I wanted though, My idea was that it could help people find the right person for the job. For me with my Story Tailor 1 and Between Needles and Knives with You and Phil, I had already wrote most of the story and was not going to change most of it. But, with a story like Project: Sinatra I want someone who is much more strict and is going to suggest changes because the story was not complete and I would want to get it as perfect as it can be by the time I publish it.

3278131 3278343

may make people think that your editors aren't good if they say that they can't check grammar very well.

I agree with that and I think Noble Thought's suggestion of having a larger score added up together based on how the editors rate themselves in certain categories would help with that.
What would these categories be though such that the editors can rate themselves? Are the questions rating for skill level or the amount of effort the editor is putting into a category?

3278913

A couple different super categories such as Mechanics and Story with sub categories like:

Mechanics:
Spelling
Grammar
Structure

Story:
Plot
Characterization
Dialogue
Pacing

Anything more specific and you're running into stylistic differences. If you'd like more I can answer in more depth when I'm not on a phone keypad.

3276827
3273934
3278131
>I also think >> andygrey should join in this discussion and see what he thinks.

The rating system idea /sounds/ good, but you are making editing out to be some sort of science. I think if you just let editors detail in their description how thorough they are and how much experience they have, writers will figure out on their own which ones suit their needs. We don't necessarily need some rating system that will require us to contact 25 people and ask for their opinions on how thorough they are (that's a lot of work, and a lot of organization for the mods). If you would like an editor to go more or less in depth than they are currently going, you could consider specifically telling the editor how detailed you want them to work, but I don't think you need to design a whole rating system around that problem.

(sorry about the late reply. I just came back from a trip to Berlin)

3279750
3278913
Yeah, andy has a point. But, back to my idea, it could just be out of 3 ranks, low, for people who will focus on spelling and grammar for post submitted stories. normal who does more with Suggestions for rewrites and pre submission, and high for people who are... In layman's terms, nitpicking bastards.

I just had this idea because andy suggested a guy who he said was super excessive in editing, and i didn't really get that from his bio thing in gdocs.

3279874
>and i didn't really get that from his bio thing in gdocs.
Well, you know, it's a jungle out there. Sometimes you just have to give it a shot and hope that what you get is what you need. Most people return to editors who worked out for them once since these are people that the writer knows they can rely upon.

>low, for people who will focus on spelling and grammar for post submitted stories. normal who does more with Suggestions for rewrites and pre submission, and high for people who are... In layman's terms, nitpicking bastards.
I think it would be somewhat nice to have this 3-tier rating system, but I don't really trust an inexperienced editor to rate himself low, or a professional to rate himself high, wich would mean that we would get an inaccurate representation of the editors, which would make the system somewhat useless. And as I also mentioned, there is the issue with going back and harrassing all of the editors who already entered their info into the system. Not a nice prospect.

If someone other than myself where to undertake this project I wouldn't mind it, but usually me and Deal get stuck with most of the work (even when others promise to do the largest parts), which is not something that I prefer.

So, as it stands, this is not something that I agree with. If Deal thinks it can work out, or if one of you guys would like to take responsibility for getting it up and running, then maybe it would be a different story.

3279909 maybe i assumed it incorrectly, but i was under the impression that the editors here were dedicated, unlike previous attempts with randoms who, well, sucked. Other than that, i didn't ever intend for it to sound like some sort of merit to be a high person. I have some faith that the editors are humble amd realistic in their evaluations of themselves if they had to describe how much scrutiny they give.

3281589 3279909

It is certainly a good idea and I wouldn't mind putting some effort into making it happen. I'm not sure if everyone else thinks it's a good idea though. I'd like to get the opinion of everyone on this but I'm not exactly sure how to get the word out since thread notifications are down and the skype group is a little less active.

This idea would make the editor list a little more efficient for the authors which is a good thing. Would this, however, make some editors appear less qualified than others? I as an author would want the absolute best for my story. That would make all the editors marked as a lower tier(as I understand it) unappealing to me. Doesn't every author want the very best for their story?
Correct me if I'm wrong about anything, I'm kinda thinking out loud.

I think we should set up a thread for co-writers, as they are like editors, as they not only do editing stuff, but add their own ideas in as well!

1809177 How do I give someone editing access to my story?

3457833 Well, the way I do it is to have your story in a Google Drive document and share it with the editor's gmail account so they can add whatever comments or make any changes they need.

I don't know if there is any way to let someone change your story directly on fimfiction other than the editor leaving a comment specifying what needs to be changed so you can make the change yourself.

Does this help?

Yeah I suppose it does actually. It at least has given me an idea of how to go about it.

1809177
are writers allowed to have more than one editor? Or is that a question someone should ask the editor themselves?

3886204 You are plenty welcome to have more than one editor, but you should ask your current editor first

is there anypony that can help edit this story i made http://www.fimfiction.net/story/271724/my-little-pony-jurassic-equestria