Editorial Policy and AI

As a Freelance Editor:

• I keep all client manuscripts and personal information strictly confidential.
• I will never input a client’s writing into an AI language learning model or ask an LLM to give input on an edit. All editorial feedback is derived from my own experience, deep thought, care, and time.
• If I ask another editor to weigh in on a point, I do so with the client’s prior agreement and without sharing extraneous information.
• My first priority in each edit is to compassionately expand my client’s understanding of writing, publishing, and how to revise their work to meet their specific goals.
• I take pride in giving each project the individual attention it deserves. Except for some initial housekeeping in the first paragraphs, all or nearly all of each editorial letter I write is new, unique content written specifically for the client and project concerned. Occasionally I will include a short segment I have used before, if the client will benefit from some general information about, for example, the hallmarks of a specific genre. This kind of repetition is the exception, not the rule, and even this repeated content will be customized wherever relevant.

As a Blogger and Newsletter Writer:

• My first aim is always to pull back the curtain on the inner workings of publishing in a way that leaves authors and aspiring authors better informed and better equipped to enter publishing relationships.
• I only tackle subjects I am experienced in, subjects I am well informed about, or subjects for which I have access to an expert.
• I write to offer value, not to trick readers into paying for my services. It’s enough that the blog and newsletter help potential clients decide if I’m the right fit for them.
• I do not employ generative AI to write the body of my blog posts or newsletters.

AI Use

• I acknowledge that generative AI offers both powerful tools and major problems for copyright protection, for the environment, for creatives, and for communities impacted by AI data centres. For these reasons, I am both selective and sparing with my own AI use.
• I do sometimes get AI support for SEO decisions such as titles and section headings for blog posts or subject lines for newsletters. Analyzing what gets clicks on the internet is an arena in which I feel AI is beneficial without infringing copyright.
• I may also employ an AI search tool as a starting point for comp-title research, since it can niche down its search results based on complex inputs. However, this is only to screen for tightly subject-specific books that my usual research in journals, awards lists, and catalogues might miss. I always verify the results to eliminate hallucinations.
• I reserve the right to inquire about clients’ use of AI in order to best advise them about their publishing journey. Generative AI is a complex and changing subject in the world of publishing; it also produces manuscripts that are more labour intensive to edit.