A True Editor: Susan Kamil
When I first started writing—actually, when the dream of being a writer first took hold—I wanted both the experience and act of writing, the creative moment, as much as I wanted to be accepted in one form or another by the literary world. I did not dream of Rushdie or Didion-like praise and lifestyles, but I wanted to be engaged with the world of people who write and edit and agent and publish… all whom create a wonderful reading experience.
To say the least, I’m not yet there.
But I believe that most writers seek this experience as well. And part of that dream is to have a supremely talented and eminently respected editor such as Susan Kamil fall in love with my writing to the point where she would tear it apart, break my heart, and help me create something worthy of being read.
She has died of the old bastard cancer, but we can still learn from her. The link below offers some wonderful and worthy insight into the process:
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/09/10/books/susan-kamil-publishing-ruth-reichl.html