"It's easy to fall into the trap of agreeing to unrealistic deadlines and too little pay."
Editor Moriah Richard on stronger stories and smarter pitches.
In this edition of Editor’s Insight, I spoke with fiction and nonfiction editor Moriah Richard about her work on novels and her role as a commissioning editor at Writer’s Digest.
We spoke about why hiring a professional editor can transform your writing, as well as what magazine editors are really looking for when they commission.
If you're an editor (or know someone who is) and would like to take part in a future feature, drop me a line at thefreelancewritingnetwork@gmail.com.
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Editor’s Insight: Moriah Richard
Since obtaining her MFA in fiction, Moriah Richard has worked with over 100 authors to help them achieve their publication dreams. As the managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine, she spearheads the world-building column Building Better Worlds, a 2023 Eddie & Ozzie Award winner. As a reader, Moriah is most interested in horror, fantasy, and romance, although she will read just about anything with a great hook.
You can learn more about Moriah’s editorial services and writing classes on her personal website.
You began your career with an MFA in fiction, but have since supported over 100 nonfiction authors. How has your experience shaped your perspective as an editor across both formats?
I've learned how to guide writers to have better connection and storytelling with their nonfiction readers and to pare down information and keep the story streamlined for fiction writers. It's amazing how genres inform each other, and doing a deep study of one can vastly improve your writing style and ability to write in a totally different genre.
When you're editing nonfiction, what do you think distinguishes a strong manuscript from a forgettable one? Are there consistent pitfalls that writers commonly fall into?
Some of the biggest sins of a nonfiction first draft: being too dry and forgetting the human element. Even if someone is really excited about a subject, they want to be able to connect with it on a human level; they want dynamic sentence structure, plenty of sensory language and detail, and to see themselves in the work, even if it's a memoir or a biography.
By capturing the imagination through your storytelling, you keep the reader engaged and interested in your work.
In contrast, fiction requires different skills. How do you approach editing for fiction, and what do you find writers often overlook in their writing?
As a genre writer myself, I approach my editing from the middle-ground of writer and editor. I know how exciting it is to world-build and how hard it is not to put every little detail on the page. But it's my job as an editor to advocate for the reader, and I assure you, they won't care to sit through pages and pages of backstory or lengthy exposition about the state of the government or other aspects of your world.
Instead, we have to work to space out the information (avoiding the dreaded Info Dump) and to keep even informational exposition relevant to the scene and engaging with the character.
Having worked directly with so many authors, how do you tailor your feedback to the individual? What makes for a productive editor-writer relationship? And should more writers think about finding a professional editor for their work?
All writers should hire professional editors, full stop. Heck, I myself hire another editor to look over my written work and provide feedback! It's so important to have a trained eye on your work, whether that's for developmental editing or sensitivity reading. It's the way we get the most polished, accurate, and engaging work.
I always try to connect with my writers by listening to their goals and their fears. This will help me to navigate the human side of editing; I'll be able to see where they want to go and help them steer clear of potential pitfalls that will disrupt that journey. I'll also be able to speak to their anxiety, quiet those Doubt Demons, and show them all the really wonderful aspects about what's working well for their piece.
You're also managing editor at Writer’s Digest, so how has your role evolved from direct manuscript work to more editorial strategy? What does your typical day look like in that position?
Working for WD gives me so much more insight into the market, what's trending, what's not, and how best to serve the readers. It's much faster paced and dynamic than manuscript work, having me juggle several balls in the air at a time, and helps me to hone my editorial speed and accuracy.
A typical day looks like brainstorming ideas for future issues, working with contributors to edit existing columns and articles, writing articles for my own columns, reading ARCs for upcoming publications, and often interviewing authors or WD competition winners about their work.
What kinds of ideas grab your attention as an editor at Writer's Digest? What signals to you that a pitch is a good fit for the publication?
We want pitches from writers who have clearly read our guidelines and editorial calendar and are pitching work that is both on theme and shows a different side to their subject.
Instead of pitching us why flash fiction is something writers should study, give us an article about how studying poetry can make you a better flash fiction writer. Instead of an article comparing and contrasting traditional and indie publishing, pitch us an interview with three authors who switched from traditional to indie publishing and what their experience and insight have been.
These pitches should showcase your imagination, personality, and writing interests in a way that will engage and inspire our audience.
For writers trying to choose between writing fiction or nonfiction, or trying to balance both, what advice would you give on navigating these creative demands?
I like to think of creativity as a jar of water. Sometimes, your life will align, your schedule will clear, you'll be in a great headspace, and the jar will be brimming or even overflowing with the waters of inspiration and writing time. Other times, you'll get a divorce, your toddler will refuse to sleep, the dog needs an emergency vet visit that has your credit card weeping, and your basement will flood, leading your creative jar to only have one or two lonely drops clinging to the very bottom.
The trick is to figure out ways to refill your jar. Reading widely and for pleasure, engaging creativity in another way (I cross stitch, do photography, and scrapbook, all of which pour creativity into my jar!), and asking for what you need to create space for yourself (does your co-parent need to take the kids to the park for an hour? Or your roommate needs to stop blasting music between 8-9pm?) are all important ways to balance yourself and pour into your jar.
For someone hoping to become an editor themselves, especially in both nonfiction and fiction, what’s one piece of advice you’d offer that goes beyond the commonly suggested “practice often” and “read a lot”?
Know your worth and stick to your boundaries. Especially when freelancing, it's easy to fall into the trap of agreeing to unrealistic deadlines and too little pay. People capitalize on your fear of not making enough money. But when you stick to your standards, you'll find yourself with better working conditions and working on projects that you're proud of and that fuel you creatively.
Don't be afraid to pass on a good-paying project if the vibe is off or you feel like they're asking too much of you. There will be a better project on the horizon!
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