ABSTRACT
The essence of the editorial process in this case lies in the attempt to help an author to assert her voice and authority over the story as such. By story, we do not mean the final published draft, the text itself, which is always shaped under some authority of the editor. Rather, story here means that which the author is trying to convey. There is a whole set of issues one could highlight in the process of writing-editing Durneen’s piece, but what needs to be emphasized above all is the building of trust in the fact that both parties’ involvement is essential for the sake of the story and for the sake of creating firmer fundaments for the author to gain authority over her narrative. In other words, the balance does not mean both the author and the editor are equal. The author lies both at the centre and periphery. The editor, even if s/he is a friend, is a tool. The more involved and intimate the relationship may be, the more of a tool the editor becomes. In the following texts, pre-writing chats, and post-publication critical conversation, one can see several examples of the technique of “let it breathe.” This advice is, here, more of a metonym for certain types of editorial advice which arise from the fact that the author and the editor understand each other, or rather understand the core of the story that needs to be told. So for instance, when Durneen creates her story around the narrative she heard from her friend, this may indeed be central to what she is trying to convey, but at the same time, the editor needs to see that there is another story unfolding beneath that surface reaction, the story that is the very reason for the precise emotional response to her friend’s story. The editor needs to see and convey in the right way that this hidden story is in fact the one that presents the true, the good, and the beautiful of any storytelling. Once that is recognized and affirmed, the rest of the rather typical editing process follows effortlessly. This case teaches us that the mechanics and craft of editing might well arise from that fundamental connection which is neither about craft nor mechanics.
