Behind the Curtain: Working with My Technical Editor as a Knitting Pattern Designer - with Joanna of Precision Tech Editing

Pattern Design Circle Podcast

Finding a technical editor that you work well with and that does good work can be difficult to find, and it often takes time to build a trusting relationship. I feel as though I have a great working relationship with my technical editor, but it wasn't always that way.
Prior to working with Joanna (of Precision Technical Editing), I'd worked with a few other technical editors, typically for just one or two patterns. One I felt spoke to me in a bit condescending way. Another I didn't quite trust with more complex designs. You get the idea... and you've quite possibly been there yourself!
My getting in touch with Joanna was just a perfect aligning of the stars or a complete happen chance, whichever you'd like to believe. She was a recommendation from someone I'd never heard of who sent me a message on Ravelry and said she liked working with Joanna. What first sold me on giving it a try to work with Joanna was her experience with some bigger name designers.
What ended up selling me on working with Joanna was her patience with teaching me, willingness to listen to where I was coming for, and her flexibility by creating a flat rate offer for my first patterns. Let's just say I wasn't the easiest client at first. When a suggestion she offered conflicted with what I thought made since, I'd resist it and want to know the WHY behind it. I can just imagine how it'd try the patience of some folks. And, if I was paying her per hour on those first few designs, how big of a bill I would have racked up!
Don't worry: I ask Joanna in this episode for her perspective too!
Ultimately, I had Joanna tech edit nearly all of my existing patterns at the time, she's edited most of my new patterns since, and she even edited the knitting patterns for inTANDEM when I was on the inTANDEM team.
Basically: we work really well together. But how did we get here?
In this episode, Joanna and I dive into the designer-tech editing relationship. We talk about our relationship specifically, what makes a successful editing relationship, and how to find a editor for your needs... plus a few words of encouragement if you haven't found "your" editor just yet.
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