My wonderfully experienced and knowledgeable colleague, Louise Harnby, has written the perfect article about the issues around authors using editors before submitting to agents or publishers. It has loads of information for both editors and writers and will help writers to decide what process to use and editors to decide whether to take on projects.

Editing prior to submission: First principles
Here are four things that writers and editors should be mindful of at the outset:

• Not all editors are the same: editors have different skill sets and specialisms.
• Not all authors are the same: writers have different budgets, goals and preferences.
• Opinion abounds about whether writers should hire editors. And while there isn’t  consensus, some overarching good-sense guidance prevails.
• Right/wrong or yes/no isn’t the best approach. Instead, I recommend that writers make informed decisions based on a solid understanding of editorial process, and that editors make informed decisions based on professional integrity and a solid understanding of authorial intention … Read more

I strongly urge you to read the rest of Louise’s article here.