Triage that Sh*t by Faye Snowden

We all get notes from editors, beta readers, and agents. Sometimes we don't agree. When you get feedback to change something that you really want to keep, how do you let it go or justify keeping it?

I have a pile of Poets & Writers magazines on an old Salvation Army desk where I wrote my first few novels. Some of the magazines are well-thumbed, others with perfect covers, barely perused. Some time back, long before this week’s question was published, I picked up the July/August 2025 issue. On the cover is Toni Morrison with a formidable stare, as if she is saying, “I dare you. Come at me.” 

Stop judging me

The accompanying feature article, adapted from the book, Toni at Random: The Iconic Writer’s Legendary Editorship by Dana A. Williams explains how an author did just that. A poet with whom Morrison was working to publish a book of poetry argued with Morrison about everything from the font the publisher selected to the cover design. At one point she writes to Morrison, “…the designer didn’t read the book and thought: a classy French lady who writes love poetry…although I really wanted to keep out of it, I…spent seven hours looking at least 3,000 book covers…”

Let’s stop right there. 

Three. Thousand. Book. Covers. To be fair, I don’t know if this number accurately reflects the author’s research, or if it’s an exaggeration for effect. What it does reflect, however, is an author’s struggle with a work of art which in the end becomes a product in the marketplace, not an inconsequential product, but a product, nonetheless. As such it must compete on bookstore shelves with similar, brightly colored products all screaming to the reader, “Pick me!” I believe, as Morrison said in her response, that it’s the publisher, their editors to an extent, and their designers who understand what aspects give a book the best chance of succeeding. 

Now, I have pushed back when I felt that the cover design for my Killing series was not right. Below is the first idea my publisher had for my latest book, which isn’t bad, just not right for the mood of the book. They listened to my concerns and produced a phenomenal final cover, which is at the end of this post.

As for manuscript edits, I rely on my editor to identify areas that need work. I generally listen. He knows what he’s doing and I don’t have time to protest every single, little thing, nor would I want to. I work full time at a demanding job, have six grandkids, and am probably working on another book by the time the editor’s notes arrive. I certainly don’t have time to research 3,000 book covers, and since I am a fierce protector of my time, I triage the edits this way: 

For the record, I seldom make it to 4 with my editor. He’s awesome.