Article: Editing someone else’s work can be very personal. Some writers, especially those who aren’t as experienced, feel like critiques on their writing are really a critique on themselves. However, editing needs to stem from a healthy line of communication between you and the writer. You need to know exactly what they want out of you. If they need help with structuring their book, that’s what you’re there for. If they only want someone to do a grammatical check without changing any of the structure, you need to obey their wishes even if you see something you’d like to change. Having an open line of communication between you and the writer will allow you to tailor your editing process and have a better final product. Speak with them over the phone and use email to communicate with the author whenever you are unable to meet with them in person. This goes along with communicating with your client. You want your communication to be honesty and open so the two of you can work together to put out the best piece possible. You also have to become used to telling them what you honestly think about their work. This doesn’t mean that you should be rude or condescending, but that you should be objective when you approach revisions.  In addition to pointing out flaws or inconsistencies, explain how the writing can be improved. When you are very familiar with a client, it may be more difficult to be objective, especially when you consider them to be a friend. Approach each piece as if you didn't know the name of the author; edit the piece based on the writing instead of basing your edits on your relationship with the author. This is also true when you’re editing your own work. Being honest with yourself about the quality of your work takes practice and you can become a better writer and editor by making honesty your policy. Understanding the goal of the article or the nature of the story will enable you to determine what things are wrong and to focus your editing skills on correcting them. This is an essential step in the editing process that most editors could do better with. While it is tempting to jump into editing as soon as you receive the piece, take some time to talk to the writer about what their goals are for the work. An author that wants to publish the piece might have very different sets of criteria than your friend who needs help with an essay for her class. Rushing to edit your own work after you finish it will cause you to miss errors that become apparent only after a second reading at a later time. You need time to adjust your mindset; it may be a few minutes, or it may be longer. If you agree to edit something for someone else, make sure that you agree on a deadline that gives you enough time to do your best work.

What is a summary?
Communicate with your client. Practice being honest and constructive. Know the purpose of the work you're editing. Give yourself time to do the job right.