I've worked with Lightspeed magazine and anthology editor John Joseph Adams more than any other editor. It's been a productive and successful partnership. Stories of mine that John has edited have been nominated for multiple awards and been reprinted across the globe.

However, our relationship has also been defined by hard work and collaboration. I really don't mean to drive him crazy when I send him stories, but it appears that an active back-and-forth round of edits between us has become par for the course. Nearly every story John has published has required significant changes. None were as intense as the edits you are about to read involving my story, "Requiem in the Key of Prose," but I have yet to send John a story which he's just done light edits and called it a day. Maybe someday.

The thing is: This is healthy. This is part of the process. As a writer, I do my best to look at my work objectively and address mistakes and oversights as best I can, but I can never be as objective as an editor. The difficult part for the writer is to reconcile the opinion of the editor with your own goals and perceptions. You'll see a lot of that in the correspondence below: John asking for a change, and me expressing concern over how it affects the emotional resonance of a scene or the introduction of setting or other things. It is hard to really sit back and consider re-doing something that at first glance achieves what you want it to achieve, but like any revision you have to take that closer look. Even if you don't change a word, the additional attention makes the work better, and that's the most important goal.

For new writers, I hope that the exchange that follows is enlightening. The important thing to realize is that you and the editor have the exact same goal: Creating the best story possible. While some may find it uncomfortable, the process of discussing what you're trying to achieve and how to adjust the story to better achieve it doesn't have to be confrontational. It's about discussing cause and effect, narrative goals, and authorial intent. As I mention in one exchange you'll read in a bit, there a lot of ways to handle changes or recommendations. The editor will give you guidance, but which direction you go is ultimately up to you.

Let's start with the actual story as it was published. It is short—only 2,100 words or so—but its structure is complicated. So read the story and then read how it came to be, as a collaboration between editor and author.