Characters are wilful creatures. Sometimes they are the gorgeously complex, layered humans that we set off creating. Other times, when the story stacks up against them, when they’ve had enough, they throw a tantrum. They refuse to stay within the confines of the carefully constructed character-list, insisting on asserting themselves even if it means doing brash things they will most certainly regret later.

“But that’s not like you,” the author mumbles, weakly.

“And who exactly do you think you are?” the fiercely independent woman snaps back and demands that her story be told her way. The eager pen complies.

This is where a good editor comes in. They remind the author who they are. They also remind the character that, mercifully, this is a manuscript draft, not real life, which means we all get a second chance. That we hear her frustration, the tension at the climax is indeed too much, but if she is done with her meltdown, now would be a good time to pull herself together and show the world some of her legendary resilience on the page in the next version of the draft.

This, and many other similar revision stories later, I am pleased to share that with the help of the wonderful, insightful and patient editors, Flo, Aliya and Adeola, we have now completed the structural edits for my manuscript and it is now on its way for copy editing and cover design.

The big question always lurking over editing is, did we just make it better or worse? How do we know? What is ‘good’ anyway? The answer lies in trying. Again and again and again. Writing out each possibility that lives in your head and reading it to see if it feels true. If not, there’s always the next version.   

Having spent years alone with the manuscript, when I first received the stack of notes of suggested changes, I went through denial, anger, bargaining and probably even a mini depression. But the more I read the suggestions, the more I realised that they were not trying to take the manuscript away from my original vision of it, on the contrary, they were taking it closer! Once I was convinced that we were indeed on the same side, working through the edits was a joy.

Of course, there were differences in opinion and many discussions, but each one made the manuscript stronger and sharper.

Editing can seem daunting, until you understand why the edits are important, why they are an absolute must, after which you won’t rest until you’ve done them.

One of the stickiest decisions was the title of the book. The story unfolds from multiple POVs, each POV shedding some light but also adding its own layer of nuance, its own little story. The Things We See felt like the perfect title, I could see at least three if not more layers of meaning in the way it connected with the book.

The Unbound team, however, has a wider perspective. The things they see include, catchiness, memorability, intrigue, search engine optimisation and genre-signalling and with their combined wisdom, suggested The Lights of Shantinagar. After evaluating several options, I have to admit, the new title has grown on me. I see what they see, and I hope you will see it too, that is, I hope the new title, The Lights of Shantinagar will make you want to see what’s inside the book!