Anyone can hang out a shingle as a fiction editor. Few professional certifications or training programs exist for editors, and standards vary widely. That leaves the responsibility for sorting out the pretenders on you, but that shouldn’t leave you feeling as though you were dangling from a plank over a sea of ravenous sea monsters.
When you’re searching for an editor, look for people trained and experienced in editing, coaching, and teaching, not writers of published novels. Editing, coaching, and teaching require different skillsets than writing a book. Some excellent editors may not have directly related training or backgrounds—an English degree, for example—so look for continuing education certificates and experience to help you sniff out baseline qualifications.
Once you’ve pinpointed a qualified, pro, it’s time to look at rates. One of the surest signs that you’re working with a professional editor is their professionalism. Editing is their career, and they offer their services at professional rates, not minimum wage. That makes sense from an editor’s perspective, but what does that mean for the authors trying to afford these services?
Join me in going behind the curtain of editing costs as we practice The Writes of Fiction.
Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog 
I’ve only been able to afford an editor once, but she was wonderful and worth every cent. The thing is though, the reason I chose /her/ was because I loved her writing. It resonated as ‘good writing’ in my mind, so I wanted some of that good writing skill looking at my work. And I wasn’t wrong. Or perhaps I was very, very lucky because she was also a terrific communicator. And not at all egotistical.
I suspect that finding an editor who is a good fit to your own writing style/approach is key to a happy relationship.
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