We need to talk about sense and sensitivity | Lionel Shriver
Some publishers now employ ‘sensitivity readers’ to check books for potential offence – a step that can only have a chilling effect on creativity
Afiction editor doesn’t control a manuscript’s content, but tries to ensure that the author’s intentions are fully realised. Authors are free to ignore their editors’ advice. I often avail myself of this veto power – sometimes out of a pigheadedness for which I’ll pay the price. But after multiple instances of positive reviews quoting passages that my editor wanted to cut, I figure I’m batting no worse than one for one.
As a woman, I’d be uneasy about being given the power to determine what is insulting to women in general
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