On Editing an Editor: Shannon Scott and Sam Keir (Morgan Klein) in Conversation

Editing an author calls for a blend of sharp-eyed clarity, cheerleading and hand-holding. What if the author is also an editor? As part of a series of blog posts featuring conversations between editor/writers and their editors, The Editors’ Weekly asked two editors to reflect on their experience of working together.

Sam Keir (he/him) is a fiction editor and author coach for queer characters and authors. Using the pen name Morgan Klein, he writes crime and romance fiction that is dark, queer and overflowing with tea. Growing up under Section 28 in the UK shaped his views on the world and highlighted the importance of equality and equity for all. His upcoming novel, Moon Street Hate, embraces the idea that although the world can be a tough place sometimes, there is always a glimmer of queer light in the darkness.

Shannon Scott (she/they) was the developmental editor for Moon Street Hate. She is a fiction story coach and developmental editor with a hyperfixation on the power of language on the human experience. She specializes in queer romance, queer romantic suspense and detective thrillers featuring queer protagonists.

How did you come to work together? What appealed to you about each other’s style?

Sam Keir: I’d been spending time online with Shannon in the queer romance writing group I co-host with Dayna Reidenouer, and I knew of Shannon’s awesome work with the LGBTQ+ Editors Association. Reading about how Shannon crafted their own characters was what drew me to their editorial style. Shannon always talks about the complexities of building character, and that was an area I wanted to focus on for this manuscript, which has a diverse cast of six primary characters in a team of queer cops.

Shannon Scott: Sam reached out to me in late spring of last year, searching for a developmental editor for his queer crime fiction manuscript. It’s a genre I’d been interested in working in since I opened my doors in July 2021. I’ve studied my craft diligently since then, taking classes and reading high-level craft books. Behind queer romance, it’s my favourite genre to read, so I knew I’d have a unique insight into helping Sam analyze and eventually revise his story.

Both of you are authors and editors. How has that shaped your experience?

Keir: Being a fiction editor, author and educator means I’m constantly updating my knowledge and understanding of writing craft. The big difference between being the editor and being edited is applying all those skills in your own writing! I’ve taught English and creative writing for the past 12 years at the high school and university levels, so I’m aware of the power of revisions. 

All of this helps me understand where Shannon is coming from when they make suggestions, and I can use Shannon’s insights to further my own ideas. In turn, being edited makes me a more empathetic editor because I have first-hand experience of how it feels to receive editorial feedback.

Scott: I completed my first developmental editing project in April 2023. By July, I had the arrogant thought that, with my (rudimentary) knowledge of the craft and a single project under my editorial belt, I could easily write my own book. And then I got alpha reader feedback on that manuscript. Let me tell you: that was the most humbling experience of my entire two-decade-plus fiction writing journey. I shelved the manuscript permanently.

Through the queer romance writing group that Sam and Dayna host, I eventually started drafting what would become my second attempt at a queer romance story. The feedback I’ve gotten from the group  — and the courses and readings I’ve done — has also helped me maintain that humility. There’s always room for improvement.

Moon Street Hate is the first book in the Queer Cops series. How does the editorial process differ for a series-based book?

Keir: As an author of a series, there are more moving parts to consider than with a stand-alone. Consideration needs to be given to multiple character arcs, clues and antagonistic forces within this book, as well as the future two books.

My first stand-alone novel, Tea, No Sugar (coming out on October 7, 2025), had me working with another great developmental editor (Andrew Hodges). Being edited gives me a double win because I get top-notch feedback on my manuscripts, but I also get to learn up close from experts and gain insights into their working processes and editorial judgements.

Scott: The first book in a series is always the toughest to write. You’re building out the base of characters, the story world, and the plot arcs that will carry readers through the individual book and series as a whole. Sometimes what you thought would be a stand-alone turns into a series, while sometimes what you think has the potential to be a series reveals itself to only be solid enough for a stand-alone. It’s a unique balance only achieved by writing multiple manuscripts.

What will you take away from this collaboration?

Keir: Editing really is about education (for both editor and author!). I knew Shannon was the right choice, but I’m blown away by how they truly went above and beyond in their feedback. Shannon really took the time to understand what I was trying to accomplish, respected my working methods and provided the necessary support at every stage of the process. They helped shape complex cause-and-effect threads that run throughout the manuscript’s structure and made it easy to put together a revision plan. 

Shannon really values craft and reading (you should check out their book wish lists!), and I feel better prepared and ready for future edits due to the wealth of resources Shannon provided to explain and justify all the edits made. For me, that’s the sign of a great editor — not only do they set the author up for this current edit, but for all future writing.

Scott: I (sometimes seriously) joke that, with each developmental editing project I complete, I’ve fooled yet another author into thinking I know what I’m talking about. Imposter syndrome is strong in this one. At the same time, it’s in applying the theoretical to the practical that I recognize maybe I do know what I’m doing. My favourite part of this level of editing is spotting craft “in the wild” — realizing that, “hey, this is what that book was talking about.” It’s a process that’s different for every editor, no matter what level they work at. 

There’s always going to be that nugget (or mountain) of doubt as you work through the process. At the end of the day, though, I find that being both editor and author is a strength, because I understand the creative process from both sides through completing my first manuscript and editing for clients like Sam.

More importantly, Sam helped me realize that detective thrillers are as much my jam to work with as queer romance stories.

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