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My Editor is Just Wrong!
My last semester of school, I was published in three different student journals. I was excited not only for the publication, but also for seeing the publication process from the other side. For several years before that, I edited for one of the journals, so I knew what it was like to be them. I knew how hard it is to revise for your peers. We once had an author who rejected almost every suggestion we made, even basic grammar. We did our best to accommodate her, but it wasn't the best experience for us or her. I was intent on not being that author during my publication.
I failed.
More than once during the process, I had to respond to the editor's suggestions with, "Well actually, CMOS 3.18 says this, don't you want me to follow that?" It was a bit horrifying for me, actually. I still wonder, should I have just made their revisions, even though they were wrong, just so I wasn't being too difficult? These were grammatical issues, so of course the answer is no. But it's a question you may face at some point, even with the best editor:
What do you do if your editor is just wrong??
No matter how great an editor I am (and by the way I'm fantastic) even I can be blind to errors in my own writing. It's the blindness of true love, and it's inescapable. But hey, that's the whole point of editors in the first place, right? It's why I have a job. Still, there must be trust between editor and writer. Before writers can make their editor's changes, they need to know the editor is well, right.
Hopefully, you'll find an editor who always follows the style manuals and style sheets. Maybe your editor will never make any suggestion you don't agree with. Maybe your writing is so perfect, the editor will just say, "Wow, change nothing." Maybe we'll discover that potato chips are actually low-fat.
Ok, no. Even if it were possible for any of that to be true (I'm still crossing my fingers about the chips), would you really want to find an editor who always agrees with everything you say? Wouldn't that sort of negate the purpose of the editor in the first place?
To be clear, I do believe that the very best editor for you sees your manuscript the way you see it, loves it as you do. But hopefully, your editor's love isn't blind. hopefully they also have some knowledge that you don't have. Hopefully, they know something about the market, audience, comparable works, not to mention grammar and style. Editors aren't there to stroke your ego, they are there to strengthen and tighten your writing.
And I don't think I'm alone in saying that just about every suggestion and revision hurts at first. Even the suggestions that you agree with make you feel sheepish that you didn't see them yourself. The revision grief cycle usually starts with denial (They don't know what they are talking about), and then depression (I just can't do it! I'm a terrible writer). If you can get past those first stages, you can usually tell whether you should take their suggestion or not, and how best to do it. Don't let the initial reaction be your last.
In fact, that is the best advice I can give to any writer who's sure the editor is wrong. Take a step back; give it a few days.
Of course, if you've taken some time (and looked some things up if need be) and are still convinced your editor is wrong, you should absolutely bring up your concerns. If you can't get your editor to bend, you may need to shop for a new editor. If you are publishing with a big house and didn't choose your editor, well, then it will probably be you that bends. But realize that in all likelihood, the revisions are not an attack on you; the editor isn't trying to chop up everything you love till it is unrecognizable. The process can be rocky, but the relationship between editor and author has to include communication and trust, just like any other relationship.
By the way, as an editor, I'm never wrong. Ever. Oh, and did I mention I'm fantastic?
Ha.