One of the goals an editor strives to achieve when working on a manuscript is doing their job so well that no one notices they revised the text at all. The problem with successful editors, however, is that their names are often forgotten in lieu of the authors whose work they are editing.
One such editor is Maxwell Perkins. Perkins was an influential editor who worked with famous authors such as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Thomas Wolfe. Perkins began his career working at The New York Times before being hired in 1910 at Charles Scribner’s Sons, a prestigious New York publishing house.
Perkins’ first breakthrough as an editor at Scribner’s came from a manuscript titled The Romantic Egoist, written by a 22-year-old Princeton graduate named F. Scott Fitzgerald. The work had been submitted to numerous other editors who had bombarded it with negative comments, but Perkins saw potential. Perkins said, “If we aren’t going to publish a talent like this, it is a very serious thing… we might as well go out of business.” Working with Perkins, Fitzgerald rewrote his manuscript twice and renamed it This Side of Paradise before it was published in 1920. Perkins also had a big influence on Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby.
Perkins also worked with Ernest Hemingway, a writer who, like Fitzgerald, was extremely popular. Perkins helped Hemingway publish his first novel, The Sun Also Rises, in 1926. Perkins continued to work with both Fitzgerald and Hemingway after their first novels were published.
In 1928, Thomas Wolfe submitted his first novel O Lost to Scribner’s after already being rejected by numerous publishers. Once again, Perkins saw potential in a rejected manuscript and helped Wolfe; the two spent months editing and restructuring the novel until it was published in 1929 under the title Look Homeward, Angel.
Maxwell Perkins represents the important position an editor holds; without people like him, authors such as Fitzgerald and Hemingway never would have entered the world of writing.
(Photo courtesy of alchetron.com)
laurenevirgin 
Everyone knows the names F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Thomas Wolfe. But I definitely didn’t know who Maxwell Perkins was before I read this. It’s unfortunate that editors names go unknown, especially since they put so much work into what they do.
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This is an interesting read because, as sarahlatzo pointed out, we know of the authors but not Maxwell Perkins. This editor played an important role in these authors lives, particularly with Fitzgerald writing The Great Gatsby. It is a shame that he is not given the same attention as these authors as he played a crucial role in their careers.
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I understand where your coming from on this point, however the way I look at it is maybe from a different angle. Just like in modern movies, those who get the headlines and fame are not the behind the scenes producers and in some cases not even the directors but rather the stars of the movie. Each person plays a roll and is given credit in accordance with their skill set. Taking nothing away from the work of Mr. Perkins, but I am just saying his work was only made possible through the work of writers like Fitzgerald, and thus takes a bake stage roll in history to these names.
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I actually learned about Perkins’s life and work with famous authors in the Jazz Age English course I took last spring. You’re right, the job of an editor is grueling, meticulous, and often overlooked and under appreciated. Perkins’s life and family tree is also incredible to look at. He’s the descendant of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, the uncle of the Watergate scandal prosecutor, etc.
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You’re right; Perkins’ family tree is really impressive. I looked it up and was shocked at how many well-known people he was related to. He was the grandson of U.S. Secretary of State, U.S. Attorney General, and U.S. Senator William M. Evarts, as well as the two you mentioned above. Obviously he has some good genes in his family!
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I really enjoyed your approach to writing this blog. Your voice is professional but interested, which made it a joy to read. The manner in which your present Maxwell in relation to other big names like Fitzgerald and Hemingway allowed for him to be the main focus and not get lost as editors sometimes do. Great article, I really enjoyed reading this!
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