Maybe the editor was having a contest with another editor to see how harshly they could edit their authors. "I've got this sucker on the hook and I edited 70% of one of his stories!" Carver's editor crowed.

Speaking of editing, I'm working on a story set in late-Victorian England about a young man down on his luck who is modeling for an old school friend turned artist. Naturally the modeling session turns into... something more. Would you be interested in beta-reading it?