When using editor.Text = mytext  my message becomes corrupted with ' replaced by \' and any new lines replaced with \r\n

If you don't realise this and re-save, the problem gets worse and worse eg. \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'mytext\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\'

Have I configured the editor incorrectly?   Or is this a 'feature', and if so how do I turn if off?