diff --git a/crates/clawhdf5/src/edit/mod.rs b/crates/clawhdf5/src/edit/mod.rs
index 66c59ad..455c77a 100644
--- a/crates/clawhdf5/src/edit/mod.rs
+++ b/crates/clawhdf5/src/edit/mod.rs
@@ -832,10 +832,23 @@ impl FileEditor {
         Ok(f)
     }
 
-    /// A reader over the held file itself for planning an edit (it shares
-    /// the file's lock, and is dropped before the edit writes).
+    /// A reader over the held file for planning an edit (dropped before the
+    /// edit writes). On Linux a new open file description through
+    /// `/proc/self/fd`: a mapping of a clone of the held descriptor would
+    /// share its `flock`, and a process forked meanwhile (any
+    /// `std::process::Command` on another thread) would briefly keep the
+    /// lock alive after the editor is dropped. Elsewhere a clone of the
+    /// held descriptor, which follows the file wherever its path goes.
     fn plan_reader(&self) -> Result<File, Error> {
         let dir = self.path.parent().map(Path::to_path_buf);
+        #[cfg(target_os = "linux")]
+        {
+            use std::os::fd::AsRawFd;
+            let proc = format!("/proc/self/fd/{}", self.file.as_raw_fd());
+            if let Ok(f) = std::fs::File::open(proc) {
+                return File::from_std_file(f, dir);
+            }
+        }
         File::from_std_file(self.file.try_clone()?, dir)
     }