Slightly off-topic but, I hope, not unwelcome

Subject: Slightly off-topic but, I hope, not unwelcome
From: "Beth Brooks" <beth -dot- brooks -at- cox -dot- net>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Wed, 9 Apr 2003 11:08:38 -0500


Hello!

If you are an editor or have had the fortune (mis- or good) to work with
one, what have you determined to be the qualities of a good editor? A
poor one? Also, are there any editing related "quirks" that you may have
noticed?

For instance, as an editor, I find it difficult to read my local
newspaper without the judicious use of painkillers and must take the
precaution of locking up all my pens beforehand. I find the news tickers
along the bottom of the screen on many news programs to be
extraordinarily distracting, as they almost always contain at least one
typo or error in phrasing that distorts the message and results in
either hilarity or stomach cramps. There are others, but I fear
revealing too much of my character will put me at risk of being drummed
out of the tech writing community as "just too weird."


While I am seriously collecting information about the qualities that
make a good editor, please be aware that I also hope to use the more
humorous responses to this post as fodder for tongue-in-cheek articles
on the craft of writing and editing. Preparing such pieces is how I am
maintaining my sanity while networking and referral building for my new
business. For an example, please see:
http://www.author-network.com/wordplay.html. Also, please be on the
lookout for "All I Need to Know About Building A Business I Learned From
A Duck," a commentary on the transition from working for THEM to working
for ME.

(Perhaps now I risk being drummed out for lacking the appropriate
seriousness of mind, but having been mostly out of work since November
2001 has altered my perspective somewhat. Nothing a job writing an API
manual couldn't swiftly reverse.)

If you feel it is more appropriate, feel free to write me off list.

Thanks!

Beth

Paraphrase, Inc.
Writing and Editing Services
Words That WORK For You!



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