On Copy-editing: - CrimeSpace2024-03-29T11:28:52Zhttps://crimespace.ning.com/forum/topics/on-copyediting?commentId=537324%3AComment%3A240531&feed=yes&xn_auth=no:) My first encounter with a…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-25:537324:Comment:2435332010-07-25T18:44:38.403ZI. J. Parkerhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
:) My first encounter with a copy editor involved a deadline, some lousy colored pencils where the lead kept breaking (they never let you use red, because they have dibs on that), and in sheer despair, I ran out and had a stamp made: STET.
:) My first encounter with a copy editor involved a deadline, some lousy colored pencils where the lead kept breaking (they never let you use red, because they have dibs on that), and in sheer despair, I ran out and had a stamp made: STET. You need an apostrophe becaus…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-25:537324:Comment:2435322010-07-25T18:42:09.659ZI. J. Parkerhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
You need an apostrophe because you've left out something. I'm sorry, but people don't just get to write the way they individually think it should be written.<br />
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That was true once upon a time, which is why Shakespeare never knew how to spell his name.
You need an apostrophe because you've left out something. I'm sorry, but people don't just get to write the way they individually think it should be written.<br />
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That was true once upon a time, which is why Shakespeare never knew how to spell his name. Which writer was it who scraw…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-25:537324:Comment:2435052010-07-25T15:36:22.837ZLexi Revellianhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/LexiRevellian
Which writer was it who scrawled at the top of the copy editor's version of his typescript, <i>Stet the whole damn thing</i>?
Which writer was it who scrawled at the top of the copy editor's version of his typescript, <i>Stet the whole damn thing</i>? It isnt that Jessica it is yo…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-25:537324:Comment:2434702010-07-25T04:35:52.382ZKemosabehttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/lintonlewis
It isnt that Jessica it is you are not writing for yourself and when you write to others there has been accepted ways to make the writer's prose not stumble, not interrupt the reader's enjoyment of the story by making him or her stop and notice something they might think improper, like the isnt at the top where I stubbornly refuse to put in an apostrophe where I dont think one is needed. Cormic McCarthy writes this way and gets away with it while us lesser writers do not.
It isnt that Jessica it is you are not writing for yourself and when you write to others there has been accepted ways to make the writer's prose not stumble, not interrupt the reader's enjoyment of the story by making him or her stop and notice something they might think improper, like the isnt at the top where I stubbornly refuse to put in an apostrophe where I dont think one is needed. Cormic McCarthy writes this way and gets away with it while us lesser writers do not. Totally agree about the edito…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434412010-07-24T21:27:02.695ZI. J. Parkerhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
Totally agree about the editors. Outside the publishing world it's possible to do both in small instalments, but copy-editing a ms. is a major picky sort of job and tends to require all your attention so that the big (holistic) aspects of the storytelling (organization, focus, misplaced scenes, etc) fade into the background.
Totally agree about the editors. Outside the publishing world it's possible to do both in small instalments, but copy-editing a ms. is a major picky sort of job and tends to require all your attention so that the big (holistic) aspects of the storytelling (organization, focus, misplaced scenes, etc) fade into the background. Educators' buzz word a few ye…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434402010-07-24T21:22:04.713ZI. J. Parkerhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
Educators' buzz word a few years ago. You basically don't pay attention to details in "holistic" methods, but rather consider the thing as a whole. We used to do holistic grading of placement essays. One of the few places where this actually works. You don't have time to look closely. You just get an overall impression of the thing. (Of course, subject-verb agreement errors ring a warning bell and tend to overshadow other aspects -- not that there are other aspects when the basics aren't there).
Educators' buzz word a few years ago. You basically don't pay attention to details in "holistic" methods, but rather consider the thing as a whole. We used to do holistic grading of placement essays. One of the few places where this actually works. You don't have time to look closely. You just get an overall impression of the thing. (Of course, subject-verb agreement errors ring a warning bell and tend to overshadow other aspects -- not that there are other aspects when the basics aren't there). I like website because I'm to…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434392010-07-24T21:17:33.004ZI. J. Parkerhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/Ingpark
I like website because I'm too lazy to put in the break. :)<br />
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My latest surprise came when I saw that the new publisher's style required me to write "on to" as two words, regardless of the syntax or sentence logic.
I like website because I'm too lazy to put in the break. :)<br />
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My latest surprise came when I saw that the new publisher's style required me to write "on to" as two words, regardless of the syntax or sentence logic. Again, a manuscript should ha…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434342010-07-24T21:09:29.106ZJim Thomsenhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JamesRobertThomsenJr
Again, a manuscript should have a story editor and a copy editor. The story editor should deal with the "changing the prose" issues WITH the writer. The copy editor should do detailed line-editing ONLY after the story editing is complete. The writer should then get one more pass at the MS, and then a proofreader should step in. The writer can then chase anything he or disagrees with in the proofing stage come galley time.<br />
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A story editor and a copy editor, in my opinion, should never be the…
Again, a manuscript should have a story editor and a copy editor. The story editor should deal with the "changing the prose" issues WITH the writer. The copy editor should do detailed line-editing ONLY after the story editing is complete. The writer should then get one more pass at the MS, and then a proofreader should step in. The writer can then chase anything he or disagrees with in the proofing stage come galley time.<br />
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A story editor and a copy editor, in my opinion, should never be the same person. It calls on separate skills and separate sides of the brain.<br />
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In newspapers, it's understood that with few exceptions, photographers can't write and writers' can't take photographs. There are exceptions to this rule, but the scarcity exceptions tend to prove the rule. In fact, the best newspaper writers I know take the crappiest photographs when called upon to do so, and the best best shooters I've worked with tend to write the most inarticulate cutlines imaginable. Almost nobody has a professional-level balance of both skills. What on earth is "holistic En…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434332010-07-24T21:03:42.629ZJim Thomsenhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JamesRobertThomsenJr
What on earth is "holistic English"?
What on earth is "holistic English"? When in doubt, go conversatio…tag:crimespace.ning.com,2010-07-24:537324:Comment:2434322010-07-24T21:01:41.857ZJim Thomsenhttps://crimespace.ning.com/profile/JamesRobertThomsenJr
When in doubt, go conversational.
When in doubt, go conversational.