How to Distinguish A Conscientious Editorfrom An Insensitive Butcher
We live in a time when the simple act of writing makes a person a writer. Many writers write simply write to please themselves. They often wonder what’s wrong with readers who do not recognize the merits in their writing. They might also get offended by the suggestion that their writing needs an editor. Even so,Guest Posting the competence of a writer lies in the perception of the reader.
agent for improved communication
If you make changes to another’s writing, then that makes you an editor. A conscientious editor acts as an intermediary between writer and reader. The value of an editor, therefore, comes from improving the reader’s experience of the writer’s work. Yet, many who play the role of an editor do not see it this way. This leads to over-cautious writers and zealous editors.
when an editor is most needed
The work of an editor is ai video editor particularly important on multi-author documents. Even when they are long-time colleagues, co-authors often differ in their practices regarding grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, style, and level of detail. Sometimes, even single-author documents present these inconsistencies, as when the writer writes in varying moods or other conditions over time. These documents typically require editorial revision so that the reader experience may be uniformly positive.
critical distinction
Unfortunately, many editors edit simply to please themselves. They often wonder why writers do not recognize the changes that they make as improvements. Herein lies the difference between a professional wordsmith intentionally acting as a conscientious editor and a less competent editor unintentionally acting like an insensitive butcher.
of drunken sailors
To some, editing provides an opportunity turn somebody else’s writing into their own. For example, some editors replace expressions that do not align with their preferences with expressions that they do prefer. If the editor is aggressive and the writer permissive, then the editor could erase much of the writer’s own communication while transplanting his or her own perceptions and biases. Editors who do this go through the writer’s work with the grace of a drunken sailor. Serving the reader is at best an afterthought. The document might emerge more accessible and understandable to the editor, but any gains in serving the intended readers arise accidentally.
of well-intentioned bumblers
Rarely do editors approach the role with malice. Many simply have too little awareness of their actual effect on the documents they edit. “Seems better to me” is their standard of excellence as they remain unaware of how their own subjectivity determines their judgment of a document’s merits.