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[RC] A little editing - Bruce Weary DCI agree with Kat that a little editing in the interest of accuracy is good for us all, from time to time. Not wanting to be one accused of condescension, here goes:So...which of us has more respect for the author of this article.(There should be a question mark here.) Me? (this should be a comma) Who (should be a lower case "w") thinks no matter what her age that the article should be evaluated on its merits of the information it contains and how it is presented, or somebody who thinks that it shouldn't be held to any standards because, after all, the author is too young and inexperienced to know any better? (Apparently, youth is not the determining factor in the need for editing.) _I_ am unwilling to dismiss the less that perfect language in her writing as irrelevant because I am willing to treat her as an adult,(Me, too.) and I think to do otherwise is condescending. (Me, too. :>) And,(It is considered tattered grammar to begin so many sentences with "and.") FWIW...when _I_ was nineteen, my first summer job in college was as a professional technical writer. And if/when I had written something that didn't come across successfully for my intended audience, then my boss (my editor) would have/did help (would have help...?) me fix it so it did....and I am a better writer for it.(Really?) I wouldn't be if he hadn't bothered but instead just patted me on the head and said "jolly good effort for a teen-ager." He had more respect for me than that. Of course, since he was the editor, it was his job to do more than just pat me on the head... (Well, if you like that kinda thing...) I don't know how many of you read books (None of us do, Kat. What's that like?) or the "acknowledgements" section in them, but almost invariably authors give praise and cudos ("CUDOS" is an acronym designating a method of scientific inquiry. I think you mean "kudos" here.) to their great editors, "without whom it could never have been done." (No need to thank me. Felt I owed it to you.) Publishing without an editor (which is what the Internet is) or publishing without a competent editor (which is what Lisa is suggesting with this statement: "This was an article for EN, (which is a great magazine but it isn't TIME magazine ...)") is fraught with danger (Very dangerous, indeed.) because you are, in essence, asking your audience to be your editor. However, imagine this,(Better a colon here, I think, and with "you" capitalized) you are another junior rider who would is keen to get your horse ready for Tevis or some other big ride, and you read an article in the Endurance News under "junior news" that says you must ride your horse every other day, you have to get in 90 miles in the week exactly 8 weeks before the ride, that you have to do a 50 miler exactly 6 weeks before the ride...and your response is... (This runs on a bit, but it's understandable.) "My god, I could never do that. I will never be able to do Tevis or any other big ride." (Lots of people think that, anyway.) And (There's that "and," again.) you are discouraged to the extent that you give up your hopes entirely. Or (Starting with "or" is a little weak, too.) ...you are the inexperienced parent of said junior rider, and YOU read in the Endurance News that this is what your kid is going to have to do in order to ever do a big ride. You don't know any better and it IS published in the official publication of the American Endurance Ride Conference... SOMEBODY needs to tell all the other juniors and inexperienced riders in the audience of the Endurance News that this ain't necessarily so. (And who better than you?) And personally, I am of the opinion that the author of the article, no matter what her age is grown up enough to be able to accept that she might have been able to convey her point more successfully if she hadn't used language that is so dogmatic. (What's good for the goose...) Pardon me for treating her as an adult. (Please excuse me for the same crime here, too. :>) kat Orange County, Calif. All in all, this is a good start. You still have time for a few re-writes before the semester final, and you can probably bring your grade up by then. Good luck. Sincerely, Your Editor, Dr. Q Now, let me at that 19 year old. Who does she think she is, anyway? =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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