(The Subversive Copy Editor)
(The Subversive Copy Editor)
Sometimes the glamour-meter in the life of a copyeditor takes a plunge. And given that the meter starts somewhere near zero, you know I’m talking serious drudgery here: The index whose subheadings aren’t alphabetized. The table that has to be…
In his On Language column for the New York Times, Ben Zimmer discusses the use of the first-person plural in writing, specifically the perceived motives of writers who use it. Zimmer acknowledges the use of the editorial “we” to create…
There was a job opening in our department this summer, and I got to look at the résumés that came in: 415 résumés + 415 cover letters = 1,140 pages of stuff to at least glance at. (We’re obliged to…
From the earliest age, we love and fear being lost. Peek-a-boo, blind man’s bluff, hide and seek—all delicious little moments of panic and relief. For adults, being lost loses appeal—at least for those of us without a sense of direction.…
The last time I talked about using color as a word-processing tool, I learned that I’m not the only one who finds it easier than other methods of achieving the same results—not to mention prettier. But I also heard from…
I had a bad week recently and found myself getting behind on my main editing project (“Trade book: Must Not Slide!”). Unscheduled chores kept landing in my in box. As the week progressed and I became more and more grumpy and panicky, I started making mistakes, which only added more work and stress.
A few years ago I visited the creepy but fascinating Voodoo Museum in New Orleans. I didn’t need to take the tour in order to believe in curses. I myself live under two that I know of. The first one…
It’s clear from the chatter online that many of you already have the sixteenth edition of The Chicago Manual of Style, and that you love it. But, you know, at some point you’re going to have to open it. Cracking…
Recently commenters in this space scolded me for writing the phrase “smarter than me,” saying, in one case, “There is no reason to dumb down the language for conversation. When we speak correctly, we reinforce the proper use of the…
The logic behind many punctuation rules is difficult to discern—for the excellent reason that there isn’t any.