7/29/2013

Editing and Proofing

Knowing that journalist and editors read this blog and knowing how some editors are – well, you know… pompous assholes – I want to point out you are reading a blog of my thoughts and ideas, so resist the urge to edit me for journalistic excellence.  However, if I do something stupid like type a vulgar word instead of the word “truck,” let me know so I can fix it.
That makes me think of a funny story!
Edit, edit and re-edit
The worse typo or bad edit that I ever did and was printed was one of those things where you hit the wrong suggestion during spell check. I misspelled the word “balloon” and instead….
It was an article and front cover photo about child advocacy week. In honor of child advocacy week politicians and supporters gathered at courthouses across Texas and “…released ten thousand baboons...”
However, I had an editor at a daily paper that made a worse mistake with something he wrote. It was public cleanup week for people to put all their junk by the curb that usually doesn’t get picked up. He called it “pubic cleanup week” and urged readers to check with their elderly neighbors to see if they needed help.
How I edit: Always have someone proof your stuff after you believe you are finished proofing it. I edit my writing (not this blog) several times on the computer, then print off a hard copy to proof. I find that reading it off a real page is different than reading it on a screen and I pick up things I might otherwise miss. I make notes on the paper and then I re-edit it on the computer, print another hard copy and hand that to a co-worker to proof. A second set of eyes is important and may catch a mistake you miss because you can just go brain numb proofing your work over and over,  plus another set of proofing eyes may find you are not clear in an area or you confuse the reader with the way the information is presented. After that I do a final edit on the computer using that co-worker's editing notes.

Don't just edit for spelling, punctuation, etc. Edit for flow and content. Make sure your delivery fits the story. Don't be cheesy if the story is serious and don't be too serious if the story is fun. 

Do the same when you are proofing other writer's work. If you proof another reporter's story and feel like you want to know more, tell the reporter. Help each other. "Maybe you can call one of the store owners on that road and get their feelings about the road expansion. That would give the story a little color and maybe a different perspective."

If you enjoy this blog, follow it and share it with others. Oh, and look out for baboons - there are a lot running around these days, especually at courthouses.

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