Don’t trust the text

1. Don’t trust the text Attitude adjustment: the key to being a good editor

2. What happens in most classes • Books and articles are presented as authorities • You are supposed to support your work with citations to published writing • The implicit message is that you can and should believe what you read

3. What happens in Editing • You have to distrust the text • You have to question everything you read • You have to overrule (sometimes) the writer • Your judgment has to be better than the writer’s judgment • You have total license to make changes AS LONG AS YOU ARE RIGHT

4. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math

5. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc.

6. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc. • Always find the first reference to a person in copy

7. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc. • Always find the first reference to a person in copy • Never assume anything

8. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc. • Always find the first reference to a person in copy • Never assume anything

9. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc. • Always find the first reference to a person in copy • Never assume anything • Never rationalize the copy

10. Some tips from Frank Fee • Always do the math • Always check a map when describing a site, route, etc. • Always find the first reference to a person in copy • Never assume anything • Never rationalize the copy • Always use all your tools

11. Editing methodology

12. Editing methodology • You should read the text multiple times, looking for different things

13. Editing methodology • You should read the text multiple times, looking for different things • Read first for content: facts, locations, names, inconsistencies

14. Editing methodology • You should read the text multiple times, looking for different things • Read first for content: facts, locations, names, inconsistencies • Read again for structure

15. Editing methodology • You should read the text multiple times, looking for different things • Read first for content: facts, locations, names, inconsistencies • Read again for structure • Read a third time for language: AP, grammar, word choice

16. Editing methodology • You should read the text multiple times, looking for different things • Read first for content: facts, locations, names, inconsistencies • Read again for structure • Read a third time for language: AP, grammar, word choice • Read a fourth time: bottom to top

17. The query There are times when an editor cannot resolve a factual discrepancy

18. The query There are times when an editor cannot resolve a factual discrepancy Write a query

19. The query There are times when an editor cannot resolve a factual discrepancy Write a query Query: Is first graf “Sixth Avenue” or third graf “Sixth Street” CQ?

20. The query There are times when an editor cannot resolve a factual discrepancy Write a query Query: Is first graf “Sixth Avenue” or third graf “Sixth Street” CQ? You can query facts only, not style, grammar, punctuation, word usage

21. Final thoughts

22. Final thoughts • Editing is really easy because you don’t have to know anything to be a good editor. You can always look it up: Internet, stylebook, encyclopedia, dictionary, almanac, map, etc.

23. Final thoughts • Editing is really easy because you don’t have to know anything to be a good editor. You can always look it up: Internet, stylebook, encyclopedia, dictionary, almanac, map, etc. • Editing is really hard because we don’t always know what we don’t know. It’s the things that we think are right that can really get us.