On editing

Editing is more than just pointing out and correcting glaring grammatical errors or making sure subjects and verbs agree or that infinitives aren't split. What most fail to realize is that editing involves ensuring sentences are constructed in a way that does not slow the reader down or impede on the joy of reading.

Take a sentence. It may be grammatically sound but an ardently placed comma (often with good intentions from the writer) could ruin the flow of an otherwise heartfelt statement. It takes a truly generous writer and a talented editor to give the reader the gift of free reign through flow, coherence and construction. Some sentences are decision-makers and take the fun out of reading. As a reader, you would want to decide for yourself as to how you would like to take to what you're reading. It's never a good idea to relegate your readers to the role of passive observers.

I wouldn't like that. Would you?


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Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

And because I understand that writers get proprietary about their work (I do). 

Pop Quiz

TRUE    2. Things they say suddenly speak to you, i.e.,

“I love you’ means that I accept you for the person that you are, and that I do not wish to change you into someone else. It means that I will love you and stand by you even through the worst of times. It means loving you even when you’re in a bad mood, or too tired to do the things I want to do. It means loving you when you’re down, not just when you’re fun to be with. ‘I love you’ means that I know your deepest secrets and do not judge you for them, asking in return that you do not judge me for mine. It means that I care enough to fight for what we have and that I love you enough not to let go. It means thinking of you, dreaming of you, wanting and needing you constantly, and hoping you feel the same way for me” 

~ Jonathan Safran Foer 

It's not every day one scuttles around objectively in one's heart. Going at length attempting to explain how it is to live a curious four-letter word, and failing miserably. Then he goes to show you how it's done.

Which makes me think --

Ask: Do you really need to afflict the same cruelty you so suffered?

Decide: All the cards have been dealt. Except for one, its edges dull and worn from being kept in your back pocket for a long time.

Consider: How many things -- wondrous and amazing -- have you let go for something real and easy? It is not kindness that call for the need of walls or extended pauses.

Understand: You are not separate from the world.

Ruminate: Do you even remember the name you called out like a song in the beginning? How far from the chapter has she gone?