Ex-words for Editors and Proofreaders
Editorial types Readers, editors and authors may, like Gaul, be divided into three camps. (Maybe 103, but these three suit my purposes.) Those who hate any change in language, meaning [...]
Editors and the History of English
The history of English – beginnings English is spoken by well over a billion people. It is the most successful language in the world. But why? How did it start? [...]
The Bestseller Code (Part 2)
Bestseller Secrets? So, can there really be a code which will ensure you write a bestseller? We all know, especially if we are experienced book editors, that the answer is [...]
PONDERING ON EDITORS
Editors’s Obsessions As a copy-editor and proofreader, the first judgement I make about a new acquaintance is whether or not they use the apostrophe correctly. This marks me out as [...]
EDITORS AND AGENTS
Subtext is All Copy-editors and proofreaders are well-used to the sophistry of language, its nuances and deceptive guises. Sometimes it may be the copy-editor's job to clarify and explain, but [...]
DILETTANTE
Diletante? Dillettante? Dilletante? Dilettante? Yes! Well, having settled the spelling, what does it mean? It comes from dilettare which means to delight. So you might imagine it's a positive word. But no. Or certainly not according [...]
EDITORS’ RULES
And Proofreaders' Rules Editors, like me, hate rules. We want authors to be free to use language creatively; we want English to live a little, get out more, be vibrant. [...]
HASHTAG – NEW WORDS FOR OLD
Hashtag Learn to Copy-edit Hashtag Learn to Proofread We all know what a hashtag looks like, but no one could have guessed that the word hashtag would be Oxford University [...]
THE EDITING DIARIES (PART 2)
Bestselling author Lavinia Collins talks about the process of editing her second trilogy, published with Not So Noble Books, out now! Book I, Part II: Tell Me What I Know So, [...]
OXYMORON
My reason for choosing this word for those learning to proofread and copy-edit is purely selfish. I like it; it has always amused me; and I use the form often [...]