Re: Editing, Smediting

[TIMMERMAN <timmerma -at- IPDLINK -dot- IPD -dot- ANL -dot- GOV>]

Lisa writes,

I am having an awful experience coming face to face with the fact that
I am editing disabled.  Design, Format, Conception - I'm your writer!
Have me read what I wrote for missed words, inconsistencies, and the
grammatical errors - No way.

* * * * * * * * * * * * Response Separator * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I'm very lucky in that most of the people in our department are
editors.  So, I write and write and write, and they edit and edit and
edit (did I miss any commas?).  Of course I do edit my own stuff, but
I have to let it sit for several weeks while I work on something
completely different before I start editing.  My boss (an editor)
tells me to edit as I write (I do), but that method of editing
produces different results than editing after the writing is finished
and waiting for a while.  My observation is that writing and editing
require different skill sets, and that writing is a left-brain
activity, and editing is a right-brain activity (or is it the other
way around?).  So, if you don't have another person to edit your work,
give it a break before you do the edit.  You'll be surprised how
helpful that break can be.  You can also take a seminar in basic
editing, which may help.

Don Timmerman, dtimmerman -at- anl -dot- gov
Sr. Technical Writer
Argonne National Laboratory

 TECHWR-L (Technical Communication) List Information: To send a message
to 2500+ readers, e-mail to TECHWR-L -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU -dot-  Send commands
   to LISTSERV -at- LISTSERV -dot- OKSTATE -dot- EDU (e.g. HELP or SIGNOFF TECHWR-L).
  Search the archives at http://www.documentation.com/  or search and
browse the archives at http://listserv.okstate.edu/archives/techwr-l.html