I was on Twitter the other day and saw a tweet from a fellow editor, linking to her blog. The entry was something like “10 Tools an Editor Can’t Live Without,” so I decided to check it out. I’m not going to provide the link here because I don’t want to embarrass the woman.
The blog looked great, visually. I must admit I was envious. But then I began reading. And in her very first “tool,” she advised all editors to have a copy of “Stunk and White’s.” I’m probably stating the obvious to all the other editor/writer folks who are reading this, but for the others: The book she was referring to is “The Elements of Style” by Strunk and White, one of the top reference books for editors.
I cringed but kept on reading. And as I did so I continued to cringe. Every couple of graphs or so there was a glaring error — the type that professional editors are taught to catch in their first editing, or writing/reporting, class. Incorrect possessives. Subject-verb agreement. Misspelled words.
Let’s face it. We come upon these types of mistakes and bad writing practically every time we read something online. But, shouldn’t an editor’s blog be held to a higher standard? Shouldn’t an editor hold herself to a higher standard? This particular editor was using her blog as her Web site, and was marketing her services on it, as well. But I think the thing that troubled me the most was that this particular blog entry was clearly giving advice to other editors, and yet it was littered with bad mistakes.
As an editorial consultant, one of the challenges I sometimes face is getting people to understand why it is important (monetarily and reputation-wise) for them to make a good impression with their written words. So to see another editor who doesn’t even seem to understand that is puzzling.
We all make mistakes, we all make typos. And yes, I’m not immune. (And if/when I make mistakes, I would love for any other eagle-eyed editors to point them out to me!) But there’s a clear difference between a simple typo and numerous grammatical mistakes that seem to indicate that you don’t even edit your own writing.
I’ve recently begun editing/rewriting blogs for some professionals who clearly understand how important making a good impression is. With the millions of blogs online today, why should I, or you, take advice from or hire someone who can’t put his thoughts across in a comprehensible and accurate manner?
Next time, I’ll offer some basic self-editing tips that you can incorporate in your blogs or on your Web sites.
The Final Word 