Month: January 2018

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Space to Think

Through some unusual circumstances, on Wednesday I found myself working for about five hours in the beautiful Rose Main Reading Room in the Andrew Schwarzman New York Public Library. Something about being in a place dedicated to reading–whether for research or pleasure or both–made me appreciate all over again what an amazing job I have.

Being surrounded by wooden shelves and brass fixtures and painted ceilings also reminded me of the impact my environment has on my mindset. My desk at home has become a junk repository more than a space to be productive, and I didn’t realize how much the clutter stymied my thoughts until I sat in this big, open, gorgeous space. I had room to think, to relax, and to meditate–space to do my best editing. It was wonderful.

Coming home from a brief day in NYC after two overnight bus rides to a messy house and no food and a LOT of work was hard. The first thing I did was take a five-hour nap. The second thing I did was straighten up. And then I could work.

Sometimes I require being pushed to an extreme before I concede a habit needs to change. In this case, the Rose room reminded me how much better life is when I work with space to think. I can’t guarantee my apartment will always be spotless, but I can acknowledge that my desk’s cleanliness is a priority.

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How to Text an Editor

Texting an editor can be stressful, am I right? I ate dinner at a friend’s house the other night. The first thing he asked me was “So, are you bothered when people text or email you with obvious grammatical errors?”

This question, more or less word for word, has been asked me by almost everyone I know (at least, that’s what it feels like) including my husband. (Another popular variation is to be called a grammar Nazi, which I will always refute with all my power.) I cringe when I hear it because I know people are really thinking “Are you judging the grammar of my texts and emails?” For them, contacting me is stressful.

I can understand the stress. It’s what I feel when I ask Brian (my husband with the engineering PhD) a math question–am I phrasing it right so I don’t sound like a total idiot? Or when I asked my dad (an emergency room doctor) what kind of doctor I needed to go to check out a cyst in my wrist–was it too obvious a question that anyone with half a brain would know?

Clearly some of my own insecurities are coming through by voicing those thoughts, but I think people texting or emailing me feel similarly–is that the right “your” and if not, will Olivia think I’m stupid?

Let me clear the water: it all depends on context. If you’re texting me about meeting up for dinner, I’m not going to care that you said “its at the corner of 5th and Bradford” instead of “it’s.” I likely won’t even notice. Same goes using “than” instead of “then” or spelling a word wrong or really anything else (unless the message is rendered unclear, in which case I will ask for clarification).

Unless I’m working and I’m getting paid to notice errors, or you’re a professional contacting me for a professional reason, I could care less about the grammaticality of what you text or email me. I care far more that you took the time to contact me than whether or not you used a comma right.

And my favorite grammar Nazi memes to finish us off because, the internet.

Image result for grammar nazi meme

Image result for grammar nazi meme

Image result for grammar nazi meme

Image result for grammar nazi meme

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2018 Reasons Why I Love Editing

“The first thing I learned in New York was to respect old women’s flinty elbows.”

I’m not really going to share 2018 reasons I love editing, but I will share my number one reason: the authors.

I called Shelly Frome, author of cozy mysteries and emeritus drama professor, last Friday to talk about his latest book that I have the privilege of working with him to edit. We had corresponded a few times via email, and the gist I got from was that Shelly was done with editors. He had experienced a painful developmental editing process and was not looking forward to copy edits with me. He suggested we talk over the phone.

My initial reaction to phone conversations is, unfortunately, fear and trembling. I talk fast, especially when I’m nervous, and I don’t understand people over the phone as well as I do face to face, when I can see their body language. But I really wanted Shelly to know I was on his team, so I agreed to the call.

Thus ensued the most entertaining phone conversations, certainly of my editing career, and perhaps of my life in general. Shelly’s dry, quick wit in describing his experience living in the South (“Bless your heart”) as a writer and his culture shock at arriving in NYC as a starving actor (see the flinty elbows quote) had me relaxed, relieved, and laughing. The unique imagery I had seen in his writing shone in his speech as well–not to mention his accents for his Southern tour guide in England and the NYC old ladies were spot on.

Thank you to all my authors for being the part of my job that I love the most (and for helping me grow out of silly fears like talking on the phone *eye roll*).