Editorial Musing by Dave Gardner (aka "EditorDave")

2010-08-09T15:21:00.000-07:00

A friend sent me the URL for this interesting story on how some folks have taken their urge for correct English on the road. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129086941&ft=1&f=1032While I was driving around the other day, I found the following:(They are having "mangement" problems.)

How to Cook the Books! Run 'Em through a Food Processor!

2010-04-17T21:06:00.000-07:00

This just in! Why we MUST have editors (or at least another set of eyes) to critically read our work!And the publishers of this cookbook are probably wishing they had hired decent editors! You'll have to read about it here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8627335.stm

Dumb Online Form

2010-04-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

The first concern when hiring writers should be whether or not they have a proven ability to WRITE WELL. If they can WRITE WELL and have proven their skills, does it matter WHICH industry they work in? In the online form pictured above, the bozos who created it do NOT give an option to list all the areas of expertise--they limit you to ONLY ONE. I've got experience as a writer-editor in

The VALUE of a WORD

2010-02-23T13:51:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago, I attended the SDL Innovate 2010 Conference held in Santa Clara, California. The conference's main topic was on localization, internationalization, translation, and the use of DITA/XML to enhance this process.For those of you who are confused and lost already, this conference was about documentation. How to create it, how to reuse the contents, how to make the contents acceptable

Another Reason Why an "Editorial Check" is Important!

2010-02-12T14:49:00.001-08:00

It seems that the head of the Chilean government's treasury let a major typo get away from him. The NAME of the country was misspelled on their 50-peso coin. No-one noticed for a year after the coins were issued. More information Here. See? There IS a reason why another pair of eyes (and preferably EDITORIAL eyes) are good for any type of writing or documentation!

Why Editors Are Important... Ouch!

2009-06-02T13:54:00.000-07:00

An article in the Orange County Register explained how a typo on a multi-million-dollar bid could cost a construction contractor an almost 100 million contract. http://www.ocregister.com/articles/bid-whiting-turner-2436902-airport-million

Must Have Used the Same Sign Provider?

2009-05-16T22:03:00.001-07:00

When you realize you are having problems with words like "clutches", maybe it would have been wise to consult a dictionary? Or, at least ask someone else to proofread this? Or perhaps look at the paperwork or boxes from the companies that send you "clutches"? But hey, these folks fix clutches, they don't fix words. I'll promise to not fix any clutches if they promise to not take my job of being

Why You Can't Depend on the Print Shop to Proofread Your Documents!

2009-05-15T23:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you will see obvious indications that perhaps you should hire your own proofreader/editor to check your proofs (that's the reason why those things are called "proofs") before you give the go-ahead for your printer to run a few thousand of your corporate brochures.Really... wouldn't you think SOMEONE would have noticed this? And if they had, don't you think it would have been wise to fix

Descriptive versus Prescriptive Grammar

2009-04-30T19:39:00.001-07:00

You may wonder about the differences between these two types of grammar. I've mentioned this before, but I'll discuss them a little more now.Prescriptive grammar sticks with rigid rules of grammar that have been long rooted in Latin and Ancient Greek. Aristotlean prescriptive rules on "parts of speech" and how these "parts" work together are applied strictly to English structure and usage.

Well, at least they didn't say "sangwich"....

2009-04-30T19:25:00.000-07:00

..............Okay, we can accept that perhaps the person who wrote this was in a hurry. But really, how hard is it to spell "sandwich"? (The thing was named after the supposed "founder" of the meal consisting of meat and veggies surrounded by two pieces of bread--The "Earl of Sandwich.") I hope their cooking and food preparation skills are better than their spelling.

Under New Managment. Yup.

2009-04-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

..................When you have large banners such as these presenting your business to the public, you'd think that SOMEONE somewhere would proofread the thing before sticking it up for the whole world to see. Awesome. This proves that editors have a purpose! (Either that, or illiterates!)

Where Are All the Proofreaders?

2009-04-23T09:34:00.000-07:00

Sometimes you are driving along... and a typo or other problem almost as big as a barn causes you to do a double-take. This one was so good that I had to stop the car and get a picture of it. (Yeah, I know. I shouldn't be editing when I'm driving. It's almost as dangerous as texting when driving.).

Does Anyone Proofread Their Signs Anymore?

2009-02-28T18:13:00.000-08:00

I've never experienced a "Monglian" BBQ. Someone obviously noticed and added the "O". But really. Why not do it right instead of this half-attempt? Ah, well.Proofreading seems to be a lost art. No one is doing it anymore. Even in the sign making business. You see signs everywhere in which someone could have made a better impression if they had just proofread what they had put on the sign. It's

The Demise of Readable, Understandable English--From a Reader's Viewpoint

2009-02-21T09:58:00.000-08:00

It's sad.In my daily running around, I see flyers, brochures, huge banners, technical manuals, magazines, newspapers, non-fiction books, and novels peppered with typos, spelling errors, and grammatical gaffes.I belong to "professional" groups--some of them groups for writers and editors... and I see typos, spelling errors, and grammatical errors in the posts. Some of these errors are things like

Remember, an Apostrophe does NOT mean "LOOK OUT, HERE COMES AN 'S'!"

2009-02-20T20:04:00.001-08:00

<--- An example of apostrophes used in two places. In one place the apostrophe is used correctly (to indicate a possessive), in the other place the apostrophe is incorrectly used in a possessive pronoun.Just tonight, I saw websites and printed texts that had misused apostrophes all over the place. If a word is PLURAL, it does NOT need an apostrophe.The dog's and the cat's ran around the yard's.

Editorial Pet Peeves... How Do You Use an Apostrophe?

2009-02-20T18:10:00.000-08:00

Don't damage the "meachandise". Bad things can happen.I've been seeing more and more writing by folks who are unclear on the use and purpose of an apostrophe. Because our schools don't seem to be teaching English grammar and composition any more, I thought that maybe I should help out by discussing this problem here--and providing examples.The easiest way to remember this is:it's = it isits =

How Did I Get Into Writing? It's a Story. Once You Get Itchy Fingers, You Have to Write!

2009-02-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

Yup. These folks should have found a "Frien" to proofread their banner.Okay, I admit it.My Mom and Dad were both English grammar and composition teachers--and I wasn't too wild about putting up with "grammar and composition" lessons tossed at me over the dinner table every night.I fought it... but in the end, it trapped me. And I discovered that I love fooling around with words. And those words

After a long hiatus, I'm back. Yeah, it's been a while.

2009-02-17T23:21:00.000-08:00

The Picture? Uh, NASA Ames "Reaearch" Center. Slight Typo in a Huge Sign. Bummer. Maybe they should have added a dictionary to their "Reaearch". Ah, well...I learned about blogs (probably about 4 years too late) back in 2004. Well, maybe I learned about them even earlier, but I didn't try to play with creating one until 2004. It was during a vacation down to Los Angeles to stay with my in-laws

Other Ways of Generating Income.... Other than a Job, that is....

2004-05-13T17:02:00.000-07:00

I really want to be financially free.. .and I *KNOW* of many ways to do it. At least I've been exposed to bunches of them. But just "knowing" isn't "doing".Writing a novel, a book on writing, and a sort of fictionalized autobiography from my time on Guam.Writing online coursework/lessons for things such as English Grammar and Composition, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, Sciences, and Photography and

Freebies... And not-so-Freebies...

2004-05-12T15:51:00.000-07:00

Let's say you are at a party where there are a lot of medical professionals present. In fact, it's a hospital party for the surgeons, specialists, general practitioners, anesthesiologists, surgical nurses, ER staff, and other support staff.Let's say you go to the party specifically to ask for free medical advice. Or perhaps with the intent to get some free medical services.What do you think your

Recommended books... from my other websites

2004-05-11T14:49:00.000-07:00

If you are going to be writing or editing or otherwise working with words, I recommend the books that you can find on my *other* website-- Working Words and the others on all of my Squidoo Lenses. Click on the links mentioned and browse. You'll get a lot of benefits from reading and following the lessons presented in these books.

The many uses of a Blog--and how to post to them... a test of email

2004-05-11T14:01:00.000-07:00

Still learning how to do this. But in the meantime, you can check out my Squidoo lens on Editing.Not much more here... because I'm still learning how to blog. But, give me time, I'll figure it out.

Starting a Blog is a new experience for me!

2004-05-11T10:29:00.000-07:00

This is a new post... so I'm just starting to experiment with this.