tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post1054074950209974942..comments2023-10-08T03:29:16.941-05:00Comments on Aaron Polson: Edit ThisAaron Polsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15173267932358617304noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-90033188470863847722010-02-10T13:57:15.528-06:002010-02-10T13:57:15.528-06:00Anything that knocks the reader out of the intende...Anything that knocks the reader out of the intended headspace is not good. And a sign of bad editing. Call me a philistine if you will, but honestly, I like reading things that make me work. I just don't like bad things.<br /><br />Streamlining is a big one-- how can we even know if we've made a point without an editor? Of course we know what we meant, and we know what we wanted to show! Hell yeah.Kateyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05727622678452936037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-29592041142826390952010-02-10T08:23:25.316-06:002010-02-10T08:23:25.316-06:00Brady - I get the POV shifts elsewhere in the book...Brady - I get the POV shifts elsewhere in the book; this particular line (because it was just one line) comes in a different section, out of nowhere, and knocked me flat out of the narrative. Not sure if that was the intended effect.<br /><br />BT - Damn us for trying to read up on the craft. ;)<br /><br />Robert - I don't have a problem with a little experimentation, but this doesn't seem consistant with the rest of the book (even with the other POV shifts). This instance read like more of a slip--someone needed to go back and clean up after an edit. And if it is a 1st person narrator working the 3rd person angle, why do I need to know that a 15-year-old's penis is "stiffening" when he sees his friend's mom? I'll try to reserve final thoughts until the last page.<br /><br />Sophie - Nice link...it is the New Yorker after all.<br /><br />Gail - It tells me I'm more confused than I thought. ;) Kerouac even?<br /><br />Jamie - I'm sure it's a little of both. Typos, IMHO, will always happen. The structural problems...not okay.Aaron Polsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15173267932358617304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-14838924584736708642010-02-10T07:55:08.633-06:002010-02-10T07:55:08.633-06:00I have been finding more typos and structural prob...I have been finding more typos and structural problems in books I have been reading lately as well. I don't know if I am just paying more attention to it or if it is more prevalent than it used to be.Jamie Eyberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05875759697016701358noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-80958290676839168622010-02-10T07:38:37.926-06:002010-02-10T07:38:37.926-06:00I found typos in books by best sellers from big pu...I found typos in books by best sellers from big publishing houses such as Salman Rushdie (one of my fave authors so I was stunned) and Paulo Coehlo, but none in Jack Kerouac or Anais Nin. What does that tell you?ggrayhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06794262315030983630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-77983464911158713022010-02-10T05:39:44.431-06:002010-02-10T05:39:44.431-06:00Might be of interest!
http://howpublishingreally...Might be of interest! <br /><br />http://howpublishingreallyworks.blogspot.com/2010/02/no-one-edits-any-more-ha.htmlSophie Playlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14937622260333202138noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-58998989274226261902010-02-09T20:10:10.133-06:002010-02-09T20:10:10.133-06:00As was mentioned, Straub likes to play around with...As was mentioned, Straub likes to play around with first and third person. Most of the time it's actually a first person narrator telling the story from a third person point of view ... so it doesn't quite make sense until later in the book. <br /><br />As an aside, my editor did an edit of the anthology, but it was a surface thing. The copy editor came through and cleaned up everything else. In fact, when I had some questions, my editor simply said, "We'll let the copy editor worry about that."Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11958488745475196164noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-18612195489565364552010-02-09T17:05:52.735-06:002010-02-09T17:05:52.735-06:00Straub has always been this way, as has Saul. I re...Straub has always been this way, as has Saul. I read both quite a lot in years gone past (long before I knew anything about writing). Then, when I learned some things, I reread a couple of books from each and found them full of things we're not supposed to do as writers.<br /><br />I ended up throwing my hands up and waving the white flag. If you have a big enough name, you can do whatever you want.<br /><br />As for editors - copy editors are where all the work is done. Editors only make final decisions. They should be relabelled as project managers.BThttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15170193722932454605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-1729231437200921592010-02-09T16:32:00.066-06:002010-02-09T16:32:00.066-06:00It's been a while since I've read this one...It's been a while since I've read this one, but I remember stumbling over this passage too, and at first thinking of it as a mistake. But Straub is a pretty experimental writer (if a quiet one). He's also a huge moneymaker, so his publishers aren't about to skimp on his copyediting budget.<br /><br />Without wanting to get spoilery (this is stated much more explicitly in <i>In the Night room</i>), Straub is playing pretty deliberately with p.o.v. in <i>lost boy lost girl</i>. The slip into 1st person isn't a gaff, I don't think; rather, it's a clue to readers that we should perhaps be thinking of Tim Underhill as more than just a character in the story.bradyhttp://bradygolden.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-89293132658418117292010-02-09T13:51:17.555-06:002010-02-09T13:51:17.555-06:00Katey - Most writers seem to have a problem with c...Katey - Most writers seem to have a problem with cutting out unnecessary bits and streamling a story. Editor? Anyone?<br /><br />Cathy - I can forgive most of the simple typos and grammar issues...this first/third person flip-flop, wowza.<br /><br />Natalie - I don't want to show my typos. ;)<br /><br />Elana - I hate having to check my sanity. <br /><br />Cate - The indie press is winning, you know. <br /><br />Becca - Yeah, I get the third-person ping-pong, it's just this one instance of "he didn't know I was staying there" or something to that effect. It isn't a thought or dialogue, it's just wrong. "I" could have been changed to "Uncle Tim" and everything would be fine.Aaron Polsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15173267932358617304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-36377186889672573632010-02-09T13:23:31.852-06:002010-02-09T13:23:31.852-06:00I read this awhile back. For the most part I enjoy...I read this awhile back. For the most part I enjoyed it. Excuse my memory hiccup, here, but aren't there chapters with third-person limited (the son's, the 'lost' boy) too ? Yeah, POV ping-pong.Rebecca Nazarhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14586998368101239421noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-7921902662696459592010-02-09T13:08:38.036-06:002010-02-09T13:08:38.036-06:00As Katey said, another point for the indie press.As Katey said, another point for the indie press.Cate Gardnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05634397106201021055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-59532033826087957812010-02-09T13:04:44.490-06:002010-02-09T13:04:44.490-06:00I think it's a reality. I just read a publishe...I think it's a reality. I just read a published book that had a word missing in a sentence. I read it like fifty times, thinking I just wasn't getting it. And I wasn't. Cuz it wasn't right.<br /><br />So I know what you mean.Elana Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05877856005992028912noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-2165037229878366412010-02-09T12:38:36.207-06:002010-02-09T12:38:36.207-06:00From what I heard, several of the big houses fired...From what I heard, several of the big houses fired their copy editors. It was a cost saving measure, which (as you mention in this post) certainly shows!Fox Leehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05487359877190292039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-10212393810785947332010-02-09T11:10:05.855-06:002010-02-09T11:10:05.855-06:00I think with cutbacks everywhere that editors are ...I think with cutbacks everywhere that editors are often the first to go. At the newspaper I work for there have been so many cutbacks that some stuff sees print without even a spell-check. Surely publishing houses are better but sometimes I wonder. There's nothing more disconcerting than burying yourself in a good novel only to come across an obvious typo or bad grammar.Cathy Olliffe-Websterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12729578896443750402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-13367021886977490752010-02-09T11:09:05.661-06:002010-02-09T11:09:05.661-06:00I think with cutbacks everywhere that editors are ...I think with cutbacks everywhere that editors are often the first to go. At the newspaper I work for there have been so many cutbacks that some stuff sees print without even a spell-check. Surely publishing houses are better but sometimes I wonder. There's nothing more disconcerting than burying yourself in a good novel only to come across an obvious typo or bad grammar.Cathy Olliffe-Websterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12729578896443750402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-45443631204659187412010-02-09T11:03:01.276-06:002010-02-09T11:03:01.276-06:00I've been trying to read an epic fantasy serie...I've been trying to read an epic fantasy series, and I have to do it a little bit at a time because the editing is just. so. bad. It's weird how I blame certain things on the writer and certain things on the editor-- but honestly, there is a difference. And dude. So ridiculous.<br /><br />Another point for indie press!Kateyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05727622678452936037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-89068500665063852102010-02-09T11:01:58.194-06:002010-02-09T11:01:58.194-06:00Sophie - Freelance editing it is, then.
Barry -...Sophie - Freelance editing it is, then. <br /><br />Barry - Me too. There's a threshold of fame; once you pass that, free ticket, I guess.<br /><br />Brady - The POV shifts within 3rd person are intentional, sure, but I'm talking about shifts in the use of first person / third person pronouns. This particular error was not intentional: if it was, it made no sense. One paragraph in the whole book?Aaron Polsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15173267932358617304noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-91627928253383572492010-02-09T10:50:03.890-06:002010-02-09T10:50:03.890-06:00I'm pretty sure all the PoV shifts in lblg are...I'm pretty sure all the PoV shifts in <i>lblg</i> are intentional.bradyhttp://bradygolden.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-85072998504559007192010-02-09T10:12:22.517-06:002010-02-09T10:12:22.517-06:00I've seen much mention of this on Twitter and ...I've seen much mention of this on Twitter and don't find it hard to imagine. I've seen some doozies in books from the big boys. And I sorta agree with you on Straub. I love his ideas, but some of the narrative DOES seem forced.Barry Napierhttp://www.barrynapierwriting.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5604033530537822263.post-81896134245177296442010-02-09T09:55:10.287-06:002010-02-09T09:55:10.287-06:00I can tell you that in education publishing, the e...I can tell you that in education publishing, the editors don't do the editing. Proof-reading and copy-editing is all done freelance. <br /><br />Not sure how it is in the world of fiction publishing.<br /><br />But, man, you'd have thought someone would have noticed that error!Sophie Playlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14937622260333202138noreply@blogger.com