Student Handout
Rule 1: When in doubt, read aloud.
The most important part of editing is reading the work aloud to be sure that it sounds just like you want it to sound. If you have a question, read aloud the entire piece, the paragraph, or the sentence. Does it sound right? If it sounds right, it probably is.
If it doesn't sound right, it probably isn't.
Rule 2: Take your time.
Editing takes time, but it is time well spent because editing makes your piece the best it can be. If you get tired, take a break. Editing at a steady pace with short breaks always works better than "crash" editing.
Rule 3: Don't mix revision and polishing.
Finish revising before you begin to polish. Mixing revision and polishing always makes a mess. Also, finish one step of the polishing process before you begin the next step. Editing is always easier if you work on one thing at a time.
Rule 4: Always work from big to little.
Begin with big changes, such as moving around entire sections or scenes. Save the little things, such as changing a word in a sentence, for later. It makes no sense to revise a sentence and then cross it out later when you move around an entire section.
Rule 5: Finish.
If you don't finish, how well you write or the care you take to polish won't matter at all. Nobody can read it until it's done. You can take short breaks to refresh your energy, but otherwise, just do the best job you can and keep going until you finish.
From Teaching Writing in Middle School. © 1998 Beth Means and Lindy Lindner. Teacher Ideas Press. (800) 237-6124.
Part 1: Introducing Editing ^^", 163 Activity 2:
The Editor? Who's That?
N o passion in the world is equal to the passion to alter someone else's draft.
—H. G. Wells
Good editors are about as rare as large diamonds; the rest of the world muddles along with a confused idea of the job. Reading rough drafts to strangers is a frightening, unpre- dictable process. Keep student editing groups together for the entire term. Because students have so few good role models—and so many poor ones—begin with careful explanations of the role of the editor and the proper attitude toward editing.
Instructions to Students
When you edit your work, your attitude is very important. Remember the artist and the craftsman? (See Chapter 3.) Well, the artist is in charge of drafting, but the craftsman is in charge of editing. The artist is enthusiastic, emotionally involved, and sensitive. The crafts- man, however, is more like Mr. Spock in the Star Trek movies. Mr. Spock is concerned, but he's also detached and logical. While everyone else runs around yelling, Spock stays cool.
He listens and comes up with good ideas to solve the problem. He's also patient and takes things one step at a time.
Notice that the attitude of the craftsman is almost the opposite of that of the artist. When editing your work, first tell your artist to take a vacation. Then tell your craftsman to get busy.
The Job of the Editor
You must draft alone, but you don't need to edit alone. You can get help from someone else's craftsman. This outside helper is called an editor. The editor can be a fellow student, a friend, or a teacher.
An editor's job is to give the author a fresh pair of eyes and another viewpoint on the work. A good editor is the author's best friend. When the author is tired, the editor is sympathetic and helps. When the author knows that something doesn't work, the editor suggests what needs to be changed. When the author has made an error, such as a spelling mistake, the editor finds it. When the author can't think of ideas, the editor offers suggestions.
If the author's artist overreacts emotionally, the editor gets the author back on track by saying,
"Be logical. Cool down." In our class, the members of your writing group will serve as editors for one another.
The author's craftsman and the editor's craftsman work together. On editing days, sometimes you will be an author and sometimes you will be an editor for another student.
This works well, as long as authors and editors remember that both are really craftsmen working together. We don't want to be negative, but we must warn you that when either authors or editors do not act like calm, detached craftsmen, the group will have trouble.
264 ^ ^ ^ 6—Editing with Enthusiasm
When authors act like artists
they won't listen,
they argue about everything, they get upset,
they take every comment as a criticism, they get tired and don't want to finish, they are impatient/
When editors are poor craftsmen they criticize without helping, they don't take their job seriously,
they make fun of the author or show off at the author's expense, they aren't specific,
they don't make helpful suggestions.
If the members of your writing group work together as craftsmen, you'll be dynamite.
You can help one another, much more than you might realize. We want everyone in our class
to learn to be good editors, so we have a handout to remind you of some things good editors
should and should not do.
Part 1: Introducing Editing ^^^ 165