Let's see . . . since I last showed up in this space, I've gone to the Indy 500 (in short: really, really fast), worked somewhere around 115 hours at the bakery, stayed up one night--until 7:30 am--drinking wine and talking to a friend (just this past Saturday, which meant not nearly as much editing got done Sunday as I would have liked), and had a job interview (at a film production company that's looking for an administrative assistant). Yesterday I even managed to clean the bathroom (which had turned into a godawful pit) and do the laundry. I'm still not as caught up on my proofreading as I'd like to be; I have a batch due next Wednesday, and I've only scratched the surface.
May I also add that this particular manuscript is written hideously. The copyeditor apparently isn't as much of a martinet as I am, in that s/he allowed to stand some truly heinous writing. The writer and copyeditor also aren't so good about keeping subjects singular or plural (e.g.: The patient has to decide what is best for them.), and apparently don't know that the past tense of "lead" is "led." It's kind of a train wreck, but since it's already gone to the composition people and I'm supposed to be only proofreading it, I hesitate to do any more than correct egregious errors. But have I mentioned that the writing sucks AND blows? It makes me wonder, too: I worry about my own copyediting, which I mostly do electronically--which, I'd argue, is much harder to make neat and much harder to format, but substantially easier in other ways. Because I tend to get things in batches--and, therefore, often have to send things back in batches--I don't always realize in, say, Chapter 2, that I'm going to want to format or write something differently when I get to it again in Chapter 5, and, by the way, Chapter 2 is already gone back, so tough luck. It's not clear to me how many passes a given manuscript gets, so that could be less relevant than I think it is, but it still worries me.
I have long said that chocolate and raspberries are two of my three favorite things. I think I might have to make the list longer, though, to add ginger and honey. Thus, the bar of Green & Black's chocolate with ginger in it is transcendent, and if were a less prudent person, I'd eat the whole damned thing right this minute and run out and get another one.
I saw Chuck briefly yesterday, so he could borrow my tent for a scout camping trip with his son. Chuck looked like shit, and when I asked if he was okay, he said no, but that it I didn't have to be concerned about it any more, and he didn't want to talk about it with me. Whatever. He really did look haggard. I know I'm supposed to be working on the divorce papers, but I simply don't have the time right now. When I'm not making croissants, I'm editing, sleeping, or, occasionally, recreating a little, and all of those things need to take precedence. The last batch of the current crop is due June 25th, so I'll be able to get to the divorce paperwork on June 26th, maybe--our anniversary. Eh; whatever. I'll make the time for the divorce crap, and soon. It breaks my heart, still, but not because I want to reconcile. Maybe I'll have a new job soon, and thus have more time for stuff.
I'm neither particularly hopeful nor excited about the film production company job--it's pretty simple, and involves things like answering phones, tracking packages, ordering lunch (the company buys lunch every day), running the dishwasher, making coffee, etc. I have no idea what I'd say if they actually offered it to me. On one hand, I'd perhaps go out of my mind with boredom--it's a very small company, and I do not see how they would fill up my days, even when they're in production. On the other hand, if they offered me a little more than I'm making at the bakery, for, say, 10 to 15 fewer hours per week of work, it'd be mighty tempting, just to get the hell out of the bakery. On the other hand, if I can manage to hold out a little while, I could add $10k to $15k to what the film people are likely to offer, were they to offer to me. Or maybe not. I suck at this.
3 comments:
Wow, lots of stuff going on. If I may make 2 suggestions re editing:
1. Keep a style sheet as you copyedit. This will help you keep things consistent between batches, and help the production editor, who can provide said style sheet to compositor and proofreader.
2. Re the singular subject with the plural pronoun, you should check with your production ed on what s/he wants. This usage, while not particularly attractive, is both acceptable and in vogue now. It's often considered preferable than writing "him or her" everywhere. A lot of authors strongly prefer this style.
Thanks for the suggestions! The problem w/ the style sheet is that sometimes I don't notice something the first time I see it, or the more I see it the more it bugs me--but the first instance has already gone back. You're absolutely right that I should be doing this, however.
Are you serious that the singular/plural thing is in vogue? It's heinous! and dumb! and wrong! At least do a plural/plural thing! or something! Good lord; it's the end of the world again.
It's the end of the world again--yes! Exactly right!
I mean...Like, literally. That was a pretty unique way to put it. If a professional writer wrote that, they couldn't have done it better.
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