December 03, 2005
Proof Reading, Another Challenge
I would like to thank everyone for their proof-reading suggestions. Proof reading has always been a challenge for me especially when it’s something that I’ve written. For the years I worked for a large corporation, I rarely proof read because we had professional proof readers. And in my last job as secretary to an executive dean, outside of meeting minutes, I didn’t type much. With electronic mail, more and more executives correspond digitally.
Perhaps because the conventions are new and there’s so much to look for, proofreading is another challenging aspect of journalism. We’ve been debating some of the technology pitfalls and spell check comes to mind. Since spelling is not one of my strong points, I’ve come to rely on the spell-check feature. The only problem with it is that sometimes an inappropriate word, because it is spelled correctly, slides through. That’s when a living, breathing fresh pair of eyes comes in handy. For those times, I recruit my husband and when I don’t, I usually regret it. Since he reads two news papers and numerous magazine articles, he provides feedback as to how “real” my story sounds.
Posted by NancyGregg at 05:54 PM | Comments (0)
More Wisdom from Rene Cappon (Chapter 12)
In Chapter 12, “Usage: Handling Those Hectoring Hangups,” Rene Cappon continues to impart his news-writing wisdom. “To be or not to be?” When it comes to splitting “to be” verbs, cautions the Associated Press editor, only do so when any other arrangement would sound awkward. Likewise with gender, unless it absolutely sounds better, stay gender neutral without using “he or she.” Instead, rely on the pronouns “there” and “they” or nouns like “reporter, “firefighter,” and “worker.” And avoid “spokesperson” which, the editor asserts, is too contrived. Furthermore, the conjunctions “and/or” belong in legal documents, not news stories.
He also dispels grammar myths such as a preposition can not end a sentence or “and” and “but” can not start one. He then shows that dashes are dashing except when misused. Correctly used, they signal a change in thought.
Finally, he untangles the “to lay” and “to lie” confusion. While the transitive verb “to lay” takes an object, its intransitive counterpart “to lie” does not.
Posted by NancyGregg at 04:51 PM | Comments (0)