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- Jun 16, 2019
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I do freelance developmental and line editing. I've only been at it for eight months now, but I'm pretty decent at it considering my inexperience. However, I've come across a new breed of writer, and I can't seem to wrap my head around this phenomena: stylistic choices.
I've noticed that there are writers who have very obvious stylistic choices that break the rules of grammar for impact. That's fine, and it still reads smoothly, so I don't bother with it. However, in the past two days I've come across people that break the laws of grammar in such a way that it is distracting to read on top of looking unintentional. Naturally, since it seemed unintentional, I brought it up. They almost seemed offended that I immeditaly assumed that they skipped a few commas, or had long and redundant dependent clauses. The replies I've gotten are mildly condescending mentions of their MAs, as if a MA guarantees that one cannot make a grammar mistake.
How does one line edit around these things? Is it a learned skill, or is it a matter of not paying attention to the grammar at all? How do you know if these things are intentional or not? Would a publishing house be willing to overlook the style, or would they insist on changing it?
I'm going to be interning at a publishing house during the spring, so I'm sure I'll get more clarification, but this question has been bugging me to no end. For context, they are indie writers, but I'm not entirely certain that makes a difference. Maybe I am wrong on this, and I'm just reading it too closely to be able to see the impact of the grammar?
I've noticed that there are writers who have very obvious stylistic choices that break the rules of grammar for impact. That's fine, and it still reads smoothly, so I don't bother with it. However, in the past two days I've come across people that break the laws of grammar in such a way that it is distracting to read on top of looking unintentional. Naturally, since it seemed unintentional, I brought it up. They almost seemed offended that I immeditaly assumed that they skipped a few commas, or had long and redundant dependent clauses. The replies I've gotten are mildly condescending mentions of their MAs, as if a MA guarantees that one cannot make a grammar mistake.
How does one line edit around these things? Is it a learned skill, or is it a matter of not paying attention to the grammar at all? How do you know if these things are intentional or not? Would a publishing house be willing to overlook the style, or would they insist on changing it?
I'm going to be interning at a publishing house during the spring, so I'm sure I'll get more clarification, but this question has been bugging me to no end. For context, they are indie writers, but I'm not entirely certain that makes a difference. Maybe I am wrong on this, and I'm just reading it too closely to be able to see the impact of the grammar?