I changed someone's quote

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Borad

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I edited some publicity material that a non-profit sent me. A somewhat short and informal email explained what I should do. The document included a quote in image format at the top of the page that I wasn't explicitly told to edit. The text below the quote was mentioned as what I was supposed to edit. I was basically told "here's the document to edit, [Person's] voice. Edit [section 1] and [section 2]." Only the quote was in the person's voice and the rest was biographical.

The quote was from someone speaking well of the organization, to attract more people to the organization. The misspelling I corrected was "kick-of" which I changed in a graphics editor to "kick-off." I mentioned this change in my email when I submitted the edits.

I figured, why not just edit it since they could always use the old version if they don't like it. It's extremely unlikely that the quoted person would refuse to approve or resubmit a correct quote. That misspelling/typo (I don't know whether the quote was dictated) should not appear in PR/recruiting material. And [sic] isn't appropriate for that document.

Anyway, it's been about a day and I haven't received a reply to my edited document yet. I'm itching to post the before and after versions to get comments on the fairly extensive rewording I did but I don't want to do it in a public forum.

What would you do? Just mention the spelling error without taking the opportunity to show your graphic editing skills?

Oh, and I cropped some whitespace around a person's photo that was sloppily placed next to the quote. I gave them several reasons to dislike me I guess.
 

Chris P

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I worked for a few years doing freelance copyediting and proofreading, and this sounds like something you need to work out between yourself and whoever is paying you for this work.

When I was in similar situations to yours, I contacted the outfit I was editing for, pointed out the issues, and asked for clarification on that they expected. If it would result in a change to the fee I would be upfront about it. And where would you "post for comment" the before and after versions? If I were the folks paying for the edit, I would look askance at posting it anywhere. At all. Unless I misunderstand your post, you are the professional they are paying for the work; they want it done by you and not by others.
 
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Borad

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Unless I misunderstand your post, you are the professional they are paying for the work; they want it done by you and not by others.

I forgot to mention that I'm a volunteer. I never claimed editing experience to them [wait...not sure abut that one, but they have very limited information about me]. If I posted it in the Share Your Work section I would see if I could redact certain things first. Photos, names, etc.
 
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mccardey

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If I posted it in the Share Your Work section I would see if I could redact certain things first. Photos, names, etc.
Generally you need 50 substantial posts in AW before you make your own thread in SYW.
 

Chris P

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Thanks for the clarification. My comments on whether or not to edit parts they didn't say to edit still apply. Under the circumstances, they will probably be grateful for anything you can point out, but I have had situations where "'don't edit the footnotes' means 'don't edit the footnotes.'" It's best to check.

Regarding posting to SYW, mccardy is right that you need 50 posts. I am not a moderator on this site, so I can't say whether or not posting your edit of someone else's work is allowed, but from a professionalism standpoint (even if the work is volunteer) the piece is still theirs and I would at least get their permission before posting for input.
 

Borad

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It arguably isn't allowed anyway. Rule 6 says "Do not post work that you didn’t write." I don't think that would apply to the fair use of published material but the document I was editing was never intended to be published. If I edit out identifying information and it's not written in a way that would benefit a person willing to steal something (which is subjective) it would cause no harm, but I'm guessing it's not allowed anyway.
 

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I forgot to mention that I'm a volunteer. I never claimed editing experience to them [wait...not sure abut that one, but they have very limited information about me]. If I posted it in the Share Your Work section I would see if I could redact certain things first. Photos, names, etc.

It's not OK to post it in SYW since you don't own the rights. Sorry.
 

Borad

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I imagined the reply to my edit as coming within one business day and saying something like "Wow, thank's so much for your quick work. Your graphic editing saves us the trouble of finding another volunteer. It looks fantastic after a quick read. We will give you credit in [something they publish]. We would like to know if you are available for more work, on a semi-regular basis, as a paid freelancer. A full time position may be available too, which would include a full benefits package."

But instead I think they hate me and my work.
 

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I imagined the reply to my edit as coming within one business day and saying something like "Wow, thank's so much for your quick work. Your graphic editing saves us the trouble of finding another volunteer. It looks fantastic after a quick read. We will give you credit in [something they publish]. We would like to know if you are available for more work, on a semi-regular basis, as a paid freelancer. A full time position may be available too, which would include a full benefits package."

But instead I think they hate me and my work.


There's a range of responses between those extremes. You'll know how they feel about it if and when they tell you. Don't worry about it until then. Instead move on to the next thing.
 
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I can see you're worried about this and your brain won't shut up. That happens to me all the time. This is what I do to calm my own brain down. I ask this question:

What's the absolute worst thing that can happen? They don't use it. It's not going to harm you, or your reputation as an editor in any way. You have already won just by doing it. You gained experience and a reference. Whether they like it, or use it, or not, they will say you did an edit for them, and you returned it quickly.

What's the absolute best that can happen? They use it and credit you. Woo Hoo. You still get the exact same as above, a reference.

What's the middle thing that can happen? They use part of it. Same as above. You got a reference.

Congrats. You win every scenario.
 
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Borad

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A CNN article says "Tracking objects traveling quickly through the atmosphere is hard to predict."

Things like that making it passed the editor of a major news network always bothered me and I'm hyper-sensitive to it at the moment, but at least it makes me realize that I catch things that others miss. I think. What's the deal with that sentence being published? Is it that news editors don't edit for such a thing or is it because he doesn't see the problem.

Does everyone here see the problem with that sentence?

It's the track that's hard to predict, not the act of tracking.
 

mccardey

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A CNN article says "Tracking objects traveling quickly through the atmosphere is hard to predict."

Things like that making it passed the editor of a major news network always bothered me and I'm hyper-sensitive to it at the moment, but at least it makes me realize that I catch things that others miss. I think. What's the deal with that sentence being published? Is it that news editors don't edit for such a thing or is it because he doesn't see the problem.

Does everyone here see the problem with that sentence?

It's the track that's hard to predict, not the act of tracking.

*cough*
 

Helix

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A CNN article says "Tracking objects traveling quickly through the atmosphere is hard to predict."

Things like that making it passed the editor of a major news network always bothered me and I'm hyper-sensitive to it at the moment, but at least it makes me realize that I catch things that others miss. I think. What's the deal with that sentence being published? Is it that news editors don't edit for such a thing or is it because he doesn't see the problem.

Does everyone here see the problem with that sentence?

It's the track that's hard to predict, not the act of tracking.


There's a law about making errors in comments where you're pointing out someone else's error! I fall afoul of it all the time.

*frantically checks own comment for same*
 

Borad

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There's a law about making errors in comments where you're pointing out someone else's error! I fall afoul of it all the time.

*frantically checks own comment for same*

I noticed after I posted but I remembered that there's no grace period for edits so I would have had the "edited" notice inserted which I don't like. Editing one's own post is a sign of weakness.
 

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I noticed after I posted but I remembered that there's no grace period for edits so I would have had the "edited" notice inserted which I don't like. Editing one's own post is a sign of weakness.

If you're planning on being an editor, everything you write is an advertisement for your skills.

You can add a reason for editing in your post or in the editing box.

And I just looked it up -- Skitt's, McKean's and...ahem...Muphry's Law are all laws regarding errors.

ETA: More here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muphry's_law
 
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Sophia

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Editing one's own post is a sign of weakness.


:Wha:

... and leaving in typos, not adding something that you thought of after you posted, not removing something that you think you could phrase better, are signs of strength?

I hope you also apply this to your writing. First draft only, no changes. Submit as written. :poke:

Forum posts are our communications. There is no weakness in trying to make our communications with others as clear as possible. It's helpful for everyone. The only time it could be described as weakness is when someone says something, receives reactions they did not expect or want, and then edits or deletes their posts to change what they said and make the thread incomprehensible. That's frowned upon here. Anything that's done in good faith? Go right ahead! (But don't overdo it; be nice to the server hamsters!)

*EDIT*: There is a grace period for edits.
 
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I noticed after I posted but I remembered that there's no grace period for edits so I would have had the "edited" notice inserted which I don't like. Editing one's own post is a sign of weakness.

There is a grace period for edits.

I probably edit at least half my posts, and still screw up all the time. Most people can't edit or proof their own prose.
 

Borad

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I heard back and they published my edited version on a webpage and credited me with my full name! :hooray:

Only thing is, I would have edited it more to really make it really good but I was afraid. I didn't rearrange paragraphs and I kept a too-long sentence almost as long by keeping the name of the schools someone went to, which didn't really flow. I figured they may have wanted to give the person a plug or something. I just cut mentions of the school locations which was self explanatory with one school and the other school was large and easy to look up if necessary. But it was still about a full day's work for under 600 words so I feel like I accomplished a lot.

What I'd like to do when using it as a writing/editing sample is show the before version as well as my edited version. Conveying all the careful work I did, all the considerations made and whatnot, will still be impossible, and I'm going to look into whether showing before versions is ever done because I'm afraid of even that. I wouldn't post them but I'd email them, maybe.

Found my answer. It's good to have a before and after in an editor's portfolio. "Editors can be hard-pressed to demonstrate what it is, exactly, that they do and what value they can add...a portfolio is an opportunity for show-and-tell. Items should be representative, including before and afters if possible." IMO, even writers' samples should include pre-edited versions in addition to published versions but I don't think they do, nor would most writers want to do that. I would want to do that.
 
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Chris P

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Borad, that's great to hear. I'm glad it worked out for you.

I get the "I wish I woulda" moments.

From your last paragraph, it sounds like you want to do this as freelance. We have a freelance forum here: https://absolutewrite.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?3-Freelance-Writing. I actually didn't do freelance as such; I was under contract with an outfit who would do all the client-getting work, and all I had to do was sit and edit. Folks in this forum and others might help you develop a portfolio you could shop around.
 

Borad

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I actually took some time to read part of the version they published. They kept most of my edits including the most difficult and impressive one where I essentially rewrote a horrible paragraph. They put quotes around that one and attributed it to the person they were profiling. And I was worried about changing her "to" to "too." So, they really were letting me write in [person's] voice, at least for part of it. The credit says it was produced with my assistance, so the reader won't even know what I did, but I think it's a fair enough credit. I just don't like when it looks like someone writes better than they actually do so I don't intend to take ghostwriter jobs on purpose.
 

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I just don't like when it looks like someone writes better than they actually do so I don't intend to take ghostwriter jobs on purpose.
Aren't you planning to be an editor, though (or have I confused you with some other newbie?) A good editor will always make it look like the writer is "better" than the writer would appear on their own - by picking up things that aren't as correct or clear or effective as they were in the writer's head.

Both writer and editor need to be comfortable with the different roles in the process, or I would imagine it would get awkward, very quickly.
 
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Borad

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Aren't you planning to be an editor, though (or have I confused you with some other newbie?) A good editor will always make it look like the writer is "better" than the writer would appear on their own - by picking up things that aren't as correct or clear or effective as they were in the writer's head.

Both writer and editor need to be comfortable with the different roles in the process, or I would imagine it would get awkward, very quickly.

It's complicated. Quotes imply not edited. I don't want to take a job like this again, where I end up having an entire paragraph that I wrote be quoted and attributed to someone else. I'm really more of a writer, but I can do editing for clarity and brevity and when the type of document typically contains some language issues like many of the white papers I've seen published do. English language material written by entities in countries where English isn't the primary language tend to have issues that I could fix.
 
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