The start of a new year is a great time to review my editing philosophy. Defining a philosophy gives me an awareness of how I work, what I consider important, and what my goals are when working with you.
Do you want to know what principles are guiding your editor? You should; they’ll influence your project.
Here are the tenets of my editing philosophy:
• Quality. I’ll help you produce the best written product you can. I’m invested in the success of your project.
• Instruction. I have a rationale for every change I make. I’ll help you understand why I’ve made certain changes; through this, you’ll improve your writing skills.
• Respect. I’ll always keep your voice. With respect for you and your readers, I’ll partner with you through the writing process. I’ll highlight your strengths as a writer and leave you motivated to tackle your next project.
There are three main consequences I want to result from our work together:
1. Your writing is the best it can be.
2. You’ve learned something.
3. You’ve felt that your work with me was collaborative, and you’re happy with the result.
Overall, my philosophy is grounded in an accepted rule of editing: first, do no harm.
This principle originated in medicine; the Latin is primum non nocere. It encourages physicians to consider the potential harm in an intervention. It’s also used in education. Teachers are encouraged to remind themselves that they’re in a position of influence, and their words and actions can have lasting impact.
So what does this phrase mean for editors?
It reminds editors to leave text better than it was and not introduce any errors. With too much intervention, there’s a risk of losing the author’s voice or altering the intended meaning. If a sentence is okay as it is, I won’t change it just because I like it better another way. That’s like a teacher forcing a student to learn in a certain way or a physician investigating something that a patient isn’t having a problem with.
As I’m editing, I’m also teaching you and doctoring your text. I’m helping you learn to be a better writer while prescribing changes to anything that might distract readers from understanding. It’s ultimately up to you whether you want to adhere to the recommended treatment.
According to copyediting.com, “first, do no harm” is “important to keep in mind for a surgeon cutting into a patient, and it’s important to remember for a copyeditor cutting into a story.”
With me, your writing is in good hands. Through a collaborative process, centered on the goals of quality, instruction, and respect, you’ll end up with strong work you’re proud of and skills you can apply to future projects.
