⧉ Making up words
Welcome to the twenty-fifth issue of OVERLAP ⧉
Making up words
My first real experience with copyediting was at a previous job. I wrote the daily newsletter blurbs — a few hundred words due by 10 a.m. — and before I sent them off, an AP Style veteran gave them a thorough review. He had strong opinions about what was “right” and “wrong,” and the tracked changes were ugly at first. But before long, I was editing what others wrote.
Years later, copyediting is still part of my job, and I still associate it with rules and guidelines. That’s why I was surprised to hear one of the world’s most famous copyeditors make an argument for breaking those rules: “If you work in the word business and you’re not making up words now and then, you’re not doing your job properly.”
At a master class hosted by A Public Space in Brooklyn, Benjamin Dreyer explained that lexicographers wait for words to appear in print before adding them to the dictionary. If editors never deviate from the words as they appear in the dictionary, the dictionary will never change! And we’ll be stuck publishing prose with goofy words and phrases like “e-mail” and “Web site.”
It’s nice to hear that the “rules” are merely suggestions. And it’s even nicer to hear it from a respected expert.
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Speaking of rules that don’t make any sense … why do we change our clocks twice each year? Is anyone actually in favor of this?
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Auntie Jess recommends:
Dreyer’s English. In 2019, a book about grammar and style topped the New York Times bestseller list. The world might not be doomed after all.
Longform Podcast. I love listening to writers talk about how they approach their work.
The Art of Proofreading. Anne Trubek’s newsletter offers a glimpse at life inside a small press. The latest issue features an interview with Belt Publishing’s proofreader.
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Thanks for reading. I’d love to hear from you — hit reply or send a message through my website to share your favorite rules, rebellions, style guides, or anything else that’s on your mind. You can also forward this to a friend or two and invite them to subscribe. If you missed a previous issue, all the archives are online.
Until next time,
Jessica
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