Image acquired from the Internet Hive Mind
Category: Blog
Editing Rant: Polish, Not Paint
Photo by Susan Wilkinson on Unsplash
The job of an editor is to polish a story, not paint their own. To take out the rough edges, to bring out the shine, to make flaws into items of interest, to shape the rock into a gem. When editing (developmental), you don’t decide the science fiction should be a romance, but you might want to point out to the author there was a romantic element buried in the story and it would work better if these two romantic tropes were added among the science fiction tropes. When editing (line), you don’t get to decide that the choice of French is wrong for the magic system and substitute in Latin. When editing (proofreading), you don’t decide that the English/UK version spellings like axe, judgement, and grey make more sense than the American spellings of ax, judgment, and gray even if the story is set in the UK, if the book is written by an American to be published in America.
It’s their gem you are polishing, not yours.
An example I run into a lot is repeated sentence starts. I have dropped this line in more than once into developmental and line editing: “You have three (or more) sentences in a row starting with “She” (or “He” or “It”), sometimes this is wanted to create a beat or an emotion. I am just checking in on this one. You don’t have to change anything, but I wanted to make sure you are aware that you are doing this repeat.”
Many times I don’t feel the need to point out the repeat sentence starts, when it is clearly in the brawling or emotional breakdown stage where someone would be repeating themselves or being very choppy. “I didn’t know. I couldn’t. How did that happen. I did it. I can’t imagine.” These are obvious about being part of the story.
But other times, well, the author may want the repeat, or she may not be aware of the situation (half the time they are not). Hence making a note; but I don’t get to say “delete this.” It isn’t my story.
I am a writer, at least I write things. For non-creators, I’m told editing is easier. But for me, I must remember at all times it is their story, not mine.
If you are an editor, put away the creative paints and only bring the polishing cloths to the editing table. You are doing a different task than writing and need different tools.
If you are a writer, remember it is your rock being made into a gemstone. You are the primary creator. Realize that a lot of the suggestions are good, even great. They will make your gemstone sparkle and shine. Sometimes it will hurt as they burnish an edge, sanding down an area. The process isn’t easy. Still, don’t let anyone paint over your voice; it is your story being told.
Polish, not paint.
Only allow polish if you are a writer being edited; only polish if you are an editor.
Does that make sense?
Writing Exercise: What is Missing?
ID 24450426 © Dirk Ercken | Dreamstime.com
I mentioned in the Editing Rant: What did you see? (7/14/2026) “readers have an easier time of visualizing what is there rather than what is removed.”
But as a writer, you often need to write about something that is no longer there. A clue that went missing, something missing that becomes a clue. It could be someone missing or the loss of the senses of smell. The Point of View character could be blindfolded or temporarily deaf. Someone might have been pickpocketed, or “Dude, where’s my car?”
WRITING EXERCISE: Write about a void. Something is missing: an object or a person or something that had been registering on one of the senses. Per normal, this is an exercise. Keep it under 500 words and post below if you want.
My attempt: Silence of the Forest (7/19/2026) is based on the lack of sound. This is a device often used in fantasy: The FoResT GOes siLENT!! But often you don’t “hear” it go silent because nothing was heard before. Yes, the characters might have been talking, but the readers haven’t been told about all the noise the forest is making all the time. The fact it went silent isn’t impactful. I wanted to see how it would work if I built sound into everything within the story. How do you think it worked, specifically in relation to help the audience hear the forest go silent.
Book Review: Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City
Amazon Cover
Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City by K.J. Parker (a pseudonym for Tom Holt)
BOOK BLURB ON AMAZON
K. J. Parker’s new novel is the remarkable tale of the siege of a walled city, and the even more remarkable man who had to defend it.
A siege is approaching, and the city has little time to prepare. The people have no food and no weapons, and the enemy has sworn to slaughter them all.
To save the city will take a miracle, but what it has is Orhan. A colonel of engineers, Orhan has far more experience with bridge-building than battles, is a cheat and a liar, and has a serious problem with authority. He is, in other words, perfect for the job.
Sixteen Ways To Defend a Walled City is the story of Orhan, son of Siyyah Doctus Felix Praeclarissimus, and his history of the Great Siege, written down so that the deeds and sufferings of great men may never be forgotten.
MY REVIEW
I love military sci-fi and/or fantasy, especially when it isn’t traditional forces. In Sixteen Ways to Defend a Walled City, the protagonist isn’t a solider per se, but an engineer. The book also isn’t exactly a fantasy sci-fi, as no magic or wizards appear in the first book of the series, other than tech wizards/engineers – but the whole world has a fantasy feel with non-human mixed with human races in a medieval-like setting rife with emperors and gladiators.
That said (1) the SNARK – pitch perfect for engineers dealing with normal soldiers and civilians; (2) the SEIGE of a capital city and the resources available within; (3) the FRIENDSHIPS between slaves and non-slaves, between enemies and allies, between haves and have nots; (4) the TOOLS of walls and sapping and siege engines and ships – so many lovely tools; (5) the HORROR of tools of war used on humans.
This book, though first of a series, completely works as a stand-alone. I have looked at the blurbs of the other two books of the trilogy but have no urgency to read them. But Sixteen Ways also is a gateway hook into everything and anything by K.J. Parker – as soon as I have time and money I want to read everything by them! The author is amazing. The story is amazing. The concept is amazing. Be amazed. It’s like being pummeled by stone balls; the story will break you with loving engineering.
REPRINT: Creative Attribution
This is a reprint of a 6/30/2016 posting.
Image courtesy of the Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec Foundation
Painting entitled: Ballet Dancers
Shared under the Creative Commons attribution
Creative Attribution. Giving credit where credit is due. You may notice, I always post where I get my pictures for my blog, even if it is from the Internet Hive Mind or Facebook posts. Creative attribution is important, not only because it is the (copyright) law, but by acknowledging the hard work of others you encourage them to continue and others to attempt.
Copyright is important. Economic and sociological studies have shown that in countries where people have their property protected from confiscation, physical or intellectual property, they are more likely to create beyond bare needs. If people don’t realize any gain from the hard work of creation, planting crops or developing software for example, they aren’t going to continue doing it. They are going to pour effort into those items where they or their family has gain, or at least meets the necessities.
At the end of the day, the priorities for people are food and shelter. If their work does not gain these items, and they have no other means of gaining them, they will switch work … or die.
A no-brainer decision.
If they have food and shelter, and leftover time beyond that, they may invest it in creative activities which don’t put food on the table. But if they have a choice between creative activities with different levels of profit, so they can get luxury items like clothing, Internet, and transportation, they will choose toward the greatest profit and personal enjoyment. For some people, like painters, the personal enjoyment comes from the activity.
By always acknowledging the personal efforts of people, and following the copyright levels they choose, you are supporting them … and they will create more cool stuff. Modern life allows a lot of free time, granting people the ability to post stuff online just to give away. Wikipedia is just one of the phenomena related to modern life’s free time.
In closing, I would like to mention posting the Creative Attribution is just good manners. Like writing a thank you note. Someone took the effort to make something you can use for free. Putting their name to it is a big thank you shout out.
Needless to say, this subject is important to me … as an painter, calligrapher, editor, writer, meme maker, and embroiderer. I do a lot of free stuff I share; I also do a lot of stuff just to keep a roof over my head. Thank you for recognizing my work, for buying those things I do sell, and for sharing what I give away for free. I appreciate it. Without you, I would be doing my arts a lot less.