Re: Politeness in editing (was: When the thesaurus attacks...)

[laura99 -at- execpc -dot- com]

Delurking...

When I edit word choice or rewrite a sentence, I often use
"consider..."
It can take some of the sting out, and it is still giving the writer a
choice.

I tend to be blunt with most of my comments. It's about the doc, not
the person who wrote it. I also try to consider the writer's style and
not change things just because _I_ like it better that way. I also try
to make sure that my changes are _right_ and not just different.

When someone is editing my stuff, I try not to take it personally, and
I hope others do the same. The editor is just trying to
make the doc better. That serves my interests as well. At the same
time, I will question the editor about things I don't agree with to be
sure I understand. If I'm still not convinced, I don't make the
change.
It takes confidence in my writing abilities, tempered with the
knowledge that I still have room for improvement.

Back to lurking mode...

Laura Winkelspecht,
Technical Writer
ShopKo Stores, Inc.



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