[Ipg-smz] In praise of editors who praise ...

[David Needle]

*" Every one of us writers is driven by ego; otherwise we wouldn’t imagine
that anyone would care about what we say. So a couple of kind words is an
excellent way to balance the sting of “you are an imperfect human.”*

So well put! Oh wait, there, I just did it! You're right, that wasn't hard
at all :-)

On Fri, May 31, 2019 at 12:04 PM Esther Schindler <esther at bitranch.com>
wrote:

> Oh my goodness. Thank you for the kind words!
>
> And I’m not surprised your new editor said that about you. You write well,
> you deliver what you promise on time, and you’re a pleasure to talk with.
>
> The thing is — telling a writer Nice Things is so damned easy. If I keep
> assigning to you, it’s because I like your work; why not tell you why? Give
> someone a reason to feel good about himself, particularly when it’s earned.
> All of us respond well to admiration.
>
> Another editor, years ago, pointed out that any edit is inherently telling
> the writer what he did wrong — even when the corrections are meant with the
> best of intention. So, she suggested, do your best to always say SOMETHING
> nice about what you edit, whether it’s “Oh, what a good phrase!” or “You
> sure found some excellent sources!”
>
> Every one of us writers is driven by ego; otherwise we wouldn’t imagine
> that anyone would care about what we say. So a couple of kind words is an
> excellent way to balance the sting of “you are an imperfect human.”
>
>
> On May 31, 2019, at 11:48 AM, David Needle <davidneedle at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> I am used to a professional, no-nonsense relationship with editors. We're
> all busy people, we understand our jobs and are expected to do it.
> Perfectly fine, I don't need hand-holding or a relationship that extends
> beyond the work.
>
> Over the years I've had good editors and bad ones, some more personable
> than others. The best, like Esther Schindler, always make any feedback
> constructive and about the story, what can we do to make the story better?
> Also important, giving clear directions and reaching agreement on
> expectations at the outset. One editor I worked with for many years until
> his recent retirement was more than competent, but the most he ever said
> after an article was filed in terms of positive feedback was "Thanks".
> Conversely, he had plenty to say about any problems with the copy that was
> filed to the point where it sometimes seemed like he took it as a personal
> affront.
>
> So it was refreshing to start out with someone new and get this reply
> after filing my first piece:
>
> *You are awesome! You gave me a ready-made keyword phrase for SEO,
> headline, meta description and outbound links. You have no idea what a huge
> time saver that is for me! No questions on your piece, and it should go
> live sometime today! *
>
>
>
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>
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