A WRITER'S LAMENT

I am a professional writer and editor and have been doing this in some form or another for nearly 50 years, so I can tell you from experience that nothing should ever leave your computer, typewriter, pen and paper, quill and parchment, or chisel and stone that hasn't been edited and proofed.

There are always mistakes, that is inevitable, and they jump out at me from even the most famous author's books, but to send out something that has many obvious errors is unacceptable. There are publishers, hungry for money who will take anything, but they are not reputable and this lack of integrity will always come back in their faces one day...people won't trust their publications any more. This is something I have seen happen.

Rule Number One: YOU CANNOT PROOF YOUR OWN WRITING!!!!! You are too close to it and we all make the same mistakes every time. For me it's typos because I type very fast... and I just did it and had to correct it...always typing it's for its or you're for your.

Rule Number Two: YOU CANNOT EDIT YOUR OWN WRITING!!!! Because every writer loves every word of everything they've ever written and it's like cutting off a limb to change something, or sanding flat the stone and chiseling a new hieroglyph. Imagine if Moses didn't like the wording in one of the commandments and sanded it down and rewrote it...I wouldn't want to be standing near any burning bushes after that.

So be smart and diligent and find someone who can proof and edit your work, who is objective, good with grammar and the English language, and doesn't have a stake in your well-being, because you may not like some of the suggestions. That's the beauty of the process, you can argue with the editor and get the reasons behind the change and then make your own choice.

So write the great American novel, but make sure that before you send it anywhere you find someone who can proof and edit the masterpiece. Good luck!