The cost of editing
Prompt delivery (time), excellent standards (quality) and affordability (price). As editors, this is what we want to deliver and it’s what clients of editing services should expect. I’ve heard it said that most skilled editors can offer all three but, more frequently, can only deliver on two. And that’s perfectly reasonable in an editing context; we know clients want work produced quickly but affordably and, preferably, to the highest possible standard. How then do editors who offer quality and meet deadlines decide on their rates?
What is grammar?
‘Grammar’ is the term used to cover the rules or conventions of English usage that help us to communicate effectively in both spoken and written language. Grammatical rules guide the way we use words, construct sentences and apply punctuation to clarify a writer’s or speaker’s meaning. Over time, popular usage influences and could change grammatical conventions.
A snapshot of the social media landscape in South Africa
In this second of the two-part article on marketing and (social media marketing) SMM for editors, the focus will be on the social media (SM) landscape in South Africa, as at end 2020. In my previous PEGblog post, I defined social media marketing (SMM) within the wider...
The intricacies of editing academic texts for examination purposes
This challenging and often prickly topic has elicited a great deal of controversy. There are many editorial purists who do not see editing as a process but who are prescriptive about what should and should not be done. They believe that a line is firmly drawn in the...
International Mother Language Day
If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart. - Nelson Mandela Happy International Mother Language Day! We use language every day to communicate with each other, but our mother...
Understanding marketing and social media marketing
In this first of two articles, I will try to situate social media marketing (SMM) within the wider marketing discipline, after situating marketing within organisations. However, I will strip everything down to the bare bones and provide sound-bite type information...
Feedback: PEG’s Editing Fiction webinar
On 11 December 2021, PEG held an online workshop, attended by 30 wordsmiths, on the subject of editing the genre of fiction. It was also the pretext for officially launching PEG’s latest guide, Editing fiction, authored by Máire Fisher and Nella Freund, with the assistance of PEG’s Isabelle Delvare. At least 60% of those present were attending to learn more about the genre and its particular demands, not having dipped their toes into such waters before and wondering if it’s for them. A small number of the participants identified themselves as seasoned fiction editors hoping to pick up some useful hints and tips.
When to use a hyphen
Judging by the queries raised on the PEG chat group, the humble hyphen seems to have a lot of explaining to do! In this post, I focus on its many and varied uses in South African and UK English. Perhaps a few guidelines on the reasons for its usage (or not) will be useful.
10 tips for better blog writing
Blog writing has become something of an artform on its own. There are rules and best practices that define the skill of writing engaging content for the web. The key to strong blog writing is to keep it focused and to make it easy to digest – you want to make people stop scrolling.
Professional editors adhere to an ethical code
In the first post in this series, we defined professionalism and identified three criteria of being a professional editor. We discussed specific knowledge and skill in the second post and remuneration in the third. In this final post, we’ll look at an ethical code of practice as central to professionalism.
Why should a thesis be edited?
A thesis is the personal work of a student attempting to achieve a master’s or doctoral degree in a chosen field. It needs to be written in an academic style that would be found acceptable within the international community.
Professionalism means fair remuneration for expert services
Now it’s time to think about what it means to charge for professional editing and proofreading services within the context of PEG’s Code of Conduct and what it means to be a professional editor.
The heart of New Hart’s Rules
It was 9 October 1916 and a few months into the third year of the First World War. Horace Hart, the visionary who saw the necessity of penning down the style rules for the English language, had taken his own life.
Professionalism is rooted in skill and knowledge
This question may have an obvious answer but when you look a little deeper into our profession, you’ll find many of us without formal training as copy editors and proofreaders.
How to use colons and semicolons
Ever wonder how to use colons and semicolons? In this edition of PEGblog, Lyn Aecer attempts to win over some editors to the use of these marks while they improve texts.
What does it mean to be a professional editor?
To kick off our blog, editor and writing consultant Alexis Grewan tells us what it means to be a professional editor in a four-part series of posts.
Welcome to PEGblog!
PEG is proud and pleased to announce the launch of PEGblog. We hope that you will visit us often to read the latest posts and to interact with PEG and its members.
