If you work with a coauthor, an editor, or simply want to track revisions to your writing yourself, the best tool available to most of us is Microsoft Word. Say what you will about the software giant, but there really are no alternatives that measure up, including Google Docs and Open Office, when it comes to tracking and managing edits.

I recently had the privilege of editing volume one of Tami’s web-serial, Choose, which should be published Real Soon Now®. Tami uses Scrivener for her writing, which, although it uses a proprietary format, does export to a Rich Text Format (RTF) file. That file, in turn, gets emailed to me, and I import it into Word.¹

Since I’ll be discussing both versions of Word, keep in mind that Word 2007 is the Windows version; Word 2008 is the Mac version.²

And this brings us to the crux of the matter, which applies whether you are editing your own, or someone else’s work: How can you use Word’s reviewing tools to manage changes, whether edits or revisions?

Track Changes

While a lot of “old-school” users of Word aren’t too fond of the “ribbon” introduced in Office 2007, it really is pretty robust. In fact, Word 2007 is a fairly robust upgrade to the previous version in just about every way. But the ribbon makes accessing Word’s reviewing tools even easier: You don’t have to search submenus to figure it out. Instead, simply click the Review button on the toolbar, then the Track Changes button (click to enlarge all photos):

Track Changes - Word 2007

Note the Comments box just to the left of the Tracking box: As you’ll see shortly, comments are invaluable for the reviewer to communicate with the author. (Comments are also a very handy way for authors to make notes for later follow-up.)

On the Mac, click the main menu Tools button, scroll down to Track Changes, and select “Highlight Changes”:

Track Changes - Word 2008 for Mac

From this point on, every change you make to the document, including additions, deletions, spelling corrections, and format changes (e.g., bold to italic) will be documented. Here is a sample page from each version of Word, with the Windows version on the left; Mac on the right (note the changes are not all the same between these two screenshots, but that isn’t really germane):

Sample edits - Winword

Sample edits - MacWord

Incidentally, even this small sampling should give you a pretty good idea why a manuscript submitted for editing must be double-spaced!

Comments

Making comments is one of the most important ways you can help yourself (or the author for whom you are editing or proofreading) highlight items that may need a closer inspection.

When I’m writing, I use comments to remind myself that I may need to do some research (how long does it take to drive from the Madonna Road off-ramp on US 101 in San Luis Obispo, to the intersection of Broad and Higuera?), develop some backstory for a new character, or other things I don’t want to do right now.

When I’m editing, I’ll use comments to explain a suggested change, point out a stylistic convention, or ask the author what they really mean in a particular section. I don’t necessarily want or expect a response, but at least I’ve alerted the author to something that other readers may also question.

In Word (both versions) you can also do some limited formatting in comments, in terms of bold, italic, and underlining. It will also convert into a smiley.

Accept/Reject Changes

Congratulations! You, or someone else, has painstakingly gone through your opus and highlighted a whole bunch of stuff you need to consider. While the temptation to hit “Accept all” (if you did the editing) or “Reject all” (if someone else did it) may be very tempting…don’t! If you find yourself falling into that trap, then it’s time to take a break until you can focus again on the details.

Here’s what the controls look like for each version:

Accept Changes - PC

Accept Changes - Mac

The Winword implementation is especially friendly, with its “Accept and Move to Next” option; on the Mac, you need to click the “Move to Next” button after each change is accepted or rejected. One thing to keep in mind is, if you accept or reject a change but want to look at it again, you can use the “undo” function here as well as elsewhere in your writing and editing.³

Now What?

Alright, you’ve made your edits and incorporated them. Hopefully, you’ve addressed all the issues brought up in comments. And of course, you’ve saved your revised document in two or three places.⁴ So now what?

If you’re working with a coauthor or editor, it’s time to collaborate again. You have a solid draft now, but there is probably plenty of opportunity to further tighten up the writing. Don’t get rid of earlier drafts, of course, but use the current one as a baseline.

If this was your first time through the document, you’ve cleaned up typos and grammar goof. Your manuscript is clean, but is it tight? Is it ready for primetime, either posted on the Web, or ready to be shopped around to agents and publishers? If not, it’s back to work on the next revision…but that’s something better left to those who know more about such things.

How To Use MS Word to Track Edits and Revisions is a post from: Kestrel's Aerie

 

What Is This?

Following the lead of my mentor, friend, and exemplar, Tami Moore, this is a weekly article to document progress in meeting my writing goals as described here.

I set up an Excel spreadsheet to track all my work by category (blog post, copyediting work, creative writing) and item. So all I need to do is add up the “words” column and I’m good to go. I’ve also decided to give this article half-credit, since I do a bit more than just paste boilerplate and fill in numbers (see the next section, for example). However, it will be counted in the following week’s total.

How Did I Do?

My weekly goal is 1,500 words.This week, I published two articles to the blog. I also did the first run-through on copyediting Tami’s Choose: Volume 1 – The Search for a Captain. For accountability purposes, I’m counting copyediting at ten percent of the original word count. I also prepared a style sheet for Choose, which I am counting at 25 percent.¹

I should say, right off the bat, rereading the first several episodes of Choose was loads of fun. I found things I’d completely forgotten about, and laughed out loud at several passages (no, not because they were bad, but because they were hilariously funny!). I can’t wait for Tami to finish this project and publish it, so we—you and I—can all read it again, in one sitting.

This first major copyediting project has been a real eye-opener. I’ve edited several chapters of Feather Path for Iris Harper, as well as Bre’s short story, Waking Iris, but Choose is at least as large as the preceding, combined. And because I’m looking at the entirety of the document at one time, rather than just a few pages, I’m approaching this from a completely different perspective. It really makes me want to go back to those earlier manuscripts, and give them the same attention I’m devoting to Choose. However, I have projects for both ladies pending, and I promise to give them the same, more in-depth treatment that Tami’s manuscript is receiving.

• “Passive and Possessive—Pronouns for Pros” – Blog Article – 773 words
• “Two-Minute Drill: Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda, and More” – 706 words
• Choose: Volume 1 – Copyediting – 20,000 words @ 10 percent – 2,000 words
• Style sheet for Choose – Copyediting – 531 words @ 25 percent – 133 words

Total: 3,612 words. Considering I’ve been hitting 1,500 words per week without really trying, I’m going to raise the bar to 2,000 words, despite leaving on a 3-week vacation on Monday. While that increase may not seem like a lot, had I not been editing Choose, would I have hit 1,500? I’d like to think so.

Raising the goal to 2,000 words will also give me the incentive to maintain two or three blog posts each week, as well as do some creative writing each week. I’d like to see that goal bumped up to 3,000 words, but I also know that spring (and summer) will eventually arrive, and I’ll be outdoors more, instead of in front of the computer all day.

Short Grammar Quiz

Over the past couple weeks, I’ve collected a few examples of what not to do, as I’ve been reading various and sundry blogs. I’m going to show you some of those, and let you determine why I’ve selected them. If, by chance, you happen to recognize the snippet, please understand that in no way is my intent to disparage the authors or their blogs; simply to illustrate “real-life” examples of errors in grammar or punctuation. With that, take look at these and see if you can determine why I included them. Feel free to answer in the comments. Also, be warned: The errors are not all that difficult to spot; there are no “gotchas.”

1. … prevent them from dieing …
2. You’ll commonly hear “bring the player, not the class”.
3. If someone is moving better then I [am]
4. some 3/32th inch elastic cord
5. The traffic to the server is increased massively since Christmas, it looks like there are no end of people
6. See if your a Canadian or … can count on always having on in your party

Weekly Word Count: January 22 is a post from: Kestrel's Aerie

 

The podcasts themselves are fairly short, around 5 minutes long, give or take. They are recorded by Wendalyn Nichols, the editor of Copyediting magazine. Unfortunately, the category and tags only provide Podcasts 4 through 9; the archives may have the first three, but I didn’t look that far back. A search on “fiddly rules,” however, didn’t bring up the first three either.

So what are these fiddly rules? Some are simply an effort to remove the confusion surrounding the use of words that have similar spelling or sounds, but are quite different in meaning; for example, keeping “assure,” “ensure,” and “insure” straight, or the difference between “disabuse” and “disavow.”

Others address rules that are suggested more as “best practices.” For instance, Wendalyn recommends changing “irregardless” (which is a real word) to “regardless,” regardless of where it appears. She also addresses the use of “a” and “an” before words beginning with h.

If you’re a student of language, or simply enjoy lexicography, or want to improve your writing, I strongly endorse these short, entertaining podcasts as a way to stay on your toes with respect to some of the fiddly nuances of our language. But if you’d rather read blog articles than listen to podcasts, I’ll probably address most, if not all, of Ms Nichols’s rules in future posts.

Fiddly Rules is a post from: Kestrel's Aerie

 

If you are passionate about writing, too, then you should be passionate about getting it right, and that’s what I’ll help you do through the next several paragraphs.

Prepare your manuscript for editing

Currently, I do my editing in Microsoft Word 2008 for Macintosh; I also have Word for Windows 2007, but I haven’t reinstalled it under Windows 7. So when I talk about how to do a particular function, I’m speaking specifically of the latest releases of Word; however, most word processors have similar functions. In fact, the exact steps may be identical to Word’s.

Everyone has their own way of composing: I’m going to make a wild guess that 99 percent of you did so on your computers, rather than with quill pens on foolscap or #2 pencils on legal pads. For the one percent of you who are that deeply into self-abuse, this is not the help you need!

The first thing we’ll do is set up your manuscript for editing. Whether you’ll edit by hand (i.e., print the entire document and blue-pencil it) or electronically (using your software’s proofing tools), the steps I’ll discuss in this section are the same. The aim here is to give yourself some room to see your manuscript as individual words. You aren’t working on content at this point: Instead, you’re going to perform a whole slough of “mechanical” tasks first. In addition, don’t turn on your “track changes” tool in your word processing software—it’s much too early for that.

Format 1.5" margins all around; double-space; Courier-12

First, format your manuscript with 1.5” (3.81cm) margins all around. You want plenty of room for notes and proofreaders’ marks, regardless of your editing and proofing method. Next, select all of your text (usually, CtrlL-A in Windows; Cmd-A in OS X). Then, change your font to 12-point Courier.

Say what? UGH! What an ugly font! Indeed it is, but keep in mind what our objective is at this point: We want to see individual words, sentences, paragraphs. Proportional fonts (Calibri, Times New Roman, Arial, Garamond) are designed to help us read, and typically when we read, we do not read one word at a time. Thus, those fonts help words and sentences flow together. A fixed-width font, on the other hand (especially Courier), does not make for easy reading.¹

Get rid of those extraneous spaces!

Since your final product will be presented in a proportional font, you need to format it as a typesetter would. So before you turn on Track Changes, you are going to go on a search and destroy mission. Many of us were taught, when we learned to type, to insert two spaces after a period (full stop) or colon. (If you are using a manual typewriter, disregard the following.) In typesetting (i.e., using proportional fonts), only one space follows a period or colon. The reason for this is the proportionality: Depending on the length of the line, regardless of whether paragraphs are right-justified or “ragged-right,” any given space may be em- or en-width. Simply defined, that’s the width of an “m” or “n” in the font.²

In modern typography, double-spacing after a period or colon is wrong. Get used to it.

Now, you may be rebelling at this dictum, but I promise you: The first trained editor who works on your manuscript (whether it’s your NaNo novel or some other opus) will obliterate those extraneous spaces. And they probably won’t be kind.³

In Word, Ctrl-H or Shift-Cmd-H brings up the Find/Replace dialog. In the “Find” window, type two spaces; in “Replace” type a single space. Then hit “Replace All.” Repeat until zero occurrences are found.⁴

Run that spell-checker

Still with Track Changes off, it’s time to turn on your spelling checker. As Tami mentioned in her outline to our Saucy Wenches podcast, be prepared to be blinded by red squiggly lines! You need to do something with each and every one of those beauties.

Take your time, and be sure you check and double-check everything that is highlighted. If it’s a name (especially if it’s a name!) be very sure the first occurrence is spelled correctly, then add it to your spell-checker’s dictionary.⁵

If your hero’s name is “F’lar” you need to fix Flar, Fi’lar, and Fl’ar.

I promise you, especially if you’re writing speculative fiction (science fiction, fantasy, or paranormal) and you used weird names, you misspelled a character’s name at least once. For example, if your hero’s name is “F’lar,” you want to correct occurrences of “Flar,” “Fi’lar” and “Fl’ar.”⁶

If you choose to “Ignore” a highlighted word, be sure you check the “Ignore all” box so all like occurrences are now accepted. That way, when you see it highlighted again, you’ll know that this time it’s not spelled the way you want.

This is also a good time to have a real dictionary handy: There is a good possibility you misspelled a word because you don’t use it often. And if you don’t use a word often, there is likewise a probability you are using it improperly. A list of examples is outside the scope of the current article, but Temerity-Jane’s “Winceable” article is a great place to find some.

More fun with find and replace

If you are into self-flagellation, this next suggestion is for you: Get a list of homophones (words that sound alike but are spelled differently, such as their, there, they’re or to, too, two) and do a search on each of them. Be sure you used the right form. Alternatively, if you consistently use the wrong spelling of “there,” for example, just run that through your finder, and be sure you get them all right.

As you can see, you do a lot of mechanical stuff with Find/Replace: Your imagination and capacity for self-abuse are the only limits.

Now you’re ready for the heavy lifting. I hope you’ve been working out.

If you happen to have a copy of the AP Stylebook, Chicago Manual of Style, or Strunk & White’s The Elements of Style, I respectfully suggest you loan them to a friend for the duration; preferably, a friend in another country.

The first two of those resources are intended primarily for journalists and other nonfiction authors, where strict adherence to style is considerably more important than in fiction writing. To a newspaper copy editor, for example, adjectives are anathema.⁷ In nonfiction, there are a lot more strictures to be observed than in nonfiction, so those books are essential.⁸

On the other hand, a good dictionary is now your very best friend. What you do not want your readers to do is sound like Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride: “…that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” A good dictionary (and I can’t recommend Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 11th Edition (Web11) too highly) does a lot more than provide proper spelling: It is replete with usage examples, as well as comments on style.⁹

And now…start reading. But not for content; not to find out “what happens next.” You’re looking for misplaced modifiers, missing (and extraneous) commas, punctuation errors, missing words. Oh! the drudgery.

• Do your sentences and paragraphs flow?
• Did you suddenly start referring to a character you never properly introduced?
• Is the timeline correct?
• Does your hero’s eye color change from blue to green and back to blue?
• Does the heroine’s hair change from short and curled to long and straight, from blonde to redhead?

And those are the simple things!

In case you didn’t do it while writing (or beforehand), now is when you must do research.

If your novel is set during WWII, your characters shouldn’t be drinking mojitos.

• If your story takes place in another country, and you write about a Saturday mail delivery, are you certain the post is delivered on Saturdays there?
• If your protagonist is driving from Kansas City to St. Louis, is she driving east, and on Interstate 70, rather than west on I-80?
• Are the period details in your story accurate and contemporary? If your novel is set during World War II, for example, you probably shouldn’t have your characters drinking Long Island Ice Tea and mojitos. (Gin and tonic or Scotch and soda would be more appropriate, in case you’re wondering.)

I think this is probably a good place to stop for now. The next Saucy Wenches podcast, and a future article of mine, will discuss some of the other parts of copyediting, such as what to do when you realize you skipped a whole chapter, put it in the wrong place, or wrote a chapter that doesn’t even belong.

In addition, I’ll have several shorter (thank God!) articles on specific elements of punctuation and grammar. In the meantime, I’d like to know from you what specific problems you’ve run into, and if you’d like me to address any of them. (And yes, I fully intend to address the who/whom question from the podcast!) Feel free to make suggestions in the comments.

Copyediting 1A: Nitpick Your NaNo is a post from: Kestrel's Aerie

 

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article on grammar that was as well-received as anything I’ve written in over two years of blogging. Last week, TJ wrote a post in similar vein, and to date has over 200 comments on that column. Clearly, there is an interest in the topic. I suspect much of that interest is because many blog readers are also blog authors, and most of us (I hope all of us, actually) want to present our material in a readable, grammatically correct manner.

I love words: I love what they do, to present all kinds of information, to convey emotions, to make us laugh or cry, to inform or influence us. The history and etymology of words fascinates me, as does the way language is used today, and how it evolves.¹

A few months ago, I discovered (and I still don’t remember how) Deanna Hoak’s blog. Deanna is a professional freelance copyeditor. Most, if not all, of what she works on are fantasy or science fiction books. She wrote some fascinating (to me, at least) articles on copyediting and grammar on her original Live Journal blog, then ported them to WordPress some time later. If you are curious about the art of copyediting, I strongly recommend her writings to you.

Yesterday, either from a link in Twitter or in another blog, I found the blog of a former copy editor² for The Baltimore Sun, John McIntyre. The name of his blog is “You Don’t Say,” wherein he “comments on language, editing, journalism, and other manifestations of human frailty.” I spent a good couple hours there, reveling in his take on words, language, and railing against the AP Stylebook. And from the looks of it, Mr. McIntyre’s blogroll is a gold mine of resources. I need to find the time to explore further!

As I was reading Mr. McIntyre’s prose, I had an epiphany: I enjoy editing. I want to do more. In fact, I added Merriam-Webster’s Concise Dictionary of English Usage to my Amazon wishlist, to help me “get it right.”

I had an epiphany: I enjoy editing, and I want to do more!

Throughout my working career, I was always recognized by peers and superiors as a very good writer. I was always being asked to either ghost-write documents for others or to edit the work of others. Although I only got a “C” in freshman English Comp, I learned a lot more than that grade reflected. I was also in Air Force ROTC, and a lot of that curriculum had to do with writing clearly and concisely, a habit that has been ingrained in me.³

As many of you are aware, I’ve been asked to be a guest on the Saucy Wenches Podcast early next month, by my two very good friends Tami and Bre. I’ll talk about how to prepare your NaNoWriMo novel for initial editing, and some preliminary steps you can take in the review process.

I’ve also been asked to copyedit two novels from NaNo; I only hope I can manage the time! But if this is truly becoming a passion for me, I think I won’t have any difficulty in that regard. I suspect I’ll spend a lot less time reading blogs just to pass the time.

And yes, you can certainly find the things I’ll be writing about elsewhere on the Web, but most of you don’t read those other sources. And for those of you not so caught up in writing and words, I’ll still be writing other articles on many other

Over the next few weeks, I’ll also be posting several shorter articles on particular “grammar gotchas,” and I invite your suggestions for even more topics. Some of these will have been covered earlier, perhaps in my initial article, or in TJ’s. But they will all be in the umbrella category of “Writing,” and will share either a “copyediting” or “grammar” tag, or both. To help us all keep track, there’ll be a new page here to list what’s planned, and what’s already been covered.

Finally, several of us are taking part in a grammar wave. If you’re on Google Wave and would like to take part, let me know.

I certainly have enough material to keep me busy for awhile, but I’d love to keep this as interactive as possible, so if there’s a particular bugaboo of yours you’d like me to discuss, just let me know.

Discovery, or My “Eureka!” Moment is a post from: Kestrel's Aerie