Thread by @StevePadilla2

Here are 10 items for any editor’s 2021 to-do list.

Resolutions for Editors, No. 1: To remember it’s not your byline on the story. Also, ask yourself: “Am I making this better, or just different?”

#editing #writing #NewYearsResolutions

Resolutions for Editors, No. 2: To be positive. When you find a gem in the 20th paragraph don’t say, “You buried the lede.” Say, “This part is so good we gotta move it up.”

Resolutions for Editors, No. 3: To be positive, Part 2. Imagine you’re editing a poorly organized story but find a few paragraphs that do flow. Build on that. You can say, “This part has good transitions, but others not so much. Whatever you're doing here, do it everywhere."

Resolutions for Editors, No. 4: To read William Faulkner’s Nobel Lecture on the role of the writer. Just 557 words. Oh, that last paragraph. nobelprize.org/prizes/literat…

Resolutions for Editors, No. 5: To use this trick if you’re moving an excellent phrase, sentence or paragraph. Don’t just leave it in strike-thru, which makes the writer think you’re deleting their gem. Add a note: “Not cut, just moved.” (This prevents freak-outs.)

Resolutions for Editors, No. 6: To resist the urge to say, “We already did that.” Encourage new angles or ways to tell familiar tales. Don’t let your desk, office or Zoom call be the place where ideas come to die.

Resolutions for Editors, No. 7: To resist the urge to automatically trim every adjective and adverb. True, you probably should cut most of them, but consider their intent and meaning. If they truly reflect the reporting, why not use them?

Resolutions for Editors, No. 8: To dare your writers to end a feature story in their own voice, not a quote.

Resolutions for Editors, No. 9: To write something under your own byline—just to remember what it feels like to get edited.

Resolutions for Editors, No. 10: To take care of yourself. You’re probably not thanked enough, so allow me to thank you now. This year reminded us we can’t control events, but we can control how we use language. Let’s embrace it and try to have some fun along the way.