Archive for the ‘Persistence’ Category
Bad Weather, Bad Health
Folks, I haven’t had much to report in the past week-plus that’s any good, which is the main reason I haven’t blogged. My health is still terrible, I’m still trying to get better, and almost all of my energy is going toward my paying work (that, of course, being editing).
During this time, I’ve had to withdraw from participation in the December UW-Parkside Community Band concert due to my health continuing to act up, and I’ve hardly left the house except for doctor appointments and a few shopping trips (as despite it all, I still need food).
Today, though, there was a new threat: inclement weather.
We had at least five tornado warnings in Racine County this morning, it seemed like, and while all these didn’t pan out, they’re scary while they’re happening. We’ve also had high winds, flash flooding, and many other problems we rarely see in November in Wisconsin, which has made Sunday enormously challenging all the way around.
Granted, we’ve been spared the devastation Illinois has suffered in a few places. We’ve mostly been spared anything except for some cows dying, a few roofs blowing off, and of course traffic issues due to streets flooding out in various low-lying areas all over Wisconsin.
For my friends who live in Southeastern Wisconsin, I hope you all will be cautious and safe during this time.
Me, I plan to stay home. (What a surprise, eh?) And if the winds stop blowing so hard, I’ll try to do some work later on, once I’ve caught up on a wee bit more rest. (As it’s far from restful to hear siren after siren, though I’m very glad the sirens worked and were able to warn everyone, no lie.)
And it probably goes without saying, but here goes: May the week ahead be far, far better than this for us all.
Just Reviewed “Brave Genius” at SBR
Folks, I’ve rarely read such an entertaining, interesting, thought-provoking piece of nonfiction as Sean B. Carroll’s BRAVE GENIUS: A Scientist, a Philosopher, and Their Daring Adventures from the French Resistance to the Nobel Prize, which is why I reviewed it this evening over at Shiny Book Review (SBR for short, as always). Carroll’s conception is this — if not for the French Resistance, would we even know about Albert Camus or Jacques Monod? Would they be the same men? Would they have the same drive? And without them, would the Resistance have been anywhere near as effective?
Everything else in BRAVE GENIUS, including Camus’ sterling accomplishments as a writer and philosopher and Monod’s work with enzymes (and Monod’s later accomplishment as the writer of perhaps the most unlikely bestseller in the history of mankind, CHANCE AND NECESSITY), is subordinate to this premise. And Carroll makes a very good case as to why this was so, to the point that I compared his case a few times to Malcolm Gladwell’s OUTLIERS.
Here we have two men who were at the beginning of their careers in 1940 when the French government fell to the Nazis. (Carroll calls this “leading ordinary lives,” but I don’t really think any life is ordinary. I’d rather say that they were still important, driven men who hadn’t yet found their voices.) They were forged in the fire of the French Resistance, and without their efforts — Monod as “Malivert,” one of the top fund-raisers and activists in all of the French Resistance, and Camus as the then-unknown editor of the influential underground newspaper Combat — would everything have taken the same course at the end of World War II?
The World War II historicity here is palpable. The suspense is still there, sixty-plus years after all of Monod’s and Camus’s efforts. And it’s by far the standout part of the book, which it needs to be as this is Carroll’s central premise.
Overall, I think BRAVE GENIUS is one of the most interesting, most compelling pieces of nonfiction I’ve read all year. It’s not 100% perfect (which is why I gave it an A rather than an A-plus), but it’s riveting, especially in those World War II sections. Literally, if you open this book up and start reading, you won’t want to stop, even though some of Camus’s ideas (not to mention Monod’s research) takes more than a bit of thought to plow through.
That said, I think you definitely should continue on with BRAVE GENIUS no matter how long it takes you to finish it, precisely because those ideas are so important.
Really, if you’ve ever cared why existentialism as a philosophy matters (even though there’s evidence Camus hated the term and probably would’ve come up with another one, given time), or wondered what the French Resistance actually did during the Vichy appeasement besides the simple term “resist,” this book is for you. And if you want to know why Monod’s research was so important, or more about Monod’s book CHANCE AND NECESSITY (not an easy read to get through, but a book with more compelling ideas per capita than most), or simply want to know more about what these two important, influential men were like as people, this book is for you.
I couldn’t recommend this book more highly, in short . . . so go grab a copy of BRAVE GENIUS (from your local library, if nothing else) and start reading as soon as you can. Then come back here and let me know what you thought.
High Heat, Humidity in WI Weighs Me Down
Folks, I have many topics to discuss (including figure skater Johnny Weir’s great appearance on Keith Olbermann’s new show on ESPN2 Monday night), but the high heat and humidity that Wisconsin has been visited with over the last few days has been difficult for me to bear.
Worse yet, we’ve had next to no rain for a week. This is really bad, because without rain washing the pollution out of the air, the air quality gets that much worse — whether the official indicators actually pick it up or not.
I have asthma, which acts up more under these conditions. (The temperature was 97 F on Tuesday. Yikes.) So maybe that’s why I’ve not been able to write much, on or off my blog, in several days . . . instead, I’ve spent my time going over my novel, ELFY, and editing other people’s manuscripts. (Except for Tuesday, where I spent the whole day resting. 97 is just too hot to be borne. Seriously.)
Anyway, I keep telling myself that even on days like these — where I struggle to breathe and think — it’s important to hold a positive thought. I may have to take some time out for ill health now and again. But if I keep trying, eventually I will succeed.
And I’ve worked far too long, and far too hard, to allow this little setback to keep me away from my computer for too long. (Guaranteed.)
Once this weather gets a little easier for me to deal with, I plan on talking more about Weir’s important and interesting talk with Olbermann regarding the 2014 Sochi Olympics and several other subjects, including a look at the Milwaukee Brewers’ September call-ups (and other assorted rookies). Plus, I still have a romance to review at Shiny Book Review (THE LADY MOST WILLING . . . ) — which is why I plan to take up the gauntlet again in a few days.
But for now, the sensible path is to rest. So I will do that, and hope to discuss more in a few days once the insanely hot weather is supposed to finally work its way out of here.
An Update Regarding Michael’s Novellas
It’s time, and past time, to give you all an update regarding my late husband Michael B. Caffrey’s “Joey Maverick” novellas. So here we go.
Over the next several weeks, I’m going to offer two different “Maverick” stories, “A Dark and Stormy Night” and “On Westmount Station.” Cover art has been chosen, and formatting is about to get underway for independent e-book publication.
“A Dark and Stormy Night” is about a low-tech sailing regatta in the future; Joey Maverick is merely a crewman on one of the sailing ships. When a vicious storm sets in, the captain is incapacitated, and Joey must take charge. Rescues ensue, and Joey encounters feisty nurse Belinda Simpson, who is a pain in the caboose to deal with as she questions Joey’s authority at every turn . . . so why does Joey feel so attracted to her? Ultimately, “A Dark and Stormy Night” is an excellent action-adventure story with just a touch of low-key romance that’s appropriate for all ages.
“On Westmount Station” is a more typical milSF story because Lieutenant Joey Maverick is about to go off to space. However, there’s a little problem on Westmount Station that no one quite expected as there’s a bomb in an unexpected place. Joey’s the man on the spot; he and his new team must defuse the bomb before it’s too late, and deal with the terrorist in question besides . . . there’s action, there’s suspense, there’s mystery, and then there’s Joey, who has to be one of the more fun, albeit low-key, characters I’ve ever had the pleasure to read about. Truly, this is a story that many people will enjoy, especially if you like your military adventure with just a touch of wry.
If these stories do well, I plan to work on fleshing out a third novella in 2014.
These stories will have bylines of “by Michael B. Caffrey with Barb Caffrey” as I edited and smoothed out various things in the first novella, while I added a subplot, action and additional characters in the latter. But they firmly are Michael’s stories, set in Michael’s universe, using Michael’s main character Joey Maverick and should be enjoyed by anyone who loved my husband’s work.
People have asked me many times over the years since Michael’s passing why I’ve been bound and determined to keep Michael’s writing alive (as Michael wrote the first novella back in 2000, and what turned into the second novella in 2001). It’s very simple, really; Michael was an exceptionally gifted writer. I want his words to live, because he worked hard on them, the stories are excellent, and I think many people will enjoy them if they only have the opportunity to find and read them.
I don’t know what else Michael would have written had he lived. But I do know this: He was every bit as persistent as I am. He would not have given up on his own work. And he would want me to get these stories out there in whatever form, because he knew what he’d done and he wanted others to read his stories.
I plan to offer the two novellas at Amazon through Kindle Direct Publishing, at Smashwords, and at BN.com, among others . . . and I hope that everyone who has an interest in my husband’s work will buy them. (Please!)
Milwaukee Brewers’ Woes Continue: Corey Hart Lost for the Year
In 2013, the Milwaukee Brewers cannot seem to catch a break no matter how hard they try. When the starting pitching is good, the offense is bad. When the offense is good, the starting pitching is bad. And sometimes, when both the offense and starting pitching are good, the defense is so horrid that it wipes out all of the team’s gains.
This is why I was looking forward to the return of Brewers first baseman/right fielder Corey Hart so much. Hart plays good defense, hits well (and for power, too), is a two-time All-Star, and plays good, solid fundamental baseball.
Now, if you’ve read any of my previous blogs about the Milwaukee Brewers and their dreadful 2013 season, you know that one of the things that’s irked me about the 2013 Brewers is the lack of fundamental baseball instincts by most of the players on the club. When someone needs to hit to the right side to advance a runner from second to third, he invariably hits to the left side and a double play somehow ensues. When someone needs to hit a long, fly ball to drive in a run (a sacrifice fly), that’s when a little squib hit comes about that once again seems to always turn into a double play.
And, of course, this is the season where runners have been thrown out trying to take extra bases at least seven times, with the offenders being the best and healthiest players on the club to date: Carlos Gomez, Jean Segura, and Nori Aoki. (Before anyone pinches a fit, yes, I know full well that Ryan Braun is by far the best player on this team, but he is on the disabled list right now. Plus, I haven’t noticed him running into outs on the bases, though the year is young.)
At any rate, Hart hits well, plays a good and solid first base, knows his fundamentals cold, and is known as a “good team guy” for whatever that’s worth. (Some years, you don’t necessarily need a good team guy. But this year, I’d say the Brewers needs as many of them as they can find. But I digress.) So it was a big blow when, before the start of Thursday’s game, the Brewers announced that Corey Hart’s left knee — his non-surgically repaired knee — had also become injured and needed surgery, which means Hart will not play at all during 2013. The best guess as to why Hart was injured was due to the rehabilitation process he’d been enduring to get his right knee up to snuff.
Now, I’m no doctor, but I have had to rehab injuries before — most recently, I had cortisone shots given to me in both the left wrist and the right wrist in order to alleviate my carpal tunnel syndrome during consecutive weeks, to perhaps play my instruments a little better (and with less pain, to boot). While waiting for the left wrist to heal, I strained the right wrist . . . while waiting for the right wrist to heal, my left wrist had to take more weight and did more, so it hurt more, though I seem to have avoided an actual strain.
This is what probably happened to Corey Hart, too. While trying to get his right knee up to speed so he could play baseball well enough to get onto the field, he somehow strained his left knee. Because the right knee hurt so much — this is my best guess, mind — he didn’t really know that the left knee was hurting, or maybe he figured he’d strained it but there was nothing to be done.
Obviously, Hart didn’t know that he’d injured the left knee, too, during his rehab, until the team doctor recently told him. Then Hart went to consult with the team doctor for the Los Angeles Angels, who agreed with the Brewers’ team doctor’s assessment.
This was the worst thing that could happen to Hart at this stage of his career, as he was due to become a free agent at the end of this season. Now, he’ll have to prove that he’s healthy enough to play next year before anyone signs him, and he’ll most likely make a far lesser amount than he would’ve if the left knee hadn’t given out as well.
And it also hurts Brewers fans, because we have so little to cheer for in the first place that many of us, myself included, were avidly looking forward to Hart’s return.
At any rate, the important thing now for Hart is to realize that he needs to get healthy. If he has to stay out of baseball for a year in order to do it — and I don’t mean just the rest of this year, but all of next year, too — he should do it. Only when he’s fully healthy should he attempt a comeback . . . but whatever team he plays for, whether it’s the Brewers or not, I know one thing:
I’ll be rooting for him.
Working Away While Slowly Recovering
Folks, as I said a few weeks ago, my blogs may be few and far between for a while. My health continues to slow me down, though I have recovered a teensy bit of energy and have been able to do more in the way of editing for the past week or so.
Still, because I was so ill, I got behind in my various editorial projects. That means everything else got behind as well, including the various reviews I’d hoped to write for Chris Nuttall’s THE ROYAL SORCERESS, Ash Krafton’s second novel, and Karen Myers’ two novels in her Hounds of Annwn series. (These books all will be reviewed ASAP, but all depends on my health continuing to improve — or at least not to decline again.) And let’s not even start talking about any other writing, as everything — including e-mails to friends and colleagues — has taken a back burner to completing at least one edit for the past week-plus.
Fortunately, I’ve now done exactly that — completed work on one edit. (There are still three more in the pipeline, of course. But one beats none.) This means I might have a little time left over to write with, so that means I may be able to better work on my blog, my book reviews, and of course my fiction writing if I am able to set aside any time for it.
At any rate, as I’ve said here before, it took months for my health to become this bad. So it’s going to take months before my health returns to some semblance of normalcy. That means I have to continue to pace myself, get as much rest as possible, and try not to get frustrated as I’m assuredly going to have days where I can do almost nothing.
But the key is “almost.” And if I can do something, no matter how small — and no matter how fleeting — the day isn’t a complete and total write-off. Which means I’m doing all I can, and that I’m still progressing toward my goals.
And as that’s all I can do, I’ll take it.
Practice Tonight, Concert Tomorrow
This week, I obviously haven’t blogged very much, and there’s a reason for that.
You see, even though I’m still far more “off” than “on” and have little energy due to being sick for nearly three months in a row, I was asked months ago to play a concert tomorrow evening at the Case High School theatre in Racine, Wisconsin with the Racine Concert Band. (I regularly play with the RCB, but mostly in the summer months.)
And of course, at the time, I said yes.
When this concert’s first rehearsal came up a few weeks ago, I told them that I was still recovering from bronchitis and that a new therapy had been started. (True.) I had hopes the new therapy would help, but I didn’t know how long that it would take to restore my energy level to the point where I could play. So I said at that point that I’d prefer not to play this concert — not because I didn’t want to play, but because I feared I would be completely and totally unable to play.
An aside: My degrees are in music performance, mostly. (My Bachelor’s of Arts from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside had enough credits that I could’ve taken a degree beyond music, had I wished, and I certainly had enough credits for both an English and history minor, if Parkside did minors. But I didn’t.) So performing music in front of people, no matter how terribly I feel at the time, is what I’ve trained for my entire life.
This is why, when the RCB wasn’t able to get a substitute clarinet player — they thought they had one, but that person backed out — I decided to play the concert and the subsequent rehearsals, even knowing that the rehearsals would take a good deal of my available energy along with my available concentration, and also would keep me from blogging very much or doing much in the way of editing, either.
Of course, there’s no guarantee even without playing this concert, as lousy as I’ve felt, that I’d have been able to do that much more. I’ve been told that I’m exhausted for the past five or six months, including before I was diagnosed in mid-April with acute bronchitis. And while for a time I was able to keep “bulling through” and accomplishing what I needed to accomplish as a writer, editor and musician, after that bronchitis hit me I had nothing left to “bull through” with.
What I’m trying to do now is to manage the exhaustion, get as much rest as I possibly can, and to limit stress. These are not easy things for me to do at all, but because I was able to do some of them, plus that medical therapy I discussed before (basically I’m taking twice as much of one type of medicine as before in order to limit acid reflux, as reflux plays into both bronchitis and asthma), I’ve been able to play the rehearsals and will play tomorrow’s concert. (Well, tonight‘s concert, as it’s clicked over past midnight as I’ve been editing this.)
Now, am I playing very well right now? In my own personal (and professional) estimation, no, I’m not. I’m at about fifty, maybe sixty percent of what I’m capable of when I’m healthy. (And that’s not what I’m capable of when I’m at the top of my game, mind you — that’s just when I’m healthy and able to play.) So I’ve been able to completely learn the parts, which is good, but I’m not able to fully play them, which isn’t.
What I’m doing to compensate for the areas I can’t play is to take longer breathing breaks than normal, so I don’t get too tired out to play. (I’ve also been smart about taking my asthma inhaler and such, as there’s no need to be any more stupid than I must.) And if I have to, I take things in two- or four-measure chunks . . . whatever it takes in order to play the music as written, at least as much of it as I’m able to play at this time.
But the band knew this. The conductor knew this. And they still wanted me to play.
Which is why I will take the stage and do my best on May 16, 2013, at 7:30 p.m. out at Case High School in Racine. The RCB has one “combined piece” with the Case High School’s best and/or senior class musicians, plus four other pieces by Robert Ward, Germaine Tailleferre, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Percy Grainger. The “big piece” is Tailleferre’s “Suite Divertimento,” written in 1977. It’s a mixture of 20th century French and Renaissance idioms, and if we play it as well as we’re capable of, it should be most impressive.
However, the piece I actually enjoy the most is “Prairie Overture” by Robert Ward. Ward is an underrated American composer who died in April at the age of 95, and his piece was written in 1957 for concert band and was only later transcribed by Ward for the orchestra. (Usually a composer writes for orchestra first and band later, if at all, which is why the concert band repertoire consists of so many arrangements.) This piece sounds both American and Western in flavor and style, but has some unique orchestration throughout that was Ward’s trademark.
I’m uncertain how many people in Racine even know about my blog, much less read it regularly. But if you live in Racine and you enjoy real, live music played by real, live musicians, you owe it to yourself to get yourself out to Case High School on Thursday night and hear these pieces for yourself.
As for my plans for after the concert, I plan to take it very slowly until I regain some more energy or strength, even though I really hate having to do so. The medical people I’ve consulted have all told me that since it took months to wreck my health, it’ll take months for me to regain the energy I no longer have. And the only way to regain that energy is to be smart, stay within myself, and try not to push myself overmuch.
All I can do right now is promise that I’ll do things as I’m able, as my health allows. This wasn’t a situation I’d expected to get into by any means, so I have no “playbook” in order to help me get back out of it.
That’s why you may, or may not, see regular blogs from me over the summer months as I do my best to slowly regain my health, strength and stamina. But if I’m able, I’ll continue to comment on whatever strikes my fancy, just as I’ve always done, in the hopes that it’ll intrigue you. Inflame you.
Or at least keep you amused. (Whatever works.)
Saturday Odds and Ends (May 2013)
Folks, there’s a number of things to cover, but I have only a limited amount of time to cover ’em all. So let’s get started with a shameless plug, shall we?
Since you already know about HOW BEER SAVED THE WORLD, please check it out. I would really appreciate it. (Links available in the prior post.)
Next, due to my health continuing to be problematic at best, I won’t be reviewing anything at Shiny Book Review this week. I do hope to review two books by Karen Myers — good, solid fantasies about fox-hunting, dogs, and just a bit of the Wild Hunt for good measure — very soon. I also have books by Ash Krafton and Chris Nuttall that I’ve read and am pondering, but am not quite ready to review . . . anyway, I plan to review these four books as soon as I can, starting with at least one book by Karen Myers next week over at SBR. So please, stay tuned.
As for everything else . . . my favorite baseball team, the Milwaukee Brewers, lost a heartbreaker at home this afternoon to the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-6. The Brewers had tied the game in the bottom of the 8th on a suicide squeeze, perfectly executed by Nori Aoki, so things looked as if the Brewers might actually be able to win against the Cardinals at home. Unfortunately, when Brewers closer Jim Henderson entered in the top of the ninth, he ended up giving up a run partly because he didn’t hold his runners on base very well. Had he done a bit better at that, the Brewers and Cardinals might still be in extras right now, tied with a score of 6-6, because Henderson pitched well aside from that.
A health update: I continue to have problems with what I’ve been told are “the remnants of bronchitis.” Because I have asthma, these remnants continue to cause me to feel completely wiped out. I’m able to concentrate better, providing I continue to rest much more than usual, and I have been able to resume work on a difficult edit in progress. I’m also thinking about various stories and worked on one of them, albeit in prose notes form only (no dialogue, a couple of brief character sketches, and scene setting), earlier today.
So that’s progress, of a sort. But it is slow.
I just have to remember that even incremental progress is still progress. And that it’s important that I keep trying . . . as if I could ever forget.
Anyway, there were a number of other stories that caught my eye this week — Howard Kurtz getting fired from the Daily Beast due to a factual inaccuracy in an article Kurtz wrote about NBA basketball player Jason Collins (Kurtz said initially that Collins didn’t explain that he’d actually been engaged to a woman for eight years, which wasn’t true — in Collins’ first-person Sports Illustrated piece, Collins clearly says that he was engaged to a woman. Kurtz’s newspaper made a correction later, saying that Collins had “downplayed” his engagement instead, which makes more sense, but apparently Kurtz himself did not make this correction.), Harper Lee suing to regain her own copyright for TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD due to what appears to be an unscrupulous agent giving her bad advice in order to profit himself, and, of all things, a second grade teacher in Colorado who taped the mouths of her twenty-eight students shut. She’s currently on paid administrative leave as, apparently, doing this to her twenty-eight students is not considered a crime in Colorado.
I’d love to write about those three things — any, or better yet, all. But right now is not the time, as I continue to have problems drawing a full breath. As long as this condition persists, my energy level is just not going to be what it should no matter how strong my will is that wishes it otherwise.
At any rate, all I can do is to get up every day and try my best. I’m doing that.
My hope is that I’ll be able to feel better soon and do much more of what I’m accustomed to doing — writing, editing, and playing music (I can’t do the last at all, and it’ll probably be at least a few more weeks before I can even make an attempt, considering) — rather than how I feel right now: more than a tad guilty for leaving three juicy blog subjects on the cutting room floor, all because my health just won’t allow me to do them justice right now.
Editorial Ramblings
Before I get into this long-overdue blog about my actual profession (writing and editing), let me say something important:
Happy Saint Patrick’s Day!
Now that I’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s talk about editing.
Because I’ve been doing so much editing lately, I’ve had trouble snapping out of “editor mode” and back into whatever mode I’m in when I write. This makes it more difficult to write blogs — even short ones — as much of my energy is being applied elsewhere.
The ability to write words is something I’ve called the “alpha state,” also known as the best place to be for a writer. This is when words flow naturally, and it’s seemingly easy to tell a story. I say “seemingly” because once you’re in the editing phase, you realize how much more work there is yet to do.
That’s why I thought today might be a good day to say a few specific words about editing. Because even though I’ve not specifically talked much about editing, it’s an extremely important part of any writer’s job whether you call yourself a “writer/editor” or not.
Writers often consider editors to be a “necessary evil” even if they, too, are editors. This is one of the odder things about the whole “writing/editing” profession; you don’t start editing unless you know something about writing, and you also don’t start editing unless you really enjoy writing (or at the very least, enjoy reading).
Yet the myth of the “Evil Editor” can’t help but persist, especially among writers who are just starting out or those who haven’t worked with many editors over time. I don’t know how this myth got started, but it really needs to come to an end. Pronto.
I can guarantee to you that, as an editor, I don’t go out of my way to cause trouble for writers. I understand writers (I should, because I am one), and I also understand the worry that an editor possibly won’t understand what you’re writing, and thus won’t be of any use to you.
For those extremely nervous writers out there (I won’t call you “nervous Nellies,” as at least some of your nerves are justifiable, if not actually justified), you need to remember that a good editor helps you clarify your thoughts and clean up your manuscript. Editors exist to help writers, to help polish up that gem of a story you have that’s ready to go out into the big, wide world — otherwise, what would be the point?
I mean, if editors were out there hoping for “perks,” the profession would’ve died out long ago.
Smart writers want editors to look over their work and give suggestions for improvement — at least, I know I want as much editorial help as I can find. Because while my writing is sound, and my ideas are fresh, why not run it by an editor and make my book even better?
Also, remember that even if you, the writer, don’t always agree with your editor, usually some sort of consensus can be reached if the lines of communication remain open. And if you’re willing to trust in the process — and not just eschew all editing because your book is perfect as it is, thank you.
Bottom line? You need to stop fearing the editor, or at least fearing the editorial process. Because your editor — whomever he or she may turn out to be — can help you improve your manuscript.
And really, isn’t that what it’s all about?
————
Note: For those of you who would prefer not to deal with editors, and think your work is perfect as it stands, thank you very many — I have news.
It isn’t.
We all need editing. Every single last solitary one of us.
So rather than fearing the editorial process, or worse, disdaining it as unnecessary, you need to work with it.
Because it’s part of being a professional writer.
And if you’re in this business to be an obnoxious boor, and are insistent that you do not need editing or editors because you are perfect in every conceivable way and the words you’ve written don’t need editing because of your self-same perfection . . . and you then proceed to denigrate editors and editing whenever you can . . . all I can say to you is this:
Grow up. (Seriously.)
Barb Caffrey's Blog 