What is the best way to edit across electronic mediums?

[SpecialK]

What I mean by this is how do you edit someone's story and send it back to them?

I mean, when I edit, I print up a copy and take a coloured pen and hack and chop and scribble and make notes all over the margins. But on electronic mediums such as this, it is a bit tricky. I would appreciate any tips on how the rest of you editors are doing this.

K

 

[Whispersecret]

I've worked with Greg Lee Hunt on a couple of his stories. I downloaded his story to WORD 97 and edited it using some kind of red pen feature. I can't remember exactly what it's called, but it enables you to make direct changes. It shows the old stuff in black and your edited stuff in red. The only problem is that the licensed owner of the program is listed as the default author, so when I sent his edited story back, he found out some info I didn't want him to know. (He's promised to keep it a secret even under torture.)

I've also had my own story edited by Wordmage. He puts all his comments in brackets {} directly on the doc. that I send him so I can zero in on what he suggests. Then he sends it back, "corrected."

I think this second option works better. I found it very easy to pinpoint where he'd targeted something for my attention.

Does anyone have any better ways? Suggestions?

 

[Weird Harold]

Originally posted by SpecialK:
What I mean by this is how do you edit someone's story and send it back to them?

I plan on making extensive use of the 'insert comment' and 'track changes' functions of MS Word 97.

If you transcribe your 'blue pencil' from paper back into the file you printed, then the author can either compare your changes to the original version, or go through and accept or reject the changes you made to their file.

Of course where the author doesn't have a compatible word processor, then there's always the old fashioned method of inserting your comments and suggestions into a copy of the file with some identifying mark like '///' before and after to distinguish your comments from the text you are commenting on.

 

[Weird Harold]

Originally posted by whispersecret:
... WORD 97 and edited it using some kind of red pen feature. I can't remember exactly what it's called, but it enables you to make direct changes

That would be the 'track changes' function on the 'reviewing' toolbar. It can be configured to track changes by one editor in read, and another in blue an probably any other color avaialable. I've not explored to determine how many diferent sets of changes it can track at once.

The only problem is that the licensed owner of the program is listed as the default author, so when I sent his edited story back,

On the file menu select 'properties' before you save the file. You can change the name to whatever you want. There's a good bit of other information you can change there as well.

I've also had my own story edited by Wordmage. He puts all his comments in brackets {} directly on the doc. that I send him so I can zero in on what he suggests. Then he sends it back, "corrected."

I think this second option works better. I found it very easy to pinpoint where he'd targeted something for my attention.

The 'insert comments' on the insert menu, and the 'view comments' on the edit menu does the same thing, but has the added benefit of allowing you to hide or show the comments as required to check formatting of the text.

If both ends have Word 97 I think that's the best method.

 

[robertreams]

I just re-write the new version. Then add comments

 

[sr71plt]

You use the Word tracking change system. It leaves the original in tact and shows the suggested changes and the author can accept/reject in the cleanup phase. The author, though, should keep the original edit and cleanup from a copy so that the original edit can always be consulted as needed.

 

[PennLady]

You use the Word tracking change system. It leaves the original in tact and shows the suggested changes and the author can accept/reject in the cleanup phase. The author, though, should keep the original edit and cleanup from a copy so that the original edit can always be consulted as needed.

I agree on all counts. The track changes feature is easy and convenient for both the author and editor in my experience. And I always keep backups; even backups of backups.

 

[rexbrookdale]

MS Word tracking - use it to edit, but not when you submit?

Hi,

I have read a number of stories where it seemed the edits didn't 'take' in the version that was submitted to Lit. For example, the original wording and the edited version of the wording are actually side by side, in the version that we read on Lit.

At least, that's my supposition.

So, while I do use the changes tracking mode when I edit stories, I suggest to authors that you first copy and paste the edited story into a fresh document, then after saving it, submit this version (without the 'layers' of tracking changes) to Lit. That way, during the electronic submission process to Lit the edited version the author really wants to submit, comes through.

Hope that makes sense. Just a thought.

Cheers,
RB

 

[sr71plt]

I don't really understand what you are saying. You do have to either accept or reject a tracking change. When you've done that tracking change is gone. When I'm an author with tracking change, after I've been through and done all of the cleanup I go back to the top and hit "next" again in tracking change. If I've missed taking care of something, it goes there and I have another chance to do the fix.

But after you've properly been through tracking change, there won't be any tracking change programming left in the document.

 

[LadyVer]

When you're done making changes with Track Changes, it's a good idea to open the Reviewing pane from the Track Changes menu. This is the pane that shows if there are any edits left that haven't been processed.

 

[rexbrookdale]

Thanks

First, sorry to confuse you, sr71plt.

LadyVer makes the point that some edits may not have been processed. So a final check via the Reviewing Pane would be a good thing to do before submitting to Lit. Thanks, that seems to be the key.

But then perhaps the final version submitted to Lit might go one more step. The edited document possibly still contains residual 'layers' from all of the editing processes, no? Might it be best to leave behind the document with this editing 'baggage' and use a fresh new blank one for the version that's going to travel cross-platform, as it were...?

Prolly time for me to just ... go edit something.

Cheers.

 

[sr71plt]

The edited document possibly still contains residual 'layers' from all of the editing processes, no?

No, not with Word tracking change. I've posted over 600 stories at Literotica that had gone through the tracking change editing system. Not a single format translation problem to Literotica with any of them.

 

[LadyVer]

Another option is to do a Document Inspection after confirming edits are processed in the Reviewing pane. The DI is supposed to remove any hidden codes that may be in the doc. I think DI can be accessed via the Prepare menu from the main Word button--in Word 2007.

 

[rexbrookdale]

Yes, and yes, and ?

I understand your point sr71plt.

You obviously have got it set up perfectly.

Still, I'd like to know if anyone's ever done a brief survey to see if there might be something to reveal about how others, who might not have it set up so perfectly, and/or couldn't set it up that way, can avoid pitfalls.

There are a lot of stories that get onto Lit that seem to have signs of being edited, but both the edits and the corrections are still in the story.

I'm pretty picky about word flow in stories; so the worse evil of the two is seeing both corrected and uncorrected wording. The lesser evil would be to have the uncorrected wording alone. So, as LadyVer indicates: what does one do if all of the tracking hasn't been approved, and the document still gets submitted? Answer: ....

That could be one of the questions answered in a short survey. If a few authors answered the survey then one could start connecting the dots: look at the responder's stories and see which ones are exhibiting the problem. Instead of trying to correct the author's habits, though, of, for example not fully accepting or deleting the edits, the goal of this survey would be to perhaps help to suggest a simpler way to submit a doc.

I could put together some survey question examples and submit. But I might be beating a dead horse.

 

[sr71plt]

I suggest those were edits done manually by those who don't know there are editing systems available in the computer word programs.

 

[rexbrookdale]

Sr71plt,

How would a doc come to include both the original wording and the corrected, if done manually?

 

[sr71plt]

Sr71plt,

How would a doc come to include both the original wording and the corrected, if done manually?

The editor didn't erase the original in suggesting a change. Is this a trick question? Professional editors don't erase what's there, whether it is manually edited or edited by computer.

It seems to me that you are beating a horse that's actually a mule and not even in your yard.

I think the reason you confuse me is that you don't know what editors do (or are supposed to be doing).