Legalese, Christianese, text speech, womanese … I could go on and on there are so many of these terms. It seems every environment comes with its own unique language and if you don’t pick it up quick enough you’ll be left wondering what the heck is going on. (I’m unfortunately well acquainted with the phenomenon.) Editing is no exception.
But fear not! Your resident expert is here to translate. So let’s get to it.
Proofreading vs. Copyediting
Proofreading covers basic spelling, grammar, and typos; fixing the little mistakes all writers tend to miss. Even the most thoroughly edited writing can still wind up with a typo or two. (I’m sure I’ve missed a few on this blog.)
Copyediting, however, goes a bit deeper than that, focusing on strong word choice, variation of sentence structures, and anything that might make the writing sound clunky or slow.
Continuity
Continuity refers to the consistency of various concepts throughout the entire span of the story, whether that’s a short story or a six book series. Continuity errors tend to happen when plot or character changes are made later on in the writing process and references to those aspects earlier in the story are not updated. (Like when a main character comes home drenched and then two paragraphs later is magically dry again. Not that I’ve ever done that. *insert nervous laughter*)
Voice
Voice can refer to a few different concepts. One is character voice. Editors will use this term to discuss the importance of each character having their own unique dialogue style, distinct from other characters and the author’s own voice. The mannerisms and speech patterns should vary from character to character so the reader can quickly tell who is who.
As for author voice, this is a little trickier to define. In the same way people can recognize a friend’s voice over the phone, or fans can recognize an artist’s work by the style, readers can often recognize familiar authors simply by the way they write. Many writing professionals will tell you success in writing hinges on having a unique and powerful author voice, but the fact is your unique voice isn’t really something you can manufacture. Much like handwriting and art style, it’s an organic process that only comes from writing regularly.
Crutch Words
Crutch Words are a very necessary side effect of first draft writing. When a writer can manage the miracle of gagging their inner editor long enough to get that first draft done, crutch words become their go to. Upon reading through that messy first draft you’ll begin to notice certain words appearing with bothersome regularity. (For some reason, I tend to use a lot of words that start with S, I have no idea why.)
That’s not to say crutch words are inherently bad, or that repetition of words is to be avoided. But when you read about a character’s mauve dress ten times in one page, it can become a distraction. So if you’re writing a first draft, go forth and embrace those crutch words! If you’re editing, kill them with a fiery passion! (Okay, calm down, Moos.)
Literary Devices
This is a term used to refer to the various writing tools that can be used to produce specific results. Alliteration, repetition, irony, anthropomorphism, onomatopoeia, etc. These are all literary devices which, when used properly, can enhance any story.
(I’ll dive more into specific literary devices in another blog post.)
Darlings
Some of you may have heard of the phrase “kill your darlings” and wondered what on earth it means. Most new writers assume it refers to characters and the need to eliminate characters that don’t move the plot forward. In truth, killing your darlings can mean anything from scrapping an entire side plot to cutting one paragraph. It all comes down to pieces of our writing that we become so attached to that we can’t accept the possibility that the story could be better without it. A few of my darlings have been characters, but also sentences I was really proud of, story concepts that the plot had outgrown, and entire chapters written in a point of view I was no longer using.
(Personally, I prefer the phrase “retire your darlings.” It’s much less painful, plus I can always visit them later when I’m feeling nostalgic.)
Negative Space
This one is not as frequently used as most others, but I find it just as, if not more, important. Negative space is everything left “between the lines” so to speak. As Mark Twain once said, “A successful book is not made of what is in it, but of what is left out of it.” What you know about your story, your characters, your setting, but don’t include in the actual writing, will help to inform the words you do choose to write. The reader can tell when there has been no thought to what is filling that negative space, even if they can’t explain it.
There are plenty more terms I could explain here, and I might in another blog post, but for now I hope I’ve cleared some of the confusion. Now onward, and write with confidence!