Learning What I May Not Think I Want To Do Unless It is Absolutely Necessary (Editing/Editor)
The great thing about the experience of going to school is what it exposes you too. For me one thing about being here at Newhouse is that it provided me the opportunity to do something that I consciously try to not do and that is editing. Editing is not my thing. I think it is an essential skill to have and is needed in every line of communication that there is, but the class that I have taken on it makes me realize just how much it is not what I want to do. However, it does not mean that I would not do it.
The great thing about being in a school like this one is the fact that you will indeed be introduced to situations that you would probably work harder at avoiding. I know for me every time the idea of editing comes up; I am the first one to bow out of it gracefully. Until that is, I took a class where the whole point was to look at everything through the eyes of the editor. Now on the one hand it is a great thing because of the exposure. But if you are like me and grammar among other things is not your forte than this kind of class might make you cry. And it will do that to you because it is causing you to tap into a part of your mind that you either have never used or it has been a long time since you have used it. Regardless it could be deemed as the class you dread, hate, or simply wish did not exist. But the great thing about a class like this is that you learn so much about yourself in the process.
For me I gained a whole new respect for those that do this for a living on a day to day basis. I think I read somewhere once that editors made a little less than writers. I am not sure if that is still the case but if so then that is sad. The role of the editor is so key not only in what is the final version of the copy but also in what is done outside of actual editing. There are so many relationships to maintain and so much of a business mindset one must have that it is amazing when actual editing of any kind is done.
The level of skills that one must have does not come over night but rather over time as in one’s entire career. It is a humbling line of work but one that before I took my course, I did not give much attention to outside of whatever I saw in a movie or television show. Editors deserve way more credit than they are given, and editing deserves to have people who really want to do those jobs. I prefer writing. I do not think it is easier I just know where my interest lies and where it does not. I am not saying I would not do it but if you expect me in the future to be the first person to raise their hand to take on the role than I would say probably not. I am glad that while it was a mandatory class that I had the chance to take it, it taught me not only about the world of editing but why I respond to the world of journalism in the areas that I do. In my opinion that is what the class is for.
