Hens Lay Eggs
food for thought
Editing software: Do or don’t?
Remember those old Virginia Slims commercials? “You’ve come a long way, baby!“ That same sentiment may be applied to editing software. It’s come a long way since those laughable spell checkers unable to distinguish between “from” and “form.”
Today’s editing software has much more robust capabilities only strengthened with the advent of artificial intelligence (AI). Programs such as Grammarly, Hemingway, ProWritingAid, PerfectIt!, and AutoCrit give writers a helping hand when it comes to spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
However, they’re not infallible. Neither are humans, for that matter.
Because editing software is programming, meaning it’s basically a complex series of instructions, it understands rules. It does not and cannot comprehend context, style guide idiosyncrasies, and more. Professional freelance proofreader Melanie Cotton explained the failure of of AI with an extensive—but not exhaustive—post on LinkedIn. AI misses many, many problems related to numbers, capitalization, typefaces (bold, italics, underlining), abbreviations, compound items, lists, formatting, layout, tone, terminology, structure, etc.
In addition to AI’s inadequate understanding of the myriad facets of good writing and style, a lot depends upon the writer’s own comprehension. As Cotton succinctly put it: “[Y]ou have to have enough knowledge to know whether Grammarly is right or talking nonsense.” If you don’t understand writing well enough to know whether the “corrections” suggested by AI actually improve what you wrote and are even correct, then you may very well be accepting the introduction of even greater errors into your work.
Although recognizing the inadequacy of editing software, I don’t discourage writers from using it. It helps many writers with basic grammatical and spelling issues that otherwise would slip through their own processes of editing and revision. Its work enables poor or mediocre writers improve upon the craft they’ve adopted as their own. It may even help tighten flabby or weak writing. Editing software is good. It’s just not as good as a human editor. I encourage you to use editing software, just approach it with caution and a healthy dose of critical judgment.
One consequence of relying solely on editing software is its style-numbing effect. If you’ve read AI-generated content, then you know how depressingly and uniformly banal it is. AI rigorously applied to human-written content has the same effect, deadening an author’s distinctive voice and turning an author’s distinctive style into uniform content consistent in its banality.
A human editor works to improve the quality of the content while preserving the author’s voice and style.
Perhaps in the future, AI might be able to truly replace human creativity and mental agility, but until then it’s best to engage the assistance of a skilled professional editor.
Every word counts.
A matter of perception
It’s said that eye witnesses make the worst witnesses in a court of law. This underscores the fact that human perception is notoriously inaccurate. What we think to be the empirical evidence of our senses deceives us. Case in point: the Clifton Gorge Arts & Music Festival.
I have now participated as a vendor at this festival for three consecutive years. The first year, my booth was located on the side of one of the village streets near the center of all the activity. Attendance was impressive: a village of fewer than 200 people drew thousands of attendees to this festival. I was pleased with my volume of sales; however, I didn’t particularly like the spot where my vendor space was situated, so I requested a different location for the following year.
In 2023, my booth was located in the small field across the street from the shelter house where concerts are held. My best friend who accompanies me to most events and sells her paintings along with mine agreed with me: attendance was down from the previous year. My sales numbers confirmed that perception: those were down, too. I thought, perhaps, the lower sales may have also resulted from a compromise between my convenience and prime festival location, with convenience being the deciding factor. However, sales were still sufficiently robust to justify registering for another two gruelling days of work in 2024.
Last weekend saw my third year as a festival vendor in Clifton, Ohio. My booth was located again in that field due to my preference for convenience. (Trust me, lugging merchandise, a canopy, supplies, etc. around the block to a better location was not fun!) The weather, as expected, turned hot and steamy. The hours, as expected, dragged long into Friday and Saturday evenings. Attendence seemed reduced from the previous two years.
The numbers this year are mixed. Acting on the success of 2023, my friend purchased her own vendor space. It was situated next to mine, so we combined our spaces to spread out our wares (books and paintings). Unfortunately, this year, her sales were only about a third of what she sold in 2023. That agrees with the trend of declining sales of artwork we’ve witnessed last year and this year. However, my sales of books and a handful of paintings give lie to the perception that 2024 saw lower attendance and less spending. I sold a similar number of paintings as did my friend, but book sales put my revenue higher than either 2022 or 2023.
In addition, several attendees approached me to discuss publication of their books. We talked about the publishing process; my services in ghostwriting, editing, proofreading, and book design; and the differences between traditional publishing and self-publishing. (HINT: If you’re a control freak like me, you’ll probably opt for self-publishing.)
I certainly hope those folks who indicated they had works in progress will contact me to discuss having their manuscripts edited and their books designed. This is what I do: I help indie authors on the publishing journey.
How may I help you?
“It’s the economy.”
Financial performance of vendor participation at events this year (2024) compared to last year (2023) yields disappointment. I and my best friend, Cindra, have gone to some new events this year as well as returned to previously attended events in the constant adjustment to figure out which yield best return on investment.
Last year, Cindra and I noticed that paintings did not sell well, particularly compared to sales in 2021 and 2022. Books, however, are doing better than those two years.
So, what gives?
In discussing this with my husband, he opined that desultory sales of paintings was due to the economy. He thought it much less likely people would indulge in a luxury items like paintings when the cost of necessities like fuel, groceries, and rent has dramatically increased. In short, he said, people don’t have the discretionary income they had just a few years ago.
OK, that explains the slow sales of artwork. But the improved sales of books defies that explanation.
The fact of the matter is that people still want their little luxuries. Leisure reading or reading for pleasure constitutes a luxury. Despite competition from social media and video games and other demands for a person’s time and attention, reading remains a popular activity. Many people are still happy to buy a book.
One thing I have noticed is that I generally do better at arts and crafts shows rather than author or book oriented events. When there’s an excess of competition offering similar products, my sales of books drop dramatically. The obverse, however, does not hold true for paintings. When participating as a vendor at a book fair, paintings don’t sell well either.
This reality makes me think that my husband is correct: It’s the economy. What is comes down to is that folks with less disposable income to spend on those little luxuries will spend it on a book rather than a more expensive painting (despite our paintings being very reasonably priced).
Regardless, I will continue to participate as a vendor at various events. Not only does this serve as a personable method for engaging with and building my audience of readers, but it gets me out of the house. If I can persuade someone to take a chance on one book, perhaps that person will like it well enough to purchase more of my books. Maybe someone will recommend my books to their book club? Wouldn’t that be wonderful?
If you want to see where I’ll be next, go to my EVENTS page.
Author
Hard boiled, scrambled, over easy, and sunny side up: eggs are the musings of Holly Bargo, the pseudonym for the author.
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Karen (Holly)
Blog Swaps
Looking for a place to swap blogs? Holly Bargo at Hen House Publishing is happy to reciprocate Blog Swaps in 2019.
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