Editorial Inspirations

My father and I quit speaking when I was eighteen. My childhood had never been the most pleasant with my father yelling at my mother and even beating her a few times, but the final event that made my decision of not speaking with him was when he hit me.

I was driving home from an antique show, my mother in the backseat and my father in the seat beside me. He gave me directions on getting on the interstate, but not fully understanding, I questioned for clarification. In my doing so, my father reached over and punched me in the arm. The car slightly jerked, but I was not hurt—physically. Emotionally, I was more scarred than I had ever been. I wanted to pull the car over and tell him to get out. Instead, I did nothing, and neither did my mother.

The next summer, I came home from college. One night, my father and I began arguing. I packed my belongings and filled my car. On my last trip before I was about to leave, my father stood in the doorway of my room. His presence locked me in my room, and I could not escape. I yelled and screamed at him, but I could not win. I reached for my phone and called my grandparents. They quickly came over and took my parents to the living room. They talked for hours. Out of exhaustion, I fell asleep, but when I awoke my grandparents had left. I gathered the remaining belongings and left my parents’ house.

For the rest of the summer and the following summers until I bought my first place, I slept at my grandparents’ house, but I always took my belongings with me. I did not live there. I did not have a home. I could have lived there if I wanted to, but I was fearful of having another home—though I yearned for one.

Though I have not spoken to my father in over seven years, I now yearn for a home. I don’t know if I will ever obtain the image I have of a home, but I yearn for it so deeply from within my soul.

Editing is a craft. It is not something that just anyone can do. Anyone can read a book and find mistakes, but not anyone can be a copyeditor.

A copyeditor takes patience, persistence, and attention to detail. A copyeditor must notice each individual mark on the paper and determine whether it has a purpose or whether another mark would serve the purpose better.

Though there is no career advancement for copyeditors, they do not care. They love to read about all subject matters, learn about all things, and debate nuances in grammar. They seek no higher form because copyeditors are in love with what they do.

The dream that copyeditors do have, as Joanne Cohen shares in Someday I Will Copyedit The Great American Novel, is about what they will edit. They dream about editing books that will greatly affect those who read it. They seek to edit the Great American Novel.

Anyone can learn grammar, but not everyone can become a good copyeditor. Editing, just like any other art, is something that is in the blood and life of a good practitioner.

Someday, I Will Copyedit The Great American Novel

All grammatically complete sentences, except for imperative sentences, contain stated subjects of verbs. Subjects may be singular or compound but must agree with the verb.

Example

Virginia and Maryland are in the east.

The boy and the girl went to see a movie.

The boy stayed after school.

The man went to the store to buy some milk.

To identify the grammatical subject of the sentence, find the verb and use the verb in a question, beginning with who or what.

Example

The two dogs in the cage barked.

Verb: barked

Who or what barked? The dogs barked.

Subject: dogs

Generally, subjects precede verbs in sentences. Common exceptions to this pattern are when subjects are used in questions and after the expletive there.

Example

Was the statement true? (verb + subject)
Did these refugees survive? (auxiliary + subject + verb)
There were no objections. (expletive + verb + subject)

Expletive – A signal of transformation in the structure of the sentence without changing the meaning. The expletive there shifts the order of subject and verb in the sentence.

Imperatives - A command or request. The subject you is understood in the sentence.

Try It!

What are the subjects in these sentences?

1. The children went outside to play after they have finished their homework.
2. Where were you this afternoon when I tried to call you?
3. For our vacation we are going to the beach.
4. Last year, it rained a lot in April.
5. My favorite holiday is Christmas because I love the giving nature it brings out in people.