August 8, 2013

  • Whinge-Binge

    Originally posted on July 3rd on the other blog as well, but for the same reason of wanting to keep certain eyes off of it I am moving it over here... Once again, I'll be adding more recent face-desk inducing recent events to it.

     

    I love my jobs, I really do, but there are some things that simply drive me up the wall. As y'all know at my day job it is my bosses incomprehension, indecisiveness, and general mayhem that tweaks me. But I wasn't working there yesterday, today, or until Tuesday actually (I had no idea Monday was a holiday until someone mentioned it was a long weekend *facepalm*). 

    A month or two ago my brother, yes my brother, recommend a friend of his to use my editing services. This is probably because my brother hates to appear unknowledgeable and, when asked if he knew anything about publishing, Boo replied that his sister was in the business. This surprised said friend considering he had no idea my bro had any siblings. 

    I was pretty excited by this fact for a few reasons. First,  Boo actually admitted to having a family other than his wife's relations. For some inexplicable reason he doesn't want to admit he has such a fantabulous sister (though I kinda get wanting to disown the parental units at times), when he should be proudly crowing my existence. Second, it is a new writer to work with, and I love shaping budding authors and polishing their works into greatness. I don't do many freelance jobs, and this guy mentioned he'd be willing to work with me on all his future projects as well. Bonus! Third, the money. I need more of it, plain and simple. 

    Unfortunately, even the promise of twice what I'm charging is hardly worth the time and effort this manuscript is going to take. I've already had to send it back for the author to add paragraphs--that's kind of writing 101, don't you think? He also has no concept of punctuation, with the only thing he (sort of) uses correctly being periods. There aren't any commas, yet there are semicolons thrown in at the oddest moments. Nevertheless, I could probably handle all that if it weren't for the fact he doesn't write in complete sentences, and when he does they are really simple sentences. This guy has dreams of becoming a full-time author, but has the writing skills of a grade school kid. It's a problem.

    I can only hope that with this manuscript he learns a lot from me about writing and the editing process. He claims to have edited his manuscript already, but there is now way it has been given the state it's in. I recall that my first freelance job with an old classmate of mine was another manuscript in pretty bad shape when I got it, but two years and two more books later I noticed how much her skill had improved. I hope this guy will absorb everything I'm telling him and applies it to any future...well, basically, every single thing he ever writes ever again. 

    The editing I do for the publishing company is a lot different. The writers have a much better grasp on the written language, even the ones who aren't already published authors. I don't have to deal with "See-Jack-Run" type sentences or deciphering anything with a more "complex" sentence structure. With the novels I receive from them in need of my developmental skills, I can usually do five to ten pages per hour. On this manuscript it is taking me at least an hour for every one to two pages, because I have to figure out what this guy is trying to say and correct it, though I am not always successful in decoding it. 

    I really am going to have to create a schedule of when I will work on this ms, edit for the other company, work on my book review blog, set up tweets on my "professional" account, and when I have time for fun on other social media platforms such as this one. It is the only way I'm going to get my life organized and, quite honestly, get the editing on this book done. I wasted all of yesterday and most of today doing nothing but avoiding working on the book, when I should be doing a couple hours a day. So, just as soon as I get to a round page number, (ie. ten, twenty, thirty) I will commence to work out a timeline for a more organized existence. 

    Wow, all this whining probably sounds really bad, and if any of you ever write a book you probably won't want me working on it when you know I procrastinate like the dickens and complain about people with poor communication skills. Then again, there is a pretty good chance you've got a firm grasp on grammar because I wouldn't be reading your posts if you didn't, and thus the likelihood of my desire to lament the death of our language in regards to your writing is minimal. So please, do hire me! *L0L*

    UPDATE: I have created said schedule for my time, but I forgot to add social media to it *note to self* And I have approximately ten hours in which to work on this person's manuscript per week thus managing approximately eighty pages per month... and it is 350 pages long. I just got the manuscript back from him regarding that paragraph resend and a mere two weeks later he's asking me how much longer it will take to finish editing. Um, excuse me? I already told him before I even started it will be a minimum of three months to complete the process! It's like he's as bad as my other bosses: absolutely no comprehension whatsoever how much effort goes into this kind of work. It's positively mind-boggling to me. Anyone in the publishing industry or even a vague interest in it should have some approximate idea of how hard it is to edit someone's work. I just want to start smacking people. ARG! Okay, yeah, I could be a little stressed right now on top of being exhausted and feeling mildly ill, so that could be why my frustration level is through the roof. My pardon for feeling violent at the moment. 

    MORE UP TO DATE: Yeah, that manuscript was pretty much the straw that broke the camel's back as I was feeling overwhelmed by everything going on in my life plus not being illish. I'm feeling a bit better and I've calmed down some, so I'm not quite as aggravated by the manuscript but more hopeful that his skill improves the further I get into it and that his writing skill will improve after I send back the first edits. I mean, at least he took the time to write a novel and had the courage to want it published, right? I just have to keep that in mind when I feel like giving up on it.