The Imperfectionists

When I ended the blog, I did so with the idea that because I had achieved everything I set out to do. But now I'm working at a paper and there's a lot more to write about. I suppose it would be unprofessional to go too much into specifics, but suffice to say: between office politics, news, and the endless supply of people watching, there's a lot to write about.

For starters, I don't think I ever realized the shit they/we go through in shaping a piece from the bs it's often filed as to the wordplay it becomes. I read somewhere once about the indispensable relationship editors play for writers, and in the case of novelists in particular, you've got editors who so drastically shape events and in some cases, words and phrases, that it's as if the project's received a major facelift. When it comes to editing in my case, it isn't so much 'editing' as 'rewriting', a concept that seems to be lost on the reporters whose pieces are getting their much required facelifts. 

Established editors tell me the relationship between reporters and editors has always been a disrespectful one, a concept I've not been able to fathom yet given my previous experience with digital journalism with both The Missing Slate and Paper Cuts. But I'm beginning to see it in increasing evidence at this national newspaper. I think a lot of the relationship depends on how it's handled and how much of it is allowed to rest on the status quo.

For anyone who knows me or has read this blog, you'll know where there's a problem that's affecting job performance, I'd like a solution rather than a 'if it ain't broke don't fix it' approach. If you anticipate problems and resolve to solve them along with taking input from the rest of your team, it helps sell your vision and imparts in the group a sense of loyalty. Working at an office you learn things: some you can include in your next job, the rest you resolve never to replicate.

Either way, this is only the beginning. 

PS The title of this post comes from the book of the same name by Tom Rachman that deals with (surprise, surprise!) jounrnalists working for a small English paper based in Rome. This along with Eugenides' The Marriage Plot and Egan's Look at Me are the current reads on my virtual bookshelf.