Running head: EDITORIAL VALUES STATEMENT 1

Editorial Values Statement

Gabriela Lee Hardgrove

University of Central Florida

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Editorial Values Statement

My Editorial Experience

Perhaps I am a novice editor, but I like to believe I have begun to develop an editors eye.

While I have not yet received compensation for my casual editorial assistance, I enjoy helping

peers and friends with response prompts, short essays, resumes and cover letters, along with

business emails and other formal types of correspondence, such as love poems. In exploring

these avenues, I have learned quite a bit about stylistic choices, reaching new epiphanies about

the importance of promoting and improving upon the choices made by the writer as opposed to

rewriting. This is especially applicable to love poems. My goal is to become more intuitive with

style cues so that I can make enhancements tactically as an effective editor.

What an Editor Is

To be an editor is to have an imaginary PhD in sociology. As discussed by Saller (2009),

the editor bears the weight of setting the tone for professional relationships. For instance, an

editor must study the psychology of constructive criticism for days alone in her apartment and

still be prepared to take her writer out for a panini after conducting said criticism; the writers

favorite meal should also be annotated during extreme circumstances.

An editor doesnt just correct errors: she adapts the text to its unique rhetorical situation.

Saller (2009) writes that People who edit copy must wear more than one hat (p. 1). I interpret

this to mean that a different hat is necessary for every occasion. A successful editor should make

decisions according to the demands of these unique occasions, which are defined by a variety of

elements that includes grammar, style, openness between writer and editor, formatting

parameters, and compensation. These elements add up to form the overall rhetorical situation.
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Key Editorial Traits

One of the most important traits an editor should possess is consistent and appropriate

judgment. It is critical that an editors choices be influenced by the writers preferences and,

more importantly, the texts audience. The editor is neither here nor there however, since

functionality should remain a high priority. Furthermore, the editor should strive to be

completely transparent as mentioned somewhere in something that I read in some course I took

while I was in college (Kick-ass professor though). Saller also discusses the importance of trust

as a key ingredient of a sucessful editorial relationship, since it fosters creativity and progress in

the writers work. This initially came as an eye-opener, yet it was especially exciting for me

since I finally get to use my enchanting wit for something other than staying out of jail.

Benevolence is another key characteristic for an editor to have. The editor should be

much nicer to the writer than she is in real life if she hopes to foster a prolific relationship. While

love poems are not always necessary (although at some point they generally are), it is beneficial

to provide an inviting framework for the writer and any other parties involved. It is also advised

that the editor consult with the significant other(s) of the writer before involving other parties,

unless the editor enjoys living dangerously, in which case the editor may choose to disregard this

segment.

My Editorial Interests

My personality will likely play a large role in my future relationships since my advice is

occasionally doused in satire, so the writer might attack me in the event that she misinterprets my

adorable charm. I think my personality will work wonders for the writer, however, when I do

things like meticulously prepare her favorite home-cooked meal for her.
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Perhaps based on my experience in helping my friends write their cover letters, I feel

somewhat drawn toward editing formal texts intended for the recruiting or professional eye. I

believe this is something with which many students and adults with language barriers struggle,

since professional English writing is not necessarily emphasized in standard or global

educational settings. Oftentimes, however, this is the lens through which a recruiter will evaluate

an otherwise intelligent and capable individual. One of my goals is to filter out these limitations.

Somewhat on the contrary, another area of interest I have long tucked away is that of

editing for comedy. I am pulled towards working with brilliant minds to create entertaining

literature while exploring diverse satiric genres, including fake and preposterous relationship

advice, completely destructive how-tos, and, of course, love poems.

My Editorial Values

I value the liberties and craftsmanship that come with the editorial role. I have always

wanted to apply my visions to the raw talent of writers and communicators in a way that fosters

growth and success as a team. Even from an editors standpoint, it is impossible to collect and

redistribute ones incongruent stylistic choices which creates an obvious need for editorial

review. The heavy batter comes in, however, (or perhaps the beating), with the organic exchange

between the writer and editor. The editing process is delicate and unparalleled within the world

of communication in that it is heavily based on an arbitrary set of discretions, which is why it is

so vital that the editor grow to understand the writer in new and foreseeing ways. This is an

editorial element which I am particularly excited to embrace. For me, one of the most rewarding

possibilities is the chance to oversee the texts development into something more closely aligned

with the writers intentions, along with the progression of the writers unique method of
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expression. My aim is to achieve this state of partnership with the writer so that her inner voice

may be heard.

My overall goal is to attract like-minded individuals who enjoy brainstorming to create

excellence and are not innately against me because of their stereotyped views of editorial

monsters.
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References

Saller, C. (2009). The subversive copy editor. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
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