Either way, the copy editor is only pointing it out. This is not some huge breach of etiquette on the copy editor's part. Copy editors are hired to make sure that an author's manuscript is as good as it can be before it goes to print. And authors can then make the final call, so what's the big deal?
Every planet has its own weird customs. About a year before we met, I spent six weeks on a moon where the principal form of recreation was juggling geese. My hand to God. Baby geese. Goslings. They were juggled.
Wash ,'Our Mrs. Reynolds'
The Great Write Way, Act Three: Where's the gun?
A place for Buffistas to discuss, beta and otherwise deal and dish on their non-fan fiction projects.
Amy - May 03, 2010 9:43:30 am PDT #3304 of 6693
Because books.
Connie Neil - May 03, 2010 9:52:17 am PDT #3305 of 6693
brillig
so what's the big deal?
Indeed.
Beverly - May 03, 2010 10:09:36 am PDT #3306 of 6693
Days shrink and grow cold, sunlight through leaves is my song. Winter is long.
a competent author doesn't randomly choose
Ah well, there's the problem. Not all are competent. Or care enough to differentiate, or even to be consistent.
Barb - May 03, 2010 10:13:34 am PDT #3307 of 6693
“Not dead yet!”
Amy's absolutely right, Connie-- CE is simply doing her job. What I found interesting about this particular instance is how she chose to point it out, because she's been very good about phrasing things as questions, i.e. writing in the margin "AU: are you certain this is the word you want?" or something to that effect.
With this particular case, she actually wrote something definitive:
"AU: he's referred to as Dr. throughout but it's never explained why. He's not an MD. Is it because he's got a Ph.D. in education? Normally, Ph.D.s don't use the title Dr."
Which pinged me slightly because it seemed to be implying I was wrong. Which is me probably just overreacting because as I said in Natter, copyedits have a way of making one feel monumentally stupid. In this case, however, neither of us is wrong-- it's just my MS and I have good reason for using it in that manner and it's not technically incorrect, so I just noted it and moved on.
Allyson - May 03, 2010 1:05:12 pm PDT #3308 of 6693
Wait, is this real-world child support, where the money goes to buy food for the kids, or MRA fantasyland child support where the women just buy Ferraris and cocaine? -Jessica
Here, at JPL, everyone is referred to as Dr. on all the stuff I need to look at. Individuals prefer one or the other, but on all the document templates, it's Dr.
sj - May 03, 2010 1:46:20 pm PDT #3309 of 6693
"There are few hours in life more agreeable than the hour dedicated to the ceremony known as afternoon tea."
Congratulations, Allyson!!!
-t - May 03, 2010 2:06:55 pm PDT #3310 of 6693
I am a woman of various inclinations and only some of the time are they to burn everything down in frustration
Woo, Allyson! And to Plus One Publishing, this should be good for both!
(X-posted with Natter)
Gudanov - May 04, 2010 5:50:09 am PDT #3311 of 6693
Coding and Sleeping
Very little progress as a result of spending entirely too much time on the Time-Warner tech-support line.
I've started into chapter 12 of 67 and I'm down 6,000 words.
Gudanov - May 04, 2010 6:44:53 am PDT #3312 of 6693
Coding and Sleeping
I'm also getting concerned that chapters 35-67 are considerably weaker than 1-34 though I pretty much only have my own opinion on that. One problem with being the author is that I don't really know how it reads without knowing everything that is going to happen.
Barb - May 04, 2010 9:54:52 am PDT #3313 of 6693
“Not dead yet!”
I'm getting a slight perverse amusement that the one love scene in this manuscript is the least marked up of any.
Either I'm really good or the CE just sort of skimmed on past...