Do You and Your Editor Have Different Publishing Goals?
September 19, 2025Authors and editors frequently have different publishing goals. Most, not all, of these are rooted in their respective roles within the publishing business. Learn when you should listen to your editor and when it’s better to listen to your gut. So, you’ve finally acquired an editor. Of course you did, because you’re a stunning artistic talent. Time for a few simple typo corrections, and you’ll be on your merry way to publication fame and fortune, right? Not quite. See, your editor’s primary job is not to make you happy (yes, even if you happen to be paying for the service).…
Red Ink Reset: Empathy Is Not a ‘Made-Up’ Word
In the aftermath of a politically charged and tragic week, it’s become increasingly clear that Americans aren’t speaking the same language when they refer to empathy, sympathy, and their synonyms. In modern usage, all of these words…
Y’all Need a Copy Editor: Native Icons Deserve Basic Respect
What's the problem with this obituary in Variety this week? An unfortunate misspelling at exactly the wrong place and time. While reporting on the death of Native actor Graham Greene, Variety's copy and layout team failed to…
Test Your Media Communications Strategies Before You Need Them
After more than a week of intensive regional and national scrutiny, accompanied by collective questions from shocked and saddened residents that may never receive fully satisfactory answers, among my observations stemming from this month’s local mass crisis…
A mass shooting struck our community. The rumors came after.
Last Friday, all eyes turned to our little corner of the Rockies for one of the worst reasons imaginable: yet another mass shooting in the United States. This time, someone walked into a bar in Anaconda, Mont.,…
Y’all Need a Copy Editor: HOW much alcohol are we allowed to drink, again?
Here at Words Collide, we’re not into grammar nazism. We do, however, believe that if you’re a well-resourced entity running a public-facing agency, company, or brand, you cannot afford to let messy or offensive errors destroy your…
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