CarlyJDubois.com

23Sep

Climbed a mountain and I turned around

My health and ADHD and late-night work schedule being what they are, checking things off my to-do list can be challenging.

22Sep

Banned Books Week begins with the appropriate mug for tonight’s editing shift

There is only one mug I can drink from while I edit this afternoon and tonight.

20Sep

Thinking about when someone writes ‘individual’ when ‘person’ would do just fine

Published September 20, 2024

When I read or hear “individual” in journalism, as in “police described the individual” a certain way, I just assume police language is being parroted reflexively by reporters so conditioned to doing so that they don’t realize it.

I prefer “person” to “individual” in much the same way I prefer “buy” to “purchase,” “find” to “locate,” “use” to “utilize” and other similar examples when the plain-language version would do. It’s my educated guess that people like to use the fancy word to make things sound more important. A predawn vertical insertion is still an invasion, unless it’s a practice invasion.

What are your thoughts when you see “individual” when “person” would be fine? What are your thoughts after reading this? Do you think, “Wow, Carly is an individual in need of a life”?

A version of this post first appeared on LinkedIn. Editing tips here are mine unless noted.

Image of blocks spelling journalism by Polarpx via Shutterstock.

19Sep

I think often about heavy-handed editing now that I try to have a lighter touch

What internal conflict was I engaged in instead of improving a piece of writing from a place of love and empathy?

18Sep

Someone else’s job news today brought back so many memories of the frantic rush to beat deadline

How we ever got our stories into the hands of our readers is sometimes beyond my ability to comprehend.

18Sep

One person, 5 million people, and trying to keep it all manageable

When your job is to sweat the small stuff, it can be overwhelming. The reality is that amid deadlines, you usually have to prioritize.

17Sep

The one where ‘The West Wing’ helps me dig a little deeper into my editing philosophy

Every once in a while, there is an important edit that anyone could make. The rest of the time is when you earn your keep as an editor.

17Sep

What I think of every time someone with main-character syndrome complains

It’s a real thing that so many people think of themselves as the default for human being, for American, for a person.

16Sep

Antiracist language guide is one of several resources like it in my toolkit

Speech bubble made up from hundreds of words

Someone asked, “Why does everything have to be about race?” Increasingly, my answer is, “Because everything *is* about race.”

15Sep

Please be patient with me regarding the flurry of emails

Not everything will be on the blog, and I am still working on how to send email notifications for some posts but not all.