EDITING
Why I became an editor
Writing is one of my favorite things to do. It's what made me choose to take the Journalism class. But as I began producing content, I realized that while writers looked like the "star of the show," the real stars are the editors behind the scenes. They not only revise and publish the articles we see, but they give valuable feedback that allows the publication to grow as a whole. This is what inspired me to become a Scot Scoop editor, and eventually take on the role of editor-in-chief of our publication.
Constructive Criticism
The most important part of editing isn't changing the article or getting it published. It's making sure that the writers have the feedback they need to improve and grow. Often, this means that a little constructive criticism is necessary. As a writer myself, I know that it can often be frustrating when editors deduct points or change parts of my work. Thus, I focus on being clear in what errors were made, as well as providing specific information for the writers to improve on in their next article.
Summarizing Feedback
At the end of each rubric that we fill out, editors must give a summary of their feedback and justify why the writer earned the grade that they did. I tend to stay away from giving super specific feedback in these boxes, and instead focus on general improvements or areas of strength. When writing these summaries, I like to use a method that was introduced to me in sophomore year: the compliment sandwich. Though its not a strict structure, it generally allows me to balance positive and negative feedback, allowing my writers to receive meaningful feedback while still feeling supported.
Communication
One of the biggest reasons I wanted to become an editor was my editors that I had in sophomore year. While some of my friends complained that their editors would take points off for nothing or delete large chunks of text, I was glad that my editors consistently gave me feedback on what to improve on. This often happened not on the rubrics, but through text. Therefore, I place a huge emphasis on communicating clearly with my writers and making sure they feel supported through the process.
Mentoring
In second semester of being a Scot Scoop editor, we get to participate in the intern process. Each editor is assigned one or more interns to mentor, assigning practice beats, sharing writers, and giving them feedback. While I meet in person with my interns to go over each practice beat, I always write down specific pieces of feedback I want to give them. In the second phase of the process, they edit for some of my writers, filling out their rubrics. Afterwards, I go in with a different color to adjust or support their feedback, as can be shown on the right. With my new role of editor-in-chief, I'm looking forward to guiding new junior editors and leading the intern process in the spring.