The Old Editor Says: Maxims for Writing and Editing
John E. McIntyre
Apprentice House Press ()

Rock-solid, practical advice for readers as well as writers

Those who read this booklet are advised, “Many beginning writers and editors benefitted from a crusty old editor’s brisk maxims about the craft. If you want to be reminded of those days, look inside. If you want to learn those brisk maxims, many of them are collected here. And if you aspire to become a crusty old editor, this is the handbook.”

John McIntyre is among the crustiest, and most caring of old editors.

Here is a representative selection of maxims:

o The creation of the universe in Genesis 1:1 does not need six paragraphs of throat-clearing before getting to the point, or a little anecdote to prime the pump. Genesis, like the Lord, gets down to the business immediately, and you,  if you would like to have the reader’s attention for a little while, will do the same.”

o Sometimes people actually tell the truth and articles make sense. It’s good to be open to the possibility of pleasant surprise. But skepticism is your working principle.

o When you are reading proof, especially of your own work, slow down.

o If you are a writer, do what you need to do to get the damn thing in on time. Being scrupulous about deadlines will not tarnish your reputation.

o If you don’t have enough pride in yourself, your craft, and your publication to do the job right, then you’re just taking up space. Consider career alternatives.

o Actually, get all the factual details right. Readers notice things, and nothing will diminish — or obliterate — your credibility more than errors of fact.

o What you need is judgment. And for that, gentle reader, you are on your own.

These maxims are offered by a veteran copy editor, one who insists that stories submitted or proposed be (channeling Albert Einstein) as brief as possible, using as few words as necessary. Brevity as well as clarity are of prime importance to him…but not alas, to a rapidly increasing number of people who insist that “literacy don’t matter.”

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John Early McIntyre has been a working editor for more than forty years, first at The Cincinnati Enquirer and since 1986 at The Baltimore Sun. He has been at the desk most Saturday nights since 1980. His Wiki bio:

McIntyre was born in Kentucky and grew up in Elizaville, in Fleming County, Kentucky.  He graduated from Fleming County High School in 1969. He then earned a bachelor’s degree in English from Michigan State University in 1973. From 1973 to 1979 he attended Syracuse University, earning a master’s degree in English but leaving without completing his doctorate.

From 1980 to 1986 McIntyre worked as a copy editor at The Cincinnati Enquirer. He became a copy editor at The Baltimore Sun in 1986. On April 29, 2009, McIntyre was laid off by The Sun. He was rehired in 2010 to serve as the newspaper’s Night Content Production Manager. McIntyre is also an affiliate (adjunct) instructor at Loyola Colledge in Maryland.  He maintains a blog called “You Don’t Say” on the Sun website, discussing a variety of topics including grammar, usage, journalism, and copy editing.

He is the author of two books published by Apprentice House Press at Loyola University Maryland: The Old Editor Says: Maxims for Writing and Editing (2013) and Bad Advice: The Most Unreliable Counsel Available on Grammar, Usage, and Writing (2020). At The Sun he works on the news desk and writes a blog called “You Don’t Say.”

He has terrorized undergraduates at Loyola University Maryland in the editing course since 1995. He was originally, of course, an English major, as an undergraduate at Michigan State and a graduate student at Syracuse. The taint lingers. Growing up in Eastern Kentucky, he was first exposed to journalism during six summers in high school and college, working for the weekly Flemingsburg Gazette. He favors bow ties, bourbon, the music of Haydn, murder mysteries, strong coffee, history and biography, draft beer, country ham and salt-rising bread, laden bookshelves, and writers who have the common decency to acknowledge that they profit from an editor’s assistance.