Confessions of a Quibbler

I confess it freely and deny it not--I am a quibbler, and I love to quibble. That's copy editing.

I say I won't mess around with plot, character or continuity. Those are the provinces of the author. I do the mechanicals--spelling, grammar, syntax, sentence structure. They are the off-putting little details that distract the reader, when the reader should be focused on the story. The small change of creative writing.

The story is everything.

Now, again I'll confess it: I have been known to exceed my remit; make comments and edits on the matters I've allegedly forsworn. Of course, I let the author know what I've done, and the author is always free to reject anything I have to say, copy edits and quibbles included. I won't go outside my bailiwick unless the error I perceive is really hurtful to the story, of the sort that would cause the reader to lose focus completely.

Now I've been lucky. I have gotten the opportunity to copy edit the work of some of the best writers on Literotica. I've worked for, among others (and if I've left anyone out, I abjectly apologize) SA Penn Lady; Grandmistress Lisa Jones; Serenissima Sydney Blake; LunaEroticaMystica; LettersfromTatyana; DG Hear, MFG; SilkStockingsLover; and PatriciaFCartier. Substantial writers all, with solid credits, and large and loyal followings.

I've gotten help for my own writing (although I'm sure some people will say that my writing is beyond help) from Grandmaster dweaver999 and SA Penn Lady. I'm truly grateful. Thinking of what they've accomplished, I can only quote Abraham Lincoln: "I would give all I have, and go in debt, if I could write something one half so fine." No fear, my creditors: nevah hoppen.

Now there are categories I won't work in, either because I can't form the necessary detachment from the subject matter to concentrate properly on the text, or because I am unfamiliar with the conventions that authors and fans have assimilated over time. SciFi/Fantasy and NonHuman are two of the "convention" categories. I've occasionally praised individual stories in each that spoke to me, but I don't have the aficiòn necessary to copy edit (quibble) seriously. Gay Male and Erotic Horror are two "non-detachable" categories; amateur psychoanalysts can do their thing, but I can't get the mindset to work in those categories effectively. So I stay away from those where I can do no good and might do harm.

But be all that as it may, I did copy edit a 2011 Halloween Contest Erotic Horror entry for SA Penn Lady, and enjoyed doing it. So I never can be dogmatic.

There are some bumps in the road, of course. It's hard to be debarred from voting because three or four of the authors I work for are entered in a contest. If I vote for one I would have to vote for all, and my votes would then cancel out, only keeping the authors in the same relative places. Of course, I daren't give one a higher vote than the others. So I'm conflicted out, as the lawyers say, barred by conflict of interests.

I can't give anything away on my "Embarras de Richesse" thread on the Story Feedback Bulletin Board pre-publication, even though the stories are so good. These authors write such good stories that I want to share them, but of course I cannot. Even post-publication, I have to do a Jim Cramer ("Booyah!") and keep quiet about the plot for a day or two, so that I don't spoil the ending. Everyone hates the moviegoer who's first in line for the latest flick, and then has to tell the entire plot to the world, spoiling it for everyone in earshot.

Of course the good news is I get to see the stories pre-publication. And get to talk to the authors--via e-mail and PM.

And quibbling is a great excuse to keep from doing my own writing. It feels "lit'rary" without really being creative or exacting the hard, grinding, gut-wrenching labor that is the most necessary component of truly creative work. At least for me, the old song is true: "Ya know it don't come easy."

Finally, here's what really makes it worthwhile.

I know my contribution is minimal. It's the author's story, first, last and always. The author drives the race, makes the win happen or blows it all. But like the gofer mechanic who changes tires; pumps fuel; keeps track of all the tools, spares and minutiae that accompany a racing car; skins his knuckles and scrapes his toecaps doing the dozens of menial tasks that the crowds in the stands and on the infield never see and take for granted, when I see "my driver" break into the lead and take the checkered flag, my heart sings. And I long for the next race.