This week I’ve been editing and copy-enhancing a 42,000-word manuscript for a pastor and an 8,000-word sales letter for NeuroGym, John Assaraf’s company.
Truth to tell, I’d rather be writing copy from scratch (it pays better; I am in business and writing copy is my flagship offering!), but hey… editing/enhancement is often very interesting; I get to learn new things when I do it. I love reading and learning, and editing (simply put) is slower-paced reading combined with tweaking for conciseness, clarity, and impact to improve flow, increase interest, and rivet readers into place so while I’m editing, I’m immersed in whatever topic is being conveyed, so I learn a lot along the way!
The problem with editing is that I have to take frequent breaks to make sure I keep myself sufficiently alert to catch everything. (When I’m writing from scratch, remaining alert isn’t a problem: I have Christmas Tree Brain due to the creative aspects). I can only edit for about 90 minutes at a time before I have to take a 15-minute break or so. That’s probably good, because otherwise I’d sit on my duff for hours at a time, and that isn’t healthy.
This week I’m also awaiting the imminent arrival of baby goats. Both does are out-to-here with engorged udders and with what I suspect are multiple kids each, so I invested in a baby monitor to put in the shed so I can hear what’s going on out there and respond when I start to hear weird noises.
The problem is that when it rains I hear raindrops on the tarp and shed, when planes go overhead, I hear their engines, when the dog barks next door, it sounds like he’s right here in the house, when the chickens cluck, burble, tussle or lay eggs, I get to hear all that ruckus. Heck, even when a goat licks herself or digs into her bedding, she might as well be sitting right next to me here in my office!
As a result, I’ve been self-conscious, even hesitant, to pick up the phone when it rings because I’m afraid that if it’s a client, he or she will think I’m working from a barnyard instead of my office! (Thank God most of my clients are virtual; we do business over the Internet.) I don’t want whoever is on the other end to get instant flashbacks to The Beverly Hillbillies or Green Acres! I want my bucolic existence to be a little less obvious than that during working hours!
But a Mom-Goat Overseer has to do what a Mom-Goat Overseer does to be sure that when the kids come out of the toaster, they pop out and don’t get hung up in there. So this week I’m also a midwife of sorts… just standing by with a stack of bath towels waiting for the barn stork to drop its bundles of joy. I’m sooooo looking forward to having baby Pygmy and Nigerian Dwarf kids.
