Using Words

I think I’ve finally figured out why my teachers hated me so much. I question being edited. Well, more like I question the editor on why they think something should be edited. I don’t think you’re meant to question things. I don’t know, I wasn’t encouraged to stay in school long enough to find out the etiquette of writing for publication.

Recently I contributed a piece for a horticultural newsletter. I presumed, because of the nature and stated aims of the organisation that members would have more than a “hobby” approach to plants and would be interested in horticulture on a deeper level than common names and pretty flowers. I was asked to edit the piece, (after completely rewriting my first attempt because it was too prosey and not enough info-y). Anyway, I made my second attempt a more informational piece and after submitting it got a reply with highlighted red areas with things like;

“Needs to be in plain English” and “I think the sentence can stand without the word phylogenetic as I think it stands to lose the average reader” and “is there a common name for this plant”.. etc

There were others too which were fair and I tweaked them, but these ones kicked in my diggy heels. I replied and suggested that being challenged when reading is good! That if a word/concept isn’t known it encourages us to go out and find out about it! (and I hate using common names because they’re annoying and should only be used when talking about plants in their cultural context.. I didn’t say this, but I thought it).

I don’t understand why the word “phylogenetic” is any more complex than a word like “paragliding” or “architecture”, which are also long words used to describe quite complex processes. I really resent being asked to “dumb-down”! Perhaps it’s because I’ve got a chip on my shoulder about the shit education I got despite being keen to learn, perhaps it’s because I love using my words, things that have evolved and morphed and been made specifically to give humans an ability to explain, contextualise, create and carry. When did we become so afraid of reading words or concepts we might not understand? is “the average reader” really that fickle to give up on reading any further because unfamiliarity sneaks in, especially when something is only 700 words. What even is “the average reader”? Maybe I hang too much onto the idea that anyone who does the leaving cert goes to college and learns the ability to be challenged by concepts and new things and believe that the majority of people in Ireland have done this (because that’s what I’ve been led to believe). Maybe I’m just a pain in the arse?

Anyway, I was told the things are being changed because the editor consulted with a big horticultural expert man who works for big botanical pro-land academia and has written books and stuff and knows things and that and has degrees and puh-huh-dees and he said they should edit them out..

so there!

I’m not even getting paid! hahahahahahahahahahaah!!!