With more than 5 years of essays, An American Editor has become a resource for both experienced and new (or wannabe) editors. But the more essays that are written, the harder it becomes to identify new topics.
There have been move than 1,000 essays published on An American Editor. Combine that with my desire to work less and be even more selective about the projects I will undertake and for whom I will work, along with my increasing curmudgeonness as I approach my ancient days, and the result is the introduction of a new category of essays: From the Archives.
From the Archives will reprint selected past essays, ones that I think are most important to editors. My current thinking is that this series will begin on Wednesday and run through August, possibly early September, when I hope to be back with new essays after regenerating myself.
Writing AAE essays is time-consuming. I and all of the contributors to AAE have striven to write interesting and informative essays that would help our colleagues be better editors and better businesspersons. Unlike many blogs, AAE has asked contributors for lengthy, thought-stimulating essays. All contributors have been told that an essay must be at least 1,000 words, that every contribution would be peer-reviewed, and that the contributor would be required to address any issues or suggestions raised by the reviewer. Sometimes an essay went through several revisions before being published.
The point is that writing an essay for AAE was not just a matter of putting words and thoughts on paper and calling it a day. Contributors to AAE received no compensation for their efforts other than their byline and bio information. AAE has been and continues to be for you, but now we need a vacation to recharge our batteries.
A Request
AAE has discussed many topics over the course of its more than 5 years and 1,000+ essays. What we would like are suggestions from you regarding topics you would like us to discuss for the first time or again. Please make your suggestions by submitting a comment or by writing us.
The From the Archives series will begin with a reprint of the “What to Charge” essays. It seems that this is a topic that keeps reappearing in editorial discussion forums. So, until we start again with original essays in September, all of us at AAE hope you have a wonderful summer (or winter, for those south of the equator).
Richard Adin, An American Editor
An American Editor 