Style Mechanics

   Editing style, unlike writing style, is little more than consistency of usage. For example, when dealing with numbers and percentages, it makes no difference whether you use percent, per cent, pct or %. The meaning is still the same. And whether the associated numbers are spelled out, usually one through ten, or symbols, such as 12 or 23, makes a difference only in readability. For example,  144 percent is easier to read than one-hundred-forty-four percent.
   To establish consistency of usage, the editor in chief decides, arbitrarily perhaps, which form to use, and copy editors ensure that all references use the same form. It also behooves contributing writers to follow the same guidelines, thus helping make the copy editor's job easier.
   Why should a writer bother? Isn't it the copy editor's job to clean up the copy? Yes, it is, but sloppy copy is a sign of sloppy writing, and detracts from a writer's credibility. However, too many reporters and writers feel they are above such mundane concerns, since after all, they are "the important ones," whose names accompany the story.
   Such an attitude of self-importance can be destructive, however. If reporters insist that their golden prose not be tampered with, they should keep in mind that their names are indeed attached to the story, and that good copy editors save writers from appearing foolish every day.
   Copy editors maintain the standards of good writing -- consistency, reliability, readability, accuracy and grammatical smoothness. The one who appears foolish, whose reputation as a reliable, competent communicator is tarnished, and the one who gets blamed for factual errors, is the one whose byline is above the story, not the unknown and unsung editors.
   So let's start a trend, and observe Be Kind to Copy Editors Week, even as they appear cranky and crotchety towards writers who do not observe the standards of good writing.
   Meanwhile, consider the possibility that if you really annoy a copy editor, that editor may take a little revenge by letting your rambling, deranged prose go to print just as you perpetrated it. It's not likely, but there are ways ...

   A misplaced comma or a dropped letter can easily change the meaning and intent of a phrase. The copy editor's defense? That's the way Superstar Reporter wanted it. Result: The managing editor dumps on Superstar.
   Perry White, Lou Grant and Walter Burns may be fictional characters, but they are accurate depictions of many real-life managing editors.

   (Note: Perry White was the managing editor of The Daily Planet in the Superman series. Lou Grant was the managing editor in the TV series of the same name. Walter Burns was the managing editor in the movie, "The Front Page.")