The Gatekeepers of Language

I'm big on being right—just ask my wife.

I'm a know-it-all. I like being the smartest one in the room. I never want to be seen as ditzy; I always want people to think I'm intelligent.

Is it my favorite quality about myself? No.

Would I rather come off as a bitch who knows what she's talking about than a sweetheart who doesn't? Yes.

But I'm starting to learn that those aren't always the only two options (though I still believe they often are).

Society isn't the greatest for women. We learn early on that if we want to be taken seriously, we can't be seen as too attractive, or people will think we didn't earn our success.

We can't be seen as too funny or too casual, or people will think we're incompetent.

We can't be seen as too nice, or people will think we're flirting with them.

Oh, and we can't be seen as too smart, or people will think we're bitches.

To quote Olivia Rodrigo, "It's brutal out here."

With that said, I think that know-it-all quality is a good thing to have as an editor. To be a good editor, you have to be extremely anal about little details. You have to have big opinions on small things like serial commas and em dashes. Not to mention that good editors have to be able to justify their editorial decisions when questioned. They become very good at digging their heels in. Stubborn as bulls, copyeditors.

I'm not saying it's a bad thing. It really is a necessity in this career. However, I think there are two qualities in a good copyeditor that are even more crucial than stubbornness: humility and awareness.

It's good to be stubborn when you know you're right—once you've verified you're right, that is. But a good editor needs to know that they are not the authority. We may be professionals, but we are not the authority. We have style manuals, dictionaries, and countless other reference materials to turn to for concrete answers. Be humble enough to know that you don't know everything, and then be humble enough to admit it. Humility reminds us that we are not infallible.

Awareness is just as important, though.

I'm learning that editing is not a super diverse field. The more people I meet in the publishing industry, the more glaringly apparent that becomes. The homogeneity of perspectives and experiences within the publishing industry is an obvious reality—one that demands our attention. We, as editors, are gatekeepers of language and narrative. It is a responsibility that necessitates a commitment to inclusivity, diversity, and representation. Everyone has stories worth telling—not just white men. They should be able to tell their stories their way. Underrepresented peoples shouldn't have to conform to the language rules of their oppressors in order to be heard.

Language is fluid and ever-evolving. Language does not, cannot, and should not fit cleanly into style guides, dictionaries, and vocabularies. Dictionaries are meant to record how words are used, not how we think they ought to be. With that said, words are used differently by different groups of people.

As editors, it is imperative we seek to educate ourselves on the ways our shared language is used variably amongst different groups of people. By insisting on a "right" way and a "wrong" way to use language, we are perpetuating harmful beliefs and stereotypes. We cannot continue erasing underrepresented voices in the name of "correctness" or "grammar rules."

Where do we go from here?

Editors and other publishing professionals have a tremendous amount of influence over the ways language is used and perceived in society; we need to use that power for good. We need to examine our own biases and challenge our assumptions. We need to actively seek out underrepresented voices, amplify marginalized narratives, and actively seek to create spaces where diverse perspectives are celebrated.

Not only do we need to do that for authors, but we need to champion it within our professional spaces as well.

Personally, I often feel like a walking Equal Opportunity advertisement. I'm a female, mixed-race, gay veteran in her twenties. In the editing world, I'm basically a unicorn.

With that said, I bring an intersectionality of identities that shapes how I approach my work. As a minority in this field, I am acutely aware of the importance of respecting and uplifting diverse voices. I understand the value of creating spaces where authors and editors from all backgrounds can be seen, heard, and valued. My experiences inform not only how I approach editing, but also how I am trying to advocate for inclusivity within our industry.

This cause demands solidarity—a collective commitment to dismantling the barriers that perpetuate prejudice and exclusion. It's about lifting each other up, advocating for change, and championing a vision that reflects the diversity of the authors we work for.

In the end, commitments to inclusion are not professional requirements—they're moral obligations.

Links to more information and further reading on the subject of diversity in publishing:

https://www.the-efa.org/efa-board-attends-diversity-training

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/22/magazine/inside-the-push-to-diversify-the-book-business.html

https://bookriot.com/diversity-in-the-publishing-industry-2023

https://blog.leeandlow.com/2020/01/28/2019diversitybaselinesurvey