Math and Words

1. Edit. This is the bulk of what I do. Editing for academic publishing, which is my focus, involves two distinct tasks: ensuring that the language and structure are appropriate to the particular discipline of the author; and ensuring that the technical aspects of the manuscript (margins, citations, figure placement, official names of organizations, etc.) are correct. When I'm editing a chemistry manuscript, I make sure that the manuscript meets the standards for a chemistry manuscript, checking things such as appropriate naming of compounds. When I'm editing a psychology manuscript, I make sure the manuscript meets the standards for a psychology manuscript -- these differ from those for a chemistry manuscript on capitalization, citations, and other areas.

2. Teach. Not all editors teach, but some do. I occasionally give classes on different aspects of publishing, from the technical (e.g., how to write in LaTeX) to the social (e.g., how to write a letter asking for an additional review of a rejected manuscript).

3. Confer with other editors. There is no typical author's editor. Some editors have a background in writing; others have a background in the subject matter of the writing. By education I'm a mathematician, by training I'm a writer, and by experience I'm a computer scientist. This makes me conversant with a wide range of academic specialties, but not all of them. To compensate for this, I seek advice from other editors, and they seek advice from me.

4. Look for ridiculous meanings. This is part of editing, but it is worth mentioning on its own because it's unnatural for most people. I try to read sentences in the most ridiculous way possible. I do this to news headlines to generate funny posts (well, I think they're funny), but this is also an important part of my job. For academic authors, this is important -- the text should be unambiguous.

5. Check translations. The company I work for also offers translation services. Most of the translations are from Japanese into English. I don't do translations myself, but I do check parts of the translation that seem like they might not be quite right. In contrast to editors, most translators have a background in the languages, not the subject matter. Very occasionally, I translate short phrases from French or German. These sometimes appear in the original Japanese text, and the Japanese->English translators typically leave them as they are.