CW gets picky

It would be entirely possible for you to overhear people in our office debating whether the word "picky" or "persnickety" is better in a certain situation. Painstaking attention to detail is precisely the quality that enables wordsmiths to do their jobs well. Us editor types are apt to be particular about matters others consider petty.

And no person in our circles is more rewarded for this tendency than the editorial assistant, the worker who helps with administrative tasks and does a lot of proofreading; a lot of proofreading and excising of redundant phrases; a lot of proofreading.

For the past two years Carla Lowe has ably filled this position. She learned CW style quite quickly (which means she picked up the idiosyncrasies of our spelling, grammar and stylistic preferences), policed our pages and enforced the rules rigorously. But Carla has now taken her leave to join the ranks of motherhood, and once again we realize we cannot do without her (or without someone like her).

Enter Naomi Biesheuvel of Hamilton, Ontario, who earlier this year graduated from Redeemer University College with an honours B.A. degree (English major; Missions minor). Then she spent the summer proofreading and editing several 50-100 page books-and actually enjoyed it. Not only that, she was willing to move to Winnipeg for the opportunity to develop her skills in this workplace.

"The power of the written word is very strong," she explains. "We as Christians have an enormous and wonderful responsibility to contribute to the world of media in a manner that glorifies God."

And part of the God-glorifying manner, we maintain, is attention to detail. The newspapers we produce are easier to read and produce because of the efforts of workers like Carla and Naomi.