English-language editor & plain language advocate. Based in Bangkok. AmE & Japanese speaker. Past pseudo opera singer. www.TheClarityEditor.com
Resources for independent/freelance editors and proofreaders
A completely non-authoritative and non-exhaustive list of my favorite resources for freelance/independent editors and proofreaders. If you're interested in learning more about the editing and proofreading profession, here are some great resources. This list is completely subjective, from a non-fiction editor's perspective, and non-authoritative. Web resources on be(com)ing an editor or proofreader…
Can ChatGPT help copyedit a translation?
Can AI chatbots take over scholarly translation? I used ChatGPT to help me copyedit text that it had translated. Conclusion: it's probably more efficient to hire a professional human translator from the start. I had the interesting opportunity to work with a European economics magazine as it experimented with translating articles into English with ChatGPT. I was one of the human copyeditors who were tasked to edit the ChatGPT…
https://theclarityeditor.com/2025/01/28/can-chatgpt-help-copyedit-a-translation/
Using PL for better machine translation in the age of AI
More people today can understand content in other languages thanks to machine and AI translation. These translations can be more understandable if you use plain language principles. Today’s machine and AI translators cannot match the nuanced and skilled work of professional human translators. But machine translations are useful for getting the gist of information. I certainly love Google Translate for confirming…
https://theclarityeditor.com/2025/02/25/using-pl-for-better-machine-translation-in-the-age-of-ai/
The Clarity Editor annual report 2024
2024 was a good, solid year focusing on simplicity. Here are the highlights of my year. Wishing you all a healthy, peaceful, and fulfilling 2025!
https://theclarityeditor.com/2024/12/31/the-clarity-editor-annual-report-2024/
How to use jargon effectively, responsibly, and inclusively
Most of us have heard that jargon is terrible. Is it really so terrible? And is there any way we use jargon well? For those of you who just want to know what to do, here are my tips on how to use jargon effectively, responsibly, and inclusively. How to use jargon effectively, responsibly, and inclusively Know who your audience is…
https://theclarityeditor.com/2024/10/03/how-to-use-jargon-effectively-responsibly-and-inclusively/
In your inbox: When should we mention skin tone, race or ethnicity in alt text?
If you've signed up, this is what you got in your inbox this month:
- Whether and how to mention skin tone in alt text
- Links that will help you write good alt text
- 英語圏では学者も alt text（代替テキスト）が必要
Plus an unfortunate mistranslation of a road sign that scares me every time.
Read on: https://sh1.sendinblue.com/afm3exw70lpfe.html?t=1711612635
Sign up: https://theclarityeditor.com/clear-simple-scholarly-english-for-multi-language-authors/sign-up-for-writing-tips/
#PlainLanguage #ClearWritingTips
Let's talk about skin tone in alt text to normalize diversity. Accessibility leader Léonie Watson’s points out that when there’s no other information, we assume “normal” to be like ourselves.
How can we mention skin tone? I’m the first to confess I don’t have a clear answer to this. But we might start from good practices in writing about skin tone, race, and ethnicity.
More and links to resources in my blog post:
https://theclarityeditor.com/2024/03/27/should-we-mention-race-in-alt-text/
#Inclusion #AltText #WritingTips
Free self-study guide on writing plain English is now available—from Martin Cutts, author of the Oxford Guide to Plain English (great book, highly recommend it!).
"The course shows some simple ways of making writing clearer and more concise, while helping users avoid some of the commonest mistakes of punctuation and grammar."
https://clearest.co.uk/distance-learning/
#PlainLanguage #WritingResources #WritingTips
Editor (and CIEP colleague) Anupam Choudhury explains the three components of a project: "time (speed), cost (budget), and quality". When your client sets a limit on any of these, the others will have to yield.
Understanding that will help you negotiate with your client, decide what to include in scope, and determine whether to accept or decline the project.
https://buff.ly/3Vin1kU
#FreelanceEditor #Solopreneur
Boundaries "have a seductive moral authority as the dominant metaphor for how human relationships should work" writes Lily Scherlis. But boundaries teach us to "relate to other people as if they are the one thing social systems are most determined to protect: property."
Living in a community-oriented society in SE Asia, I've long felt that these lines were artificial (while useful at times), so I found this article both refreshing and illuminating.
https://www.parapraxismagazine.com/articles/boundary-issues
#FoodForThought
Not writing in the negative will make your writing less difficult to understand. (Did you get that?)
Plus a case of machine translation that seems too classic to be true in 2024.
Read on: https://buff.ly/3I6wZyb
Sign up for monthly clear writing tips in your inbox: https://buff.ly/40zqJHE
A murder of crows. A parliament of owls. A watch of nightingales. A gaggle of geese. An unkindness of ravens.
I'd heard of some of these but didn't know there were many, many more collective nouns ("company terms") for birds...and that they originate largely from a 15th-century book by a nun and author called Juliana Barnes!
Here are more company terms for birds. Enjoy!
https://www.themarginalian.org/2024/01/04/brian-wildsmith-birds-company-terms/
#AmLearning #EnglishWords
I think some colleagues and friends might enjoy this: a new multilingual urban dictionary!
Untranslatable seeks to "shed a light on the side of foreign languages non-native speakers rarely get to see." You can explore "idioms, expressions, slang and other linguistic curiosities" from all kinds of languages. You can submit entries too 🤩
https://buff.ly/3HZ8gMa
Thanks to Cheryl Stephens for sharing on the PLAIN page. #WordsMatter #Languages
A lovely, whimsical, modern fairy tale about a grammarian's five daughters, by Eleanor Arnason 😊 Enjoy!
文書には「型」を使おう
英文には、「型」がいくつもあることをご存知ですか？文書に適切な型を上手に使えると、ぐっと英文レベルが上がります。
Writing for print is different from writing for the web. In print, the author can present the content in a linear, storytelling style.
But on the web, readers are more likely to be looking for specific, actionable content online. So the writers have to quickly get to the point and make the content scannable.
A good reminder that our writing has to match the reader and what they expect from the medium!
https://www.nngroup.com/articles/writing-style-for-print-vs-web/
#PlainLanguage #FoodForThought #WritingTips
English is being dropped as the language of instruction in many Indian universities, to be replaced by local languages. Will it help more students—esp. from marginalized communities—complete their studies? Or does it bar them from a global market?
https://restofworld.org/2022/indian-universities-are-ditching-english-only-education/
#WordsMatter #FoodForThought #WeekendRead
More about the trouble caused by commas: 10 Controversies Caused By Commas
https://listverse.com/2018/07/24/10-controversies-caused-by-commas/
#PlainLanguage
Here’s an easy tip to help you write more clearly: if you can, rephrase negatives into positives. This is especially useful when you’re writing instructions and test or survey questions. (But when you're prohibiting something, negative is good: "Do not get wet" is a better warning than "keep dry," according to Simplified Technical English.)
https://theclarityeditor.com/2024/01/23/quick-tip-rephrase-negatives-into-positives/
#PlainLanguage #WritingTips
The US Supreme Court is trying to decide whether "and" in a federal law means "and" or "or"--and their decision will determine whether 10,000+ people will go to prison or not.
Words have real-world implications indeed! Using plain language should help, but I wouldn't want to be the editor responsible for making sure these laws are beyond misinterpretation 😅
https://www.motherjones.com/criminal-justice/2023/10/supreme-court-pulsifer-criminal-justice-drug-definitions/
#PlainLanguage #WordsMatter #WeekendRead