Bake at Moderate Heat Until Tester Inserted in the Middle Comes Out Clean
The other day I had one of those moments where I found myself saying something pithy and wise ;) that I didn't plan. I was talking to a writer over the phone about a pitch he'd made by e-mail -- a sketchy and unformed, albeit interesting, pitch -- and after we'd agreed that he should think more about the aspects we discussed and get back to me, he apologized (unnecessarily, as I know him and have worked happily with him before) by saying, "Sorry this was so half baked." I said, "Hey, you can't get to baked without going through half baked." He seemed to appreciate that.
Labels: writing
posted by Billy at 10:32 AM
2 Comments:
I wonder what a good editor is in that metaphor. Maybe not the oven or the cookbook but the mechanism that moderates the temperature and time of cooking.
Dorothy L. Sayers has a marvelous description of the kind of gentle guidance you provided to the writer. There is something so profoundly gratifying about an editor who cares enough to think through what you want to say and help you say it better. He is lucky to have you and I am sure he knows it.
Billy! You're back!! :)
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