All photos copyright Sarah Goodman, unless specified.

photo: "Sarah G." copyright by Miriam Goodman

About Good Manuscript

A good manuscript is hard to find.

In 20 years as an editor, I’ve seen manuscripts try to do their job, fall down, and try again. I’ve produced, generated, tweaked, and fixed, text books, medical journals, stories, and poems. For each task, I use one consistent approach:

Be considerate of readers.

Words make good bridges, but they are flexible and slippery, like water.That’s why its important to think about what they are meant to carry and who they are meant to reach. 

For all the power words have, words are wild and need wranglers to make them do an actual job.

Don't think words are wild? Try this: Define word. Nobody knows the actual definition of word. All the definitions say “generally” or “usually.” Is a word a morpheme? "Sometimes."

To my mom, the interjection, “Word!” meant nothing. Yet “word” is defined today, by the Urban Dictionary as “a greeting, ‘hey what's up.’”A word's life depends on how, when, and  to whom you use it. It depends on context. It grows from feedback.

So, if you’re reading this,tell me what you want words to do for you. I’m happiest writing with a new purpose, and with a new reader in mind.