Blog Post 15, Derrek Ballard

The most challenging part of this assignment was finding a writer's paper to edit.  I'm not great friends with anybody on campus (or any other students because I'm an old fart and all of my friends have already graduated), but I finally found a piece of literature to edit: my cousin's blog post.  I think this was even more challenging than editing a stranger's paper, though, because I was worried to hurt her feelings or to make her feel dumb.

What stuck out most to me while editing her blog post and reading the material for this chapter was that coaching is so much different than just editing.  You have to develop a relationship with the writer and know their purpose for writing their piece.  It's important to understand the writer and where they come from, in order to make recommendations.  I was also able to teach her several things, like when to use ellipses and semicolons.  Because I was able to teach her a few writing tips, she can use that in future blog posts and become more successful in it.

For my editing mistake this week, I would like to use an excerpt of my cousin's blog post:

I want to specifically look at the second paragraph.  I would have written this instead:

"Can we talk about these shoes for a second?  I fell in love with them the second I saw them.  Don't walk - run! - to your nearest TJ Maxx clearance aisle, look for these Sam Edelman heels and hope they have your size.  Mine are half a size too big and are just a tad big hard to walk in; besides that, they are totally comfortable.  This outfit is one of my new go-to date night outfits.  Leave a comment on how you would wear this top - I am always looking for new outfit inspiration!"