I proofread a blog called “The Truth About Cars” and, as you can imagine, there’s been much written on the domestic auto industry of late. While the site’s contributors try to keep the posts light and humorous, there is a need to report the news truthfully without spin (ahem, MSM). Bailouts are a popular topic and require me to be extra vigilant. Too often “bailout” and “bail out” are used interchangably though they mean two different things. “Bailout” is a noun, as in The auto industry bailout is a boondoggle. “Bail out” is a verb + modifier, as in I’m going to bail out if this plane suffers a malfunction or Help me bail out this water before the boat sinks!
[click to continue . . .]
Oh, my five regular visitors, I’ve neglected this site for too long. It’s not that grammar has gotten better, it’s just that there are so many other things to worry about these days. Things like money. Blogs are certainly not fields of dreams—I’ve built one, placed some ads, generated some content, and have made a whole $10. My partner has disappeared but I don’t begrudge him (much).
[click to continue . . .]
This document is the work of and copyright is held by Robert Farago.
PDF
People often ask how I became an editor. It started the summer after I graduated high school. Amazon.com had just started and from them I ordered a book titled “Car Secrets Revealed” (by Corey Rudl). The book, while somewhat interesting, was nearly impossible to read because of numerous spelling errors, run on sentences, and other grammatical mistakes. The book had some good info in it so I didn’t want to return it; instead, I researched the author, got his e-mail, and pestered him to let me edit the second edition of his book. The rest is history. While Mr. Rudl went on to become an infamous “e-mail marketer,” I went to college, dropped out after a year-and-a-half, and found myself in a succession of various jobs that were information management-related: database programming; converting Boeing tech manuals to PDFs; and proofreading for a major commercial printer, among others. Each setting was completely unlike the other but two things remained with me always: a good dictionary and a style guide (usually The Chicago Manual of Style).
Continue reading . . .
The Mini began life in a fit of pique. Saying that, describing Leonard Lord’s creative spark with a French expression may be too ironic even for the British (who’ve been defending their island nation with arched eyebrows for centuries). Less obliquely, the head of the British Motor Corporation allegedly launched the automotive project with the words “God damn these bloody awful [German] Bubble Cars. We must drive them off the road by designing a proper miniature car.” In 1959, while the UK was still suffering from a gigantic post-WWII, post-Empire hangover, the ill-fated BMC launched the Mini. Long story short, Mini RIP 1970. Until the Germans (of all people) decided to resurrect the brand. BMW beget MINI.
[click to continue . . .]
