Albert Jay Nock On The Iii Rules Of Editorial Policy

For 31 years, I've been editing the Journal of Economic Perspectives. At the most basic level, editing is nearly pushing the writer to convey a request inwards the starting fourth dimension place, in addition to to come inwards clearly. Sounds simple, perhaps? On complex subjects, coming together those criteria tin live on a high hurdle to cross. 

Albert Jay Nock, inwards his 1943 Memoirs of a Superfluous Man, tells a story along these lines inwards his description of the editorial policy at a magazine he had edited called The Freeman (p. 172):
"In 1 way, our editorial policy was extremely easy-going, in addition to inwards or in addition to therefore other manner it was unbending equally a ramrod. I tin explicate this best past times an anecdote. One 24-hour interval Miss X steered inwards a charming swain who wanted to write for us. I took a liking to him at once, in addition to kept him chatting for quite a while. When nosotros came downward to business, he diffidently asked what our policy was, in addition to did nosotros convey whatever untouchable sacred cows. I said nosotros sure as shooting had, nosotros had 3 of them, equally untouchable in addition to sacred equally the Ark of the Covenant. He looked a fight flustered in addition to asked what they were. 
"The starting fourth dimension one," I said, "is that you lot must convey a point. Second, you lot must come inwards out. The tertiary 1 is that you lot must come inwards out inwards eighteen-carat, impeccable, idiomatic English."
"But is that all?" 
"Isn't it plenty for you?" 
'Why, yes, I suppose so, simply I mean, is that all the editorial policy you lot have?" 
"As far equally I know, it is," I said, rising. "Now you lot run along domicile in addition to write us a prissy slice on the irremissibility of postbaptismal sin, in addition to if you lot tin seat it over those 3 jumps, you lot volition reckon it inwards print. Or if you lot would rather gain something on a national policy of strangling all the girl-babies at birth, you lot mightiness gain that—glad to convey it." 
The swain grinned in addition to shook hands warmly. We got fantabulous operate out of him. As a affair of fact, at 1 fourth dimension or or in addition to therefore other nosotros printed quite a fight of materials that none of us believed in, simply it all conformed to our 3 conditions, it was respectable in addition to worth consideration. Ours was old-school editing, no doubt, simply inwards my pitiful sentence it made a far ameliorate newspaper than to a greater extent than stringent methods convey produced inwards my time.
I particularly similar the comment inwards the closing paragraph nearly how they "printed quite a fight of materials that none of us believed in."  For editors, agreeing amongst authors is overrated in addition to inwards fact unnecessary.
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