Send us a text

I discuss the recent announcement by the Italian government that it is introducing legislation to levy fines on those who use foreign terms, when there is an Italian equivalent, in official documents. I also talk about similar prescriptive tendencies by the governments of France and of the province of Quebec in Canada.

Sources:

"Italian government seeks to penalize the use of English words" (CTV News)
https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/italian-government-seeks-to-penalize-the-use-of-english-words-1.6338822

Grande dizionario della lingua italiana
https://www.gdli.it/

Dictionnaire de l’Académie française
https://www.dictionnaire-academie.fr/

Vitrine linguistique (Office québécois de la langue française)
https://vitrinelinguistique.oqlf.gouv.qc.ca/

Oxford English Dictionary
https://www.oed.com/

Send us a text

I talk about the use and origin of the word "incent," and its relationship to "incentive" and "incentivize." Plus, I may have developed a screenplay for a movie based on quotations from two separate definitions in the Oxford English Dictionary.

Credit: Excerpt from The Decibel, March 29, 2023 (https://www.theglobeandmail.com/podcasts/the-decibel/article-the-2023-federal-budget-in-23-minutes/)

Send us a text

I talk about literary fiction, using the example of one of the great novels of all time, Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov.

Send us a text

I describe my own experiences in editing articles for academic journals published by a university press, both copy editing and proofreading.

Wayne Jones's site
https://waynejonesediting.ca/

Send us a text

I talk about the revision and censorship of books that are carried out so as to rid them of words and situations that are considered too sensitive for some in the politically correct and woke ethos that we all now inhabit.

■ How to give me a rating or review on Apple Podcasts

- visit WritingEditing.ca

- go to Apple Podcasts at https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/writing-editing/id1603753102

- Google these words: how do I rate a podcast on Apple
---------------------------------------------------------------------
■ News stories about authors whose works have been subjected to sensitivity readings

- the James Bond books
https://nationalpost.com/news/world/james-bond-books-rewritten

- Agatha Christie's novels
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/mar/26/agatha-christie-novels-reworked-to-remove-potentially-offensive-language

- Roald Dahl's books
https://www.economist.com/britain/2023/03/23/editing-roald-dahl-for-sensitivity-was-silly

- an episode of Matt Taibbi's "Racket" podcast about sensitivity readings
https://www.racket.news/p/episode-27-america-this-week-with#details

- an article about sensitivity readings by CJ Hopkins in "OffGuardian"
https://off-guardian.org/2023/02/22/the-war-on-insensitivity/

Send us a text

My guest is Audrey Jamieson, who is an editor and writer. On the editing side, she does developmental, stylistic, and copy editing. On the writing side, she does ghostwriting but also writes and has published fantasy fiction. We talk about editing as a business where people work with people. How to treat clients. How to collaborate. How to communicate tactfully.

Audrey Jamieson’s Site
https://www.audreyj.ca/

Send us a text

I have a one-on-one interview with ChatGPT while I am in my home office, and it is in a hotel room in downtown Ottawa, Canada, after it has somehow managed to stow away on Air Force One, the plane which brought President Joe Biden to Canada for an official visit. ChatGPT remained in Ottawa for a few days after the president returned to the US. My interview took place on Saturday, March 25, 2023.

Send us a text

I talk about the scourge of this phrase, which is much over-used in English these days, usually either joining two thoughts together without establishing the exact relationship between them, or as a clunky alternative to another word that could easily and more clearly replace it.

Send us a text

My guest is Frances Peck, who was an editor and ghostwriter for 30 years, but last year began her career as a novelist, with The Broken Places, published by NeWest Press. The novel received much praise and excellent reviews. Her second novel will be published later this year. We talk a little about ghostwriting, but mostly about her novel, how she engages with book clubs, and about literary fiction generally.

Frances Peck’s Site
 https://francespeck.com/

NeWest Press
 https://bookshop.newestpress.com/products/the-broken-places

Send us a text

I discuss the purpose of a style sheet and walk through some of the details of what is included in a typical one.

Wayne Jones Editing: Style Sheet Template
https://writingediting.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Writing-Editing-podcast-example-of-style-sheet.pdf