I have always thought that as a professional editor, I should take pleasure in reading, take pride in compiling books, and have fun buying books, and build my own complete reading life around loving books, compiling books, visiting books, and reading books. In this sense, editors should be the most read people in the world.
When we pay attention to the national reading survey released by authoritative institutions every year and lament that the national average reads less than 5 paper books per capita every year, we should be glad that we do not only read 5 books a year, but multiply the number, maybe 10, maybe 20. Because the editor has this condition to read. Imagine that when an editor has to complete the planning and editing of multiple new books a year, almost every topic planning must read many kinds of books in related fields. A reference book with a selected topic is by no means something that can be effective by a few, but more than a few books or dozens of books. If you don't finish reading the relevant books, you don't have the courage to declare the topic and argue the topic. In addition, weekends and holidays are also good times for editors to read a lot, and they can read the books they want to read calmly. At the same time, combined with visiting bookstores, you will also find some unexpected good books, so that your reading field is broader.
However, at some point, not reading a book a year is horribly becoming a true portrayal of many editors. I have asked many editors about this issue, whether they are old editors or young editors, who claim that because the usual workload is too large and trivial, they come home late from work every day, and they have to squeeze time out of their rest time to read every day, which is almost impossible. Don't talk about reading, it is the overtime and heavy housework on holidays, which also makes many people discouraged and lazy, and there is no time to study again. With such year-to-year work, without the recharge of reading in spare time, the "evil consequences" of editors not reading will be manifested in the declaration of topic selection, review and processing, review opinions, and value judgments of topic selection. I remember that a few years ago, there was a college student who graduated from a famous school, or a young editor who had worked for several years, and when he read the manuscript of a famous novel, he did not even see the "711" unit that the author had mistakenly written. Obviously, this is a question that all elementary school students can answer. This editor, because of the pressure of his usual work, rarely reads books, and even ignores this common sense. In the process of planning and reviewing the reading drafts, I always find that the topic selection planning of some young editors is not very accurate, and they cannot withstand careful consideration, and they ask flaws when they ask questions, because they usually do not read much about the relevant reference books, and they know very little about the field of topic selection, let alone academic achievements. When many editors deal with famous artists, part of the reason why they can't meet the famous masters' manuscripts is that they read less, and when they talk to famous artists, they answer questions that are not answered, so that famous artists are not sure what kind of results will be given to a person who reads less.
I started editing after graduating from college in 1982. From the beginning, I developed my own annual reading plan, reading dozens of books every year, and making thousands of cards and nearly 10 reading notes. Due to a lot of reading, it is possible to win the game and constantly produce new ones in the planning of the topic. I remember the publisher Nie Zhenning said:
"Reading books should be the brightest scenery of the publishing industry; and reading books by editors should become the eternal scenery of the publishing industry." ("Editing and Reading", China Press, Publication, Radio and Telegraph, January 20, 2020)
He also believes that the person who really makes books should be the one who loves books. If you don't like reading, it's best not to do editing. When I participated in the interview for editors in my unit in previous years, I often asked the candidate what books he usually read and whether he loved to read. The love of reading as one of the winning conditions for a qualified candidate is also based on the truth that only by loving books can you compile a good book. For example, all those who have achieved success are all super book lovers and love books. It is better not to eat for a day than to go a day without reading. Reading has become a daily necessity for them. Like the editors Zhang Yuanji, Gao Mengdan, Lu Feikui, Shu Xincheng, Hu Yuzhi, Zou Taofen, Zheng Zhenduo, Xia Junzun, Ye Shengtao, Zhang Jinglu, etc., all of them are book fans, almost everyone's reading stories are wonderful, and there are many reading insights. Only by reading a lot of books can editors make up for their own lack of knowledge, can they make a difference in the planning of topic selection, the review and processing of book manuscripts, and they can have the courage and courage to face the communication with the author. If you don't read much, or don't read much after a year, how can you have the courage to review the author's manuscript? No matter what field the author's manuscript is, at least it has its own unique discoveries and interpretations, and only after reading the relevant books can it have the conditions and ability to put forward its own opinions on the manuscripts reviewed and processed. After all, the editor's review, but also bold questions, which requires the foundation of reading.
It can be seen that the reading of editors is not only related to the needs of work, but also the reading of interest in order to improve self-cultivation and broaden their horizons. In any case, the editor's reading should not be a simple reader reading, but a high level of deep reading to improve their editing level. For some classic works, you may wish to use them as a must-have book on the desk and study them repeatedly. For example, "The Complete Works of Lu Xun", I have read it twice in decades, but I still feel that I have not read it thoroughly, and as soon as I have the effort, I will take it out and read it; like the two volumes of "Wonders of Ancient Antiquity" selected by the old man who held the urn at the end of the Ming Dynasty, I have read it 4 times in several decades, and I found that I have not read it thoroughly, and I am ready to read it for the 5th time. It can be seen that those classic masterpieces that guide us forward need us to show courage, courage, time, and repeated study in order to obtain their true scriptures. As a result, editors have to subtract in many ways, such as reducing unnecessary socializing and meaningless things, and taking more time to read. Unlike other readers who read books, editing books is a lifelong thing, as long as you have been an editor, you can't give up reading for a day. Reading is a choice, but also a kind of judgment and perfection, in the continuous reading, the editor will continue to grow, and build their own knowledge universe. The more you read, the more you compare and judge, which will greatly benefit your editing work. As some people think, liking to read is a qualified editor. Don't like to read, or don't have time to read, are not qualified editors, or even suitable for editing. You don't read books, how do you communicate with the author? And how do you review the reading manuscript? Just as the ancients advocated "reading a hundred times, its righteousness is self-evident", editors can only have a greater career pattern, life pattern, life determination, career sensitivity, etc. only by persistently reading a lot every year, can they do a good job of editing; on the contrary, editors who do not read books and read less will feel that their work is constrained and difficult, let alone have great editorial achievements!
Source: Mu duo has sound