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From "The Blind Assassin," by Margaret Atwood:
The only way you can write the truth is to assume that what you set down will never be read. Not by any other person, and not even by yourself at some later date. Otherwise you begin excusing yourself. You must see the writing as emerging like a long scroll of ink from the index finger of your right hand; you must see your left hand erasing it.
Impossible, of course.
Sometimes, the best way to explain why editors exist is to let the unedited words speak for themselves. John McIntyre has a great post over at You Don't Say, demonstrating the ugliness that can go on behind the scenes at a newspaper. A highlight:
"Spring has sprung and besides trying to cope with the pollen attacking your sinuses, the staff at Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center Inc. wants you to be aware of another usual spring ritual: suicides."
You can read the full sampling here.
