cut, paste, add, remove

I got a small contract to do some editing work this weekend. It's a shitty job. No, i mean, really. I'm editing a research report on sewage treatment methods. What a load of crap, eh?! Actually, it's not that bad. There's people doing all these different experiments to figure out which chemicals can best remove the sludge and grossness from sewage so that it can be recycled as industrial water and even possibly as drinking water (i know, sounds kinda ew). Water's pretty scarce in Singapore, especially considering the large population and small land mass, so this stuff is important in helping maintain at least some degree of self-sufficiency.

Editing is always harder work than i initially imagine it'll be. You'd think writing would be harder, cos you're actually creating something new, moulding language out of nothing (or at least out of the mess that's in your head). But rephrasing, cutting, reworking paragraphs can be hard work too, especially if the writing's bad (and with this report, the writing is real bad). Plus i'm always wary of editing too strongly. After all, it is someone else's voice you're changing.

Anyway, i should quit philosophizing and get back to work.