Mary norris biography new yorker

I became a copy editor by accident four years ago.

Mary norris biography new yorker magazine

I saw a tweet (accidentally posted, I would later find out) advertising a part-time copy editing position at Slate. I hadn’t thought of myself for such a role previously; a poor speller, I rarely copy edited my own papers in college and didn’t have an opinion about the en dash, or even know how to use one.

But, during an interview for a fact-checking job at a magazine in Philadelphia, I was asked to describe why I’d make a good member of their staff—“for example,” the interviewer said, “our copy chief can’t help but copy edit things.

When he sees a sign, he immediately marks it up in his mind.” I didn’t get the job—I knew nothing about Philadelphia—but I liked that notion, and realized I did that too.

Mary norris biography new yorker

I noticed incorrect or inconsistent details even if I wasn’t instantly sure how they should be fixed. I used that line in my Slate interview and have been copy editing ever since.

It seems fitting I became a