Wednesday, 8.20
Various discoveries . . .
Well it looks like Misfit M/W/F might actually mean “choose any two.”
Last week I managed Monday and Wednesday—this week I’m shooting for Wednesday and Friday. Fingers crossed!
And today:
TK
My original plan was to briefly announce a new "feature" of the Misfit Writer newsletter, and I wanted to explain (for those who never did analog markup) that "TK" stands for "To Come."
Meaning, there will be something else between one word / sentence / paragraph / chapter and the next.
I worked in publishing, both as an editor and an author, in the days when we swapped stacks of paper back and forth for months to prepare a manuscript for print, then had to provide instructions to the printer using standard symbols. Actually it was good experience, I think—at least in the sense that I was forced to concentrate on the manuscript in ways I haven’t done since.
For the curious: it’s TK not TC because the letters t and k rarely appear next to each other (in that order) in a word, whereas t and c sometimes do. Outcome, watch, etc.
But anyway—I was looking for a good summary of editing/proofing marks, and as usual, I found much more than I expected. Turns out this particular mark is also common jargon in journalism—and even has a small cohort of nostalgic fans.
If you want to know more, here are some suggestions:
I really like Blane Bachelor’s Substack and have added it to my Inbox. Here’s her contribution: Hed, Dek, TK: Journalism Jargon 101
Next I discovered that novelist Steven Pressfield—best known for The Legend of Bagger Vance—has a blog called Writing Wednesdays. His ideas about writing/life don’t fall into the usual categories, so I’ve decided to make him an honorary Misfit. Get the flavor here: Writing Wednesdays: The Magic of TK
Along quite different lines, I came across this essay on Literary Hub: In Praise of TK: Why the Handy Shorthand Has a Surprising Emotional Hold on Me.
And as a serendipitous side trip, I found a wonderfully logical graphic on the website of editor David Agnew: How to Achieve Perfect Headline Capitalization Every Time.
So—what’s TK in the Misfit Writer world this August?
I’m working on a concise-but-comprehensive guide to the complicated world where writers, authors, and entrepreneurs collide and coalesce. As usual, I set out to make a simple outline to clarify my own understanding; got seduced by the research process; and found myself halfway to a useful ebook.
So why not go the distance?
Shooting for September 1, but in the meantime there will be a free cheat sheet right here, next week.
Breaking News!
I absolutely did not know this until five minutes ago—but if you put TK in a Substack draft, it will appear in the righthand margin as an editorial reminder.
Which is not all that useful by itself. However—and here’s the good part—Substack won’t let you publish the draft if there are any TKs unintentionally left in.
More Substack Gems
For the past couple of weeks I’ve been dropping in on Cory Lobbezoo’s daily “Eat the Frog” coworking space, where everyone focuses on something they need (but don’t want) to do. I’ve accomplished a few tasks that might not have gotten done without the company of other folks wrangling their own slippery amphibians.
Cory has already offered an initial workshop, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Her approach is a little bit Misfit (always a compliment here)—so you should have a look at her Substack!
And on the theme of new Substacks . . . I’ve decided we need a Welcome Wagon.
I’ve noticed that folks chatting in various groups and events sometimes say it’s hard to get started on Substack, either because setup and design aren’t all that obvious, or because they worry about putting themselves “out there” on a big public platform.
Or both.
I’m working on a short demystification guide to Substacking that will (I hope) make a nicely Misfit counterpoint to the many (many) others out there. But in the meantime, I’ll look for one newbie every week, and invite you to drop by their new site and leave a “Welcome to Substack!” comment.
We can’t subscribe to/follow every publication/writer that comes along—but we could say hi, and even add a word of appreciation or encouragement.
Today’s Welcome spotlight shines on:
Anne hasn’t started posting yet—but already I’m captivated by her cartoons and artwork, so definitely looking forward to how her Substack takes shape.
That’s time for today. More soon! C
That diagrams a great find..
Thanks so much for the shout-out!