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The tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by Black Sparrow Press (2013)

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Re: The tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by Black Sparrow Press (2013)

#4
This is extraordinary. The sample edits given at the end of the article go far beyond normal editorial changes. They completely change the meaning and content of the poem. It is a _different poem_.

This comment about the editor struck me:

> "Now, when I bring this subject up among a certain crowd, they bristle. They become very defensive of Martin and downright antagonistic toward me while they list the many ways in which he is a wonderful man..."

Does anyone know more about the relationship between Bukowski and Martin, and why Martin would be revered today? Why he would have supporters? Why he would even need supporters? (It seems odd that he'd have any role that meant he needed either detractors or fans; either seems a mistake in an editor.)

Re: The tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by Black Sparrow Press (2013)

#5
post #3

That example at the end is just so cringeworthy. The editor deserves to be dragged through the mud for basically re-writing the entire work.

While word replacements and omissions are bad enough, I totally fail to understand why anyone would have thought that these meandering additions were a good thing? How is this even editing?

Edit: While substitutions and what you do, when your Mom sees you writing a piece and points at a word, asking, if you maybe could do without it, are a not so much a necessary thing, the writer of this comment doesn't fully understand how this is the professional accomplishment that it is. Last Christmas, I didn't go skiing. How is this even editing? ;-)

Re: The tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by Black Sparrow Press (2013)

#7

This is extraordinary. The sample edits given at the end of the article go far beyond normal editorial changes. They completely change the meaning and content of the poem. It is a _different poem_. This comment about the editor struck me: > "Now, when I bring this subject up among a certain crowd, they bristle. They become very defensive of Martin and downright antagonistic toward me while they list the many ways in…

Martin supported Bukowski early in his career (as a late-blossoming writer). There are many friendly mentions of him and Black Sparrow Press from Bukowski himself. They had a contract. Martin would publish anything Bukowski wrote, as long as he put himself to work. In hindsight, that offer does appear much less generous.

Re: The tragic rape of Charles Bukowski’s ghost by Black Sparrow Press (2013)

#10

This is extraordinary. The sample edits given at the end of the article go far beyond normal editorial changes. They completely change the meaning and content of the poem. It is a _different poem_. This comment about the editor struck me: > "Now, when I bring this subject up among a certain crowd, they bristle. They become very defensive of Martin and downright antagonistic toward me while they list the many ways in…

>The sample edits given at the end of the article go far beyond normal editorial changes.

Right, as I was reading along, I thought how bad could this possibly be. But they changed:

>I lost $40

>at the track

>today

>so I'm somewhat

>bitter.

To this:

>and I won $400

>at the track

>today

>so I'm somewhat

>pleased.

Not that I've ever been a reader of Bukowski, but this is just changed into something that he simply didn't write.

I had no idea that this was something that people did.

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