February and March are not pleasant months. They straddle the fence between real winter and impending spring. I can't recall any songs dedicated to either of these two months - the rhymes for February or March are either non-existent or juvenile. But neither weather, nor the lack of music hamper the writer. Once that poem, short story, or article is accepted for publication, it disappears into the black hole of editing and proofreading. What exactly do these mysterious people do to the glorious combination of words the writer has submitted? I can give you some insights because when I'm not writing, when I'm waiting for an idea or acceptance or rejection, I mold, meld and excise the words of others.

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Specifically, a proofreader and editor like myself, waits to hear the sound of that gunshot that starts the race. From the minute I receive the material for either editing or proofreading (or both) I am in a race against time. Publication date is holy, the printer strictly adheres to the deadline and so must all of us preening and pruning the articles.

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My mother's dream had been a hi-tech, hi-speed, high everything daughter and here I am pushing a pen across an A4 page. Somewhere in heaven she must be sighing, "After all I gave you, you're making scribbles on someone else's work." Hey mom, I want to shout up to the heavens, I'm not scribbling, I'm working. I vehemently deny making chicken tracks on anyone's work. Those are "inserts" and "deletes," spelling corrections, manipulations of grammar, in short, the stage designer making the play look good. To wax even more poetic about a proofreader and editor's task - it is the midwife slapping the text into life. As an editor, I read the comment written by a colleague - "good but too personal" and taking that as an instruction change the piece to give it a more objective viewpoint. Another essay might have "too long" as a comment. I work hard to keep the mood and tone while still consolidating it into a brief, concise, and enjoyable read.

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Magazines have specific audiences, sometimes the issue will have a theme, in short, there are many reasons why a submission may not be accepted. A topic may be of burning interest to the writer but if it doesn't suit the magazine's audience then chances for acceptance are slight. Before sending material, be aware of the readership, scan the length of the average article and most of all, be prepared to accept changes. You may read the opening paragraph of your article when it appears and not even recognize it but if the article conveys the message and information, then relax and enjoy seeing your name in print.

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What's the daily grind for a freelance wordsmith? Well, believe it or not, I do a lot of work for restaurants. Israel's cities and large towns are typical of any metropolis around the world where restaurants open and close like accordions playing at a Russian song festival. I meet the owners of these eateries at their hopeful beginning when they want a classy, elegant and correctly written English menu. I have days when my desk is piled high with virtual food; noki, lazahnyah, manakotee, let-us - all waiting not to be eaten, just corrected.

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And after five course meals come the underwriters and market analysts. Would you believe that even a lowly scribbler like yours truly gets the financiers beating a path to her desk? What was it they were singing in "Cabaret" ? about money making the world go 'round? In the windy, rainy days of February and March, I labor over the wild prose of venture capital proposals, rosy dreams ready to be sent out to overseas investors in the heady optimism of spring. Mine is not to question the figures, only to weave the optimistic prose around the numbers and statistics . . . and then send the bill quick - a minute before NASDAQ has a chance to say "No."

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If you have ever groaned at the street and road signs in Israel then you know that proofreading is not only an honorable profession, but one that can save the vacation day of a hapless tourist - is it Quasaria, Casarea, Caesarea, Kaysariya? And afraid to take that turn they end up in Nahariya, oi, mama mia! If only the Ministry of Transportation would give me the road sign job!

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I haven't mentioned the proofreading (easy but dull) and editing (interesting but nerve wracking) of fiction, non-fiction and poetry. Here one scales the very heights of literature and enters the inner sanctum of the writer. A well-known personality (obviously the person shall remain nameless as my mother wouldn't want me being sued) wrote a guidebook to Israel and the publisher assigned me the weighty task of editing the manuscript. I combined chapters, excised repetitive sections, and made much of the humorous portions. The author was furious, my book has disappeared, he ranted and pages I struggled years to write have been dumped in the editor's wastepaper basket, he raged. He fumed, he shouted, he threatened, all to no avail. The publisher steadfastly stood behind this editor's work. When the book was published, the author drew up a list of all the publisher's employees and invited one and all to a weekend in Eilat, airplane tickets gratis. The book was well received but alas my name was not on the hotel guest list. The author had removed my name; indeed, one could say he had finally learned the art of editing.

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Interested in writing for a magazine? Understand that the editor is your partner. Look at the changes made and use them as a lesson when writing your next article. My mother once defined my profession to me - the right word says everything, many words say nothing.

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Thank you for reading JWorld Cafe, the Poetica Magazine Blog

Pnina Moed Kass, Guest Blogger

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Pnina Moed Kass is the author of REAL TIME (Clarion/Houghton Mifflin, National Jewish Book Award, Sydney Taylor), BERALE series (Keter, Israel), eight Hebrew picture books, short stories and television series.