Elyse Lyon

That’s really cool! Congrats!

It was!! Happy to pass along the recipe if you like—it’s Yasmin Fahr’s One-Pot Chicken and Rice with Ginger. Really lovely!

Pretty pleased with the way a sprinkle of coriander and spring onions turned this one-pot chicken/rice/greens dish (with masses of ginger, lots of garlic, lime juice, and soy) from a sticky mess to something that looks pretty delicious. Thanks, NYT Cooking!

A bowl with rice, four baked meatballs, chopped herbs, and lime wedges next to a plate of roasted carrot batons and bowls of sliced chili and mayo-sesame dipping sauce.

Working on copyediting what’s proving to be a really brilliant LGBTQ rom-com—and tried out these Vietnamese-inspired meatballs from NYT Cooking, which turned out just as brilliant, despite being little more than pork, ginger, garlic, fish sauce, Ritz crackers, and black pepper. 10/10 evening!

Bowls of onions and chilis and carrots, celery, and crushed juniper berries, with chunks of raw stewing venison tossed in seasoned flour on a plastic cutting board.

I feel like I barely worked today. I did, in fact, work quite a lot, so I’m going to chalk that up to the fact that I made my favorite spicy venison and juniper stew this weekend: it’s autumn condensed to its essence, and I feel like I’ve taken a week off and gone to the spa.

A cast iron pan full of chicken thighs cooked with orange peppers, smashed garlic cloves, onion, and red, orange, and yellow tomatoes, with torn basil scattered on top.

This week has been so long, I’m not sure how I managed it, but the bright colors of Yewande Komolafe’s Skillet Chicken with Peppers and Tomatoes gave my eyes some much-needed relaxation.

(I love them both but it gives me whiplash sometimes!)

I’ve been on an Elizabeth George kick for the past couple of months… I really like her craft book and figured I’d finally read her book books! And once I’ve started a series, I can’t really stop…

Editing different types of authors:

Trad published authors: “Stet. Okay. Stet. Thanks. Fixed. Stet. No semicolon, please.”

Indie authors: “OMG you’re the BEST EDITOR EVER, sorry I didn’t know that rule, I’LL TRY TO REMEMBER NEXT TIME. Thank you SOOOOOOOO MUCH!!!!!!! I’M SO LUCKY TO HAVE YOU!!!!!!”

Oooooooh…. Excited to try it!!

*makes notes*

I actually haven’t done fresh pasta! Have wanted to for ages but husband has textural issues with it, and it’s not worth making just for me. But he does love lasagna, so I can do it for that!

"Faster." Right. Not plunging into that black hole of misery and despair before you force me to, Mr. Acrobat...

Omg, I am DEFINITELY trying that soon!!

Ooooh… sounds lovely! I’ve made a couple of lasagnas this year mainly as an excuse to make homemade ricotta, and then I go down the rabbit hole of having to make a lot of bread to use up the whey from the ricotta 😂 I should try a sensible midweek one…

Oooh, it looks gorgeous! Do you have a favorite recipe? I always get a bit puzzled by the fact that American lasagne noodles seem to be different from anything available here—although my attempts have still turned out delicious…

Ooooh, lucky! I feel like I’ve forgotten them all… so many became such good friends last year! Looking forward to getting reacquainted 😀

It’s now most definitely that time of year where my nightly #stetwalk is about getting to know the constellations and planets, and hoping for the northern lights instead of a sunset.

Yikes!! Have you survived? Do you have lasagna?

🎉 💯 🙏

Editors, do you prefer "themself" or "themselves" for the singular "they" when AU doesn't have a preference? I've seen arguments for both. Louise Harnby's CIEP guide lists both but uses "themself" (my preference) in the text, but APA and M-W seem to agree (?) it's less common than "themselves." ???

Thanks!!

Thank you!

Thank you!!

CIEP grade-specific logo for professional members

It took me nearly a year to finish and submit my upgrade application (it was a busy year...), but I'm finally a Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading! 🎉

*low-resolution chef’s kiss gif*

Anyway, I hope you enjoy your toe… 🤔

Reminds me of my high school poetry teacher’s story about how she jokingly put “butt plugs” on the grocery list, meaning to tease her conservative Christian dad, but he thought they were some kind of feminine hygiene device and went around asking shop employees where to find them…

A brownie topped with Snickers bar pieces and caramel on a blue plate with a houseplant in the background.

A view from Holyrood Park with Edinburgh’s city center and the Pentland Hills visible beyond the Salisbury Crags.

The compass on top of Arthur’s Seat pointing to different hills and mountains and telling you their height and distance.

The top of Arthur’s Seat with the barest hint of a sunset and clouds covering the sky. There are lots of people on the peak, resting or enjoying the view, and muddy puddles from the rain earlier.

Edinburgh: where you can get in a solid four hours of editing, eat the Snickers brownie your husband brought you from the farmers’ market, #stetwalk up Arthur’s Seat, then stroll back home and return to work.

(We ran out of farmers’ market butter a couple of days ago and I tried to get the best supermarket butter, but I caught my husband sadly poking at the butter dish, trying to figure out what had gone wrong with his toast. Supporting small businesses can turn you into a butter snob, apparently…)