Doing your dash

My grandfather lived until he was 95 or some such, and died only when he ripped the drip from his own wrinkly arm, flung himself out of his own bed, and let himself die of pneumonia.

Yeah. We have some hard arses in our family. Two: him, and me. My sister says I'm like him in that I give the world only so many chances. Once someone's done their dash, that's it. She's right.

Unfortunately this applies to authors I edit just as it does people I know personally.

How does an author do their dash?

• Fail to be polite.
• Decline to humour my suggestions for edits or rewrites.
• Neglect to attend to my requests for additional information.

Tweeting me a day after they've sent me an article or pitch to ask when I'll get to it sails pretty close to the wind, too, but even I can see that failing to nurture such eagerness is less than ideal for all concerned.

Pitching authors, don't do your dash. Be helpful and accommodating, and I'll be the same. Okay? Deal.