Dear Superfluous Readers,

Albert Jay Nock was one of the great editors of all time, from a writer's perspective. Or rather, from a good writer's perspective.

As an editor, by his own admission he only brought two things to the table: his nose for talent and not getting in the way. "I can smell out talent as quickly and unerringly as a high-bred pointer can smell out a partridge," he boasted. And he defined the job of an editor as "to do nothing, and [one] can’t set about it too soon or stick to it too faithfully."

When he was running The Freeman (the first one), a young writer came to look for writing opportunities. The writer-on-the-make asked if Nock had any "sacred cows" that could not be violated in Nock's pages. "Yes," he recounted in his memoir, "we had three of them, as untouchable and sacred as the Ark of the Covenant."

"'The first one,' I said, 'is that you must have a point. Second, you must make it out. The third one is that you must make it out in eighteen-carat, impeccable, idiomatic English.'

"'But is that all?' the young man countered.

"'Isn't it enough for ...

April 06 2018

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Kevin Williamson, Thought Criminal Jonah Goldberg Dear Superfluous Readers, Albert Jay Nock was one of the great editors of all time, from a writer's perspective. Or rather, from a good writer's perspective. As an editor, by his own admission he only brought two things to the table: his nose for talent and not getting in the way. "I can smell out talent as quickly and unerringly as a high-bred pointer can smell out a partridge," he boasted. And he defined the job of an editor as "to do nothing, and [one] can’t set about it too soon or stick to it too faithfully." When he was running The Freeman (the first one), a young writer came to look for writing opportunities. The writer-on-the-make asked if Nock had any "sacred cows" that could not be violated in Nock's pages. "Yes," he recounted in his memoir, "we had three of them, as untouchable and sacred as the Ark of the Covenant." "'The first one,' I said, 'is that you must have a point. Second, you must make it out. The third one is that you must make it out in eighteen-carat, impeccable, idiomatic English.' "'But is that all?' the young man countered. "'Isn't it enough for ... Read More Top Stories Chappaquiddick Does the Right Thing Armond White Morality returns to the movies, without angels or... Don't Talk to Mueller, Mr. President Rich Lowry Don't Talk to Mueller, Mr. President ADVERTISEMENT Yes, There Is a Never Trump Delusion Rich Lowry Refusing to take Trump's populism seriously and learn from it is a... When $63 Million Doesn't Buy Working Toilets Mona Charen The deficiencies of our public schools aren't a result of... Democrats Finally Find Some Media Bias They Dislike David Harsanyi Democrats finally find some media bias they... Like Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. Belongs to the Ages Jonah Goldberg He forced America to live up to its best... ADVERTISEMENT What NR is Reading The Holocaust: A New History Laurence Rees "A masterpiece... Rees' best book yet." — Andrew Roberts, author of The Storm of War "This is by far the clearest book ever written about the Holocaust, and also the best at explaining its origins and grotesque mentality, as well as its chaotic development." — Anthony Beevor, author of Stalingrad LEARN MORE Photo Essays Cartoons of the Day: April 6, 2018 Cartoons of the Day: April 5, 2018 ADVERTISEMENT Follow Us & Share 19 West 44th Street, Suite 1701, New York, NY, 10036, USA Your Preferences | Unsubscribe | Privacy View this e-mail in your browser.