Editing should be, especially in the case of old writers, a counseling rather than a collaborating task. The tendency of the writer-editor to collaborate is natural, but he should say to himself, “How can I help this writer to say it better in his own style?” and avoid “How can I show him how I would write it, if it were my piece?”

James Thurber (1894–1961) American humorist, cartoonist, writer

Memo to The New Yorker (1959)

Reprinted in New York Times Book Review (4 Dec 1988)