Working words is a collection of ‘chats’ about aspects of editing and writing for dipping into – it’s not a textbook but a companion to books on grammar, style, punctuation, plain English, editing practice, and the business of being a freelance editor. This edition has been fully revised to bring the text up to date with current editing and writing practice.

The chats are based on articles written by Murphy for The Canberra editor over a period of ten years. Many of these happened as a direct result of requests from working editors, would-be editors and people who didn’t learn the why’s and wherefores of English grammar at school. The book is written in a chatty style, with a few fun pieces along the way – ‘itchypencils’.