Qualification - Certificate in Editing and Proofreading

PROOFREADING AND EDITING ONLINE COURSE

This certificate is designed to provide the knowledge and skills to work as a freelance editor or proofreader, or for those seeking employment as such in the media.

You will be mentored by a team that includes many experienced media professionals - journalists, authors and editors - led by our Principal, John Mason, a former editor for four national magazines.

Modules

Note that each module in the Qualification - Certificate in Editing and Proofreading is a short course in its own right, and may be studied separately.

What's Covered in the Modules

EDITING I

This course contains eight lessons as follows:

1. Introduction to Editing
   • the nature and scope of editing
   • what an editor does
   • tools for editing
   • editing skills; the things that make a good editor
   • danger signs (mistakes to avoid)
   • the publishing team (the publisher, business manager, production manager, designer, marketing staff)
   • the production process
   • the production schedule
2. The Mechanics of Clear Writing
   • spelling
   • punctuation
   • grammar
   • language
   • style
   • tense
   • language level
   • common mistakes
   • style errors
   • improving clarity and conciseness
3. Assessing Manuscripts
   • the readers report
   • reviewing a manuscript (structure, punctuation, accuracy, illustration, other improvements),
   •  authors responsibilities
   • nature of a manuscript
   • libel, slander, deformation
   • what an editor should look for
4. Copy Editing I
   • what the copy editor does
   • basics of copy editing
   • the procedure (check manuscript, read, edit text, edit other components)
   • style sheets
   • house style
   • introduction to mark up
   • marking up copy
5. Copy Editing II
   • marking up
   • parts of a publication (preliminary pages, text, end matter)
   • editing non-text material
   • illustrations
6. Preparing Copy for Printing
   • type design and page layout
   • type size
   • type face
   • line spacing
   • line length
   • justification
   • indentation
   • windows and orphans
   • running heads and feet
   • folios
   • headings
   • proof stages: galley proofs, page proofs
7. Proof Reading
   • proofreaders role
   • procedure for checking galley proofs
   • proofreading tips
   • revised galley proofs
8. The Final Stages
   • indexes
   • prerparing an index
   • blurbs
   • checking final proofs
   • bromides, dyelines, etc.

EDITING II

There are eight lessons in this module as follows:

1. Introduction to Editing -State of the Art
2. Editing and Design
3. Headings, Headlines and Captions
4. Graphics
5. Refining Text Exiting - Common Traps
6. Matching Style and Context
7. Legal and Ethical Issues
8. Editing Project

EDITING PRACTICE

This is a unique, hands-on course that develops your practical skills to edit professionally. The course takes you through the processes of editing for a specific publication, submitting work for publication, and meeting the requirements of an editor and publisher.

1. Working to Specifications
2. Editing Articles for Online Publications
3. Submitting Articles for Online Publications
4. Preparing and submitting Layout for publication

Under the guidance of a mentor (a writing/editing tutor), you will learn to edit according to specific criteria, deal with a publisher, and communicate effectively with others involved in the publishing process.

GRAPHIC DESIGN

The course is divided into 10 lessons as follows:

ELECTIVES

These are designed to build extra skills which compliment the job of an editor, in areas such as writing and research. A range of options are offered, to provide students the change of persuing areas of specific relevance or interest to them. This way every student can build a slightly different set of skills, differentiating themselves from others in industry, and allowing them to develop a reputation as a "specialist" fulfilling a niche.

Working as an Editor

Editing has always required specific skills. “Highly developed written and verbal communication skills”, “an eye for detail”, “a logical and enquiring mind”, “an ability to meet deadlines”, “a comprehensive knowledge of publication processes” are just some of the skills required in the editing profession.

Today’s editors still need those important foundation skills but, with the advent of computer technology and in the face of increasingly competitive markets, editors must be prepared to diversify, and to acquire a new range of skills. Although today’s editors are still expected to review manuscripts, mark up copy, check proofs, and liaise with writers, printers and publishers, they may also be expected to be highly proficient in a whole range of areas that didn’t exist a decade or two ago.

The minimum ‘new’ skill required by all editors is computer proficiency, mainly in the use of Microsoft Word, email programs and Internet searches, but possibly also in desktop publishing software such as QuarkXpress, Adobe PageMaker, Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. Editors involved in marketing and sales may also use accounting and spreadsheet software.

Text and graphics, previously supplied as ‘hard copy’, are now submitted as ‘electronic manuscripts’, making the job of editing both easier and more complex. Easier because text does not need to be marked up on a hard copy and rekeyed by a typesetter; harder because the editor and designer have taken over the task of typesetting.

In most cases editors are not directly involved in pre-press design, and would not be expected to be proficient in the use of complex DTP software – in quality publishing this is still the domain of trained graphic artists – but, for effective liaison and supervision of the production process, all editors must be familiar with the capabilities and general operation of the commonly used programs. 

Other facets of publishing, such as distribution, stock control, and accounting and finance, also use new, more efficient technologies and, as part of the production team, editors should be aware of how the new systems operate.

The most recent, and certainly the most complex, development is the introduction of multi-media publishing. Still in its infancy, this technology brings together text, video, audio and graphics, stored on CD-ROM or accessed through the Internet. Almost all commercial publishers have a website, but few have successfully ventured into ‘online publishing’, although this will almost certainly change in the near future.

Other areas, old and new, that involve the skills of editors include:
• Commissioning
• Reviewing
• Setting budgets and schedules
• Costing
• Copy editing
• Proofing
• Overseeing the production process
• Legals – including contracts, copyright clearance and permissions for use of quotations and reproduction of pictures