Advanced Proofreading

Who is it for?

Editorial staff working in-house in academic or trade non-fiction publishing, whether proofreading themselves or briefing and managing freelancers. You will have at least a year’s experience of copy-editing and proofreading, and will already have a good grounding in editorial decision-making. The skills are transferable to all working practices, print and digital.

What will you achieve?

On completing the course you will know how to:

• plan a book-length proofread and carry it out thoroughly
• decide what to change and what to leave alone
• carry out effective checking and cross-checking
• interrogate the design and layout, and improve the interplay of images and text
• work with the indexer and other publishing colleagues to finish the book to a high standard

Programme

What proofreaders do. In discussion, we frame a perspective on the proofreader’s role and summarise a list of key responsibilities.

From script to book: typographic design. The proofreader needs a working knowledge of typographic design and layout to collaborate with the designer to create a readable and aesthetically pleasing end product.

Images on the page: integrating pictures and captions. Whether pictures and other graphics are informational, aesthetic, or merely decorative, they must work in symbiosis with the text. The session covers every aspect of this relationship.

Copy-fitting. Every proof presents instances of overmatter – whether whole paragraphs or troublesome single lines – and in some cases excess space must be dealt with. This session explores techniques for dealing with copy that does not fit the page.

Checking and cross-checking.  At the final stage, the proofreader is responsible for ensuring that the book ‘adds up’ in every respect, from cross-referencing to factual content and presentation. These checks involve a separate technique from reading the words on the page.

Planning a proofread. Now that we have experienced the demanding range of the proofreader’s responsibilities, we look at analysis and planning, to make sure that every process is carried out in the right order and nothing is done twice.

Finishing off the job. At proof stage, the schedule may be tight and there are lots of tasks to tie up. In a short session, we look at the final stages of editorial production – in particular, the index – and summarise the needs of colleagues in the publishing process.