EDITING II BWR302

This course is designed for writers, editors (who want to freshen up their skills), proof readers or desktop publishers.

It assumes a basic understanding of editing (either having done a foundation course such as Editing I, or having worked in industry) and builds on that foundation to develop a greater understanding of the editing processes.

Through this course you can improve your capacity to edit an broad range of publishing material including both print and electronic media, text and graphics, commercial and non commercial material.

Distance Education for Advanced Editing Skills

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.

Course Structure
There are eight lessons in this module as follows:

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

Aims

To review the current state of editing, determining its scope, nature and trends
To identify and edit text errors that commonly occur in a variety of publishing situations.
To write and edit a variety of different headings and captions.
To select, edit and mark up graphic illustrations.
To edit the layout or design of a publication.
To identify an appropriate style for the context of a publication, and edit the text to match the determined style.
To edit text in order to remove legal and/or ethical risks
Apply a broad range of skills to editing of a lengthy manuscript in a balanced way

Duration: 100 hours

When someone writes or illustrates something, they are attempting to communicate with their readers. We naturally think of editing as relating to books, magazines and newspapers, which are the traditional media with which an editor would work. These areas, commonly referred to as "print media", are still very much part of the work covered by editors, but today the scope is far wider.

Print media is generally "commercial" work; that is, publications that are created for selling. Writing and illustrations are also created for other situations though, beyond the traditional print media, including:

Marketing material, such as advertisements, brochures, posters, signs, labels and packaging
Newsletters (printed or electronic). Newsletters may be commercial (eg. for promotional purposes, or subscriptions) or non-commercial (eg. a school or club newsletter, or a family Christmas letter)
Business letters
Contractual documents
Web sites
Calendars
Educational material (course notes)
Scripts (plays, videos, radio shows, etc)

Writing and/or illustrations used in any of the above situations can fail in their attempt at communication to a lesser or greater degree, for many reasons, including:

Typographical errors
Unclear communication
Ambiguity
Incorrect punctuation
Poor grammar
Poor spelling
Inappropriate use of language.
Not writing for the correct "audience"

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