1
2
3
4
Publishing a book is a complicated process which follows very strict scheduling procedures. Firstly, a book needs to be commissioned and for this, an author of sufficient quality has to be found. Once a book has been commissioned, written, edited and designed, only then will it be printed and make its way to our book shelves. This guide will take a closer look at each of these stages and aims to provide you with a better understanding of the entire editorial process. It will also highlight potential problems that can occur during these processes and show how they can be over come. Hopefully, by the end of this short, informative guide, you will have a better understanding of the editing process and a working knowledge of every stage of a books development.
The job of the Commissioning Editor is to advise the publishing house on which books to publish. Commissioning Editors are responsible for ensuring authors under contract deliver typescripts to specification and on time, almost like a manager. They also have the responsibility for ensuring that typescripts are of sufficient quality, length and depth. For this, Development Editors or Assistant Editors may assist the Commissioning Editor once a transcript has been commissioned. Key Responsibilities: : Pro-actively seeking ideas for books and then finding suitable authors to write them. : Ensuring quality of the whole manuscript, briefing the author on style and word count. : Working on redrafting with the author : Overseeing the copyediting, typesetting, proofreading, and maybe even the design of the book. : Manage already published books by ensuring stock levels are adequate and advising on when a book needs to be reprinted.
6
This could take place 6 months or even up to a year after the transcript was originally commissioned, depending on the length of the piece. A date for submission is usually agreed at the time of commissioning. Prior to final submission, an author may be asked to submit passages or even whole chapters of a manuscript to the publisher. Once the transcript has been completed and checked by the author, the finished text is then sent to the publishing house or its Editor. Now received, the text goes through many processes, the purpose of this is to check, check again, then
again. These processes are known as Peer Review, Copy Editing and finally, Proofing.
7
8
Peer Reviews will often take place before the Editing stage. Although more common with cookery books where recipes have to be tasted and tested, they are no more or less important when editing other kinds of books, such as factual or text books. An in depth review is needed on all of the submitted material. This is to check for factual information such as measurements, weights, places, dates, names and times. This stage is usually completed by the Feature Editor (magazine editing), the Editor in Chief and the Commissioning Editor.
9
Now the initial review of the manuscript is complete, the script moves on to the edit. The purpose of editing is to make the text the best it can be. Its to help ensure the piece of work is structured correctly, is written in the same house style (if writing for a publication) and with a book, making sure the authors voice remains throughout. This can take a lot of time and requires a very experienced Editor. Books can be hundreds of pages long and the Editor needs to be consistently focused on the copy. The Editor will cover many areas during this process such as plot, style and characterisation. They will also pick up on when things need expanding or cutting. The Editor will highlight when an author starts repeating themselves whilst also making sure the flow of the text remains consistent and understandable for the reader.
10
Key Responsibilities: : The Editor is the link between Writer, Designer and Production. : Responsible for seeing books through to publication. : Cutting text. : Re-structuring text. Editors Check List: : Does it make sense? : Is it too long, too short? : Is it factually correct? : Is it well written? : Is it in the right order? : Original? : Does the text flow? : Is the tone consistent?
11
Author Queries (AQs) are used by Copy Editors. Originally used together with Track Changes (short hand abbreviations of Editing Marks) to query parts of a transcript with the author. Often shortened to just AQ, common Author Queries to be highlighted with a writer can be: names, dates and addresses.
12
Once the editing stage is complete, the process moves on to the design. Before the book is handed over to the design team for its layout, images for the book are needed. Research will be carried out when deciding on images and photographers or illustrators will be commissioned. The commissioning of this will have already been budgeted for during the commissioning stage. One potential problem a publishing house can run in to at this stage is if they decide against using original images. The problem they face when sourcing library images is copyright. They need to make sure they have the correct permissions from the owner of the photograph in order to use them. Obtaining the correct copyright for borrowed images will often lead the publisher to commission their own images. Once images are taken and edited, the manuscript moves onto the design layout.
13
The publication is now with the design team. By this stage, all text should be edited, photos all in the correct image size and format and a suitable grid and structure for the book agreed on. This stage can still throw up a few potential problems to watch out for. The designers will have to double check images to make sure they are in the correct file format (CMYK and 300 DPI), the length of the text may still be too long for the design, so the copy may have to be returned to the Copy Editor for further editing. Once a designer is finished with the layout of the book, it will be passed to the Art Director for final checks and revisions before being sent back to the Editor at the Publishers for approval.
Problems the designer faces include: : Fonts - Are they legible? : Colours - Do they suit the publication and are they pleasing to the eye? : Layout - Is the layout and order of the publication structured correctly? : Copy - Is all type set to the same size, leading, kerning and font?
14
The 1st printed spreads of the publication are returned to the author. This is their first chance to see the spreads of the final, finished product. A stage met with joy for all concerned. Once in the hands of the editor, the manuscript will be proofread and final checks of the design will be done. At this stage, any errors encountered will still have a chance to be fixed.
15
Once the author has agreed on the design and final layout of the book, a team of Proof Readers will have one final chance to check over the whole document before its sent to the printers. Usually at this stage, it’s the Copy Editors and the Editor who are proofing the document. All looking for inconsistencies, errors in design and any mistakes in the text that has gone unnoticed during the editing stage.
16
The document is now print ready and is sent to the printers. Commonly delivered as a PDF file over email, it is sometimes delivered by hand and any last minute adjustments talked through. By now, the printer is already aware of the type of paper the book will be printed on, the amount needed to be printed, the treatment of the ink, the weight of the paper and the fold of the finished book. Once printed, the printer will arrange delivery of the final product to the publishing house. It will then be up to the publisher to choose a release date for it, price and finally, marketing and promotion.
17
18
FIN
19
20