Copy editing
Copy editing is the process of an editor making formatting changes and other improvements to text. Copy, in this case a noun, refers to matter (such as handwritten or typewritten pages) to be set (as in typesetting) for printing. The job is called sub-editing in British newspapers.
Overview
Copy editing typically entails correcting spelling and punctuation mistakes; correcting grammatical and semantic errors; ensuring that the typescript adheres to the publisher's house style; and adding standardized headers, footers, headlines and so on. These are all elements that must be addressed before the typesetter can prepare a final proof copy.
The copy editor is expected to ensure the text flows well, that it makes sense, and that it will cause no legal problem for the publisher. Newspaper copy editors are sometimes responsible for choosing which wire copy the newspaper will use, and for re-writing it according to the house style.
Traditionally, a copy editor would read a printed or written text, such as a manuscript, marking it with handwritten proofreader's marks for correction. Nowadays, the text is read on a computer display in WYSIWYG form and the corrections are added directly to the text on the screen. Increasingly, a copy editor marks up the text using XML or a similar coding scheme, and is involved in preparing text for online publication, not just for printing. The spread of pagination means that many copy editors do design and layout work that was once left to production crews for printed publications.
In many cases, the copy editor will be the only person other than the author to read an entire text before publication. Newspaper editors will often regard their copy editors as the newspaper's last line of defense.
A copy editor may also abridge text. This means to reduce the length of a novel, for example, for publication or broadcast in a shorter form. It may involve simply cutting out parts of the text, but sometimes it is necessary to rewrite uncut parts to account for missing details or plot.. Some abridged texts are only slightly shorter, whereas others may be reduced dramatically, particularly when a literary classic is abridged for the children's market.
Preparation, traits and skills
Many copy editors have a college degree, often in journalism or communications.
Besides an excellent command of the language, copy editors should have broad general knowledge to be able to spot factual errors; good critical-thinking skills so they recognize inconsistencies; diplomatic skills to help them deal with writers; and a thick skin for when diplomacy fails.
Tests and tryouts
Most U.S. newspapers and many other publishers give candidates for copy-editing jobs a test or a try-out. These vary widely. They may be timed or not; they may last an hour to a week; and some are take-home tests. They may include questions, and usually include copy to edit. The length of the copy may be anywhere from single sentences to many articles.
Tests may include items on:
- acronyms
- Associated Press style (for U.S. newspapers)
- critical thinking
- current events
- fairness
- general knowledge
- geography
- grammar
- headline writing (for newspapers)
- infographics editing
- math
- news judgment
- punctuation
- skepticism
- spelling
- taste
- usage
See also
External links
General
- Advice on freelance proofreading and copy-editing (UK) (http://www.copyediting.co.uk)
- proofreader's marks (http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~opa/pubs/ed_style_guide/proofread.html)
- Do some proofreading yourself at Project Gutenberg Distributed Proofreaders (http://www.pgdp.net)
Newspaper copy editing in the USA
- American Copy Editors Society (http://www.copydesk.org)
- How to get an entry-level job (http://www.freep.com/jobspage/toolkit/askedit.htm), by Joe Grimm of the Detroit Free Press
- test examples (http://www.freep.com/jobspage/interns/dow.htm) for Dow Jones Fund internships
- test question examples (http://www.copydesk.org/guidelines.htm), compiled by the American Copy Editors Society
- What exactly is a copy editor? (http://theslot.com/copyeditors.html), from The Slot, by Bill Walsh of The Washington Post.
- How a copy desk works (http://theslot.com/structure.html), by Bill Walsh.