Unit co-ordinator
Ian Syson

Unit lecturers and tutors
Delia Allen

Available for consultation by appointment.

We acknowledge the Elders, families and forebears of the Wurundjeri and Boonwurrung tribes of the Kulin Nation who were the custodians of University land for many centuries. We acknowledge that the land on which we meet was the place of age old ceremonies of celebration, initiation and renewal and that the Kulin Nation people's living culture had and has a unique role in the life of this region.

UNIT CALENDAR - Lectures

GENERAL INFORMATION

Other useful information:

Handing in assignments

Assignments are to be submitted in the tutor's pigeon hole by COB Friday of week due.

Penalties for late assignments

Late assignments (without an extension) will be graded at a reduction of 2 marks per day late.

Special consideration

If you feel that illness or personal difficulties have impaired your performance you may ask for Special Consideration which can facilitate late submission, and alternative arrangements for assignments. This can cover both emotional and physical difficulties. You need to contact a student counsellor to arrange this.

Arrangements for disabled students

Students with disabilities need to register with Equity and Social Justice.

INTRODUCTION

Editing Principles and Practice is a compulsory unit for all students completing the BA or the Major in Professional Writing. Its prerequisite units are the two first year Professional Writing units.

The unit deals with both practical and theoretical aspects of professional editing in contemporary Australia.

Its objectives are:

• to examine the practices of editing and publishing, with special emphasis on their role and influence in history and contemporary society
• to introduce students to a range of practical techniques and applied theories of text editing in the context of small press productions, especially magazines and books
• to look at the principles and practice of structural editing, copy editing, proof reading and the forms of communication used by editors, designers, authors and printers
• to consider communications law in relationship to editing and publishing, especially copyright and defamation.

Format:

The unit is taught in 1 hour lecture and 1.5 hour workshop format. The lectures provide the core intellectual material for the unit while the workshops will involve working through practical editing problems an d tasks.

Lecture

• Lecture Mon 13:00 14:00 A315

• Workshop 1 Mon 14:00 15:30 PB108
• Workshop 2 We 16:00-17:30 C502a

Class Materials:

Set Texts & Equipment:

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion , Cambridge UP, 2004
• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers , 6 th Edition, Wiley, Brisbane, 2002.
• A Good Dictionary (e.g. Collins, Macquarie)
• Unit workbook (download Word doc here) (pdf)

Recommended Text:

• Euan Mitchell, Your Book Publishing Options: How to Make and Market Ebooks and Print Books, Overdog Press, Melbourne, 2014.

Learning Outcomes:

•  Students will gain a general understanding of the role of editing in the publishing industry and society in general. (CGA 2)

•  Students will be able to solve simple and complex editorial problems in a range of social and employment contexts. (CGA 1).

•  Having studied the principles and practices of structural editing, copy editing, proof reading and the forms of communication appropriate to these areas, students will have obtained basic professional editing skills. (CGA 3)

•  Group assessment ensures students work collectively and communicate effectively. (CGAs 3 & 4)

•  Students will obtain basic familiarity with communications law in relationship to editing and publishing, especially copyright and defamation. (CGS 3)

Core Graduate Attributes:

•  is an effective problem solver in a range of settings, including professional practice

•  can locate, evaluate, manage and use information effectively (including "critical thinking", ICT and statistical skills)

•  communicates effectively as a professional and as a citizen

•  can work both autonomously and collaboratively as a professional

•  can work effectively in settings of social and cultural diversity

UNIT OUTLINE

Week 1 (Starts 24 Feb)

Lecture : Outline of Unit

Workshop : Introduction

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 1–3
• Margaret McKenzie. Parts of Speech from Australian Handbook for Writers and Editors, Woodslane, 2000

Extra Reading

• Hilary McPhee, Other people's words Pan Macmillan, 2001 070.50994 MACP STA

Week 2 (Starts 3 March)

Lecture : Introduction to Editing

Workshop : Sentence Construction/Structure

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 3–17

Extra Reading

• Gerald Gross, Editors on Editing: What Writers Need to Know about Editors , Grove Press, 1993. 808.027EDI

Week 3 (Starts 10 March)

Lecture : Editing in a Corporate World

Workshop : Subject–Verb agreement and consistency

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 3–11;18–32

Extra Reading

• Euan Mitchell, Self-Publishing Made Simple, Hardie Grant, Melbourne, 2000
• Samantha Schwarz, Australian Guide to Getting Published, Hale & Iremonger, 1995. 070.520994SCH
• William Germano, Getting it Published, U of Chicago Press, 2001. 070.52GER

Week 4 (Starts 17 March)

Lecture : The Type Revolution

Workshop : Punctuation

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion 18–25
• A Brief History of Type

Extra Reading

• Marshall McLuhan, The Gutenberg galaxy: the making of typographic man, University of Toronto Press 686.1MACL
• Sven Birkerts, The Gutenberg Elegies: The Fate of Reading in an Electronic Age, Faber, 1996, STA 306.488 BIR

Week 5 (Starts 24 March)

Lecture : Editorial Planning

Workshop : Clarity, economy, consistency

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion . 75–94

Extra Reading

• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers .
• Leslie T. Sharpe, Editing fact and fiction: a concise guide to book editing, Cambridge University Press, 1994. 808.02SHA
• Pam Peters, The Cambridge Australian English Style Guide, Cambridge UP, 1995. 428.00994PET
• Apostrophe Protection Society

Week 6 (Starts 31 March)

Lecture : Style

Workshop : The Editing Process: Copyediting

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 138-154
• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, 256-259

Week 7 (Starts 7 April)

Lecture : Copyediting and Proofreading

Workshop : The Editing Process: Proofreading

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 123-137, 138-154
• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, 260-262, 521 - 527

Extra Reading

• Leslie T Sharpe, Editing fact and fiction: a concise guide to book editing, Cambridge University Press, 1994. 808.02 SHA

Week 8 (Starts 14 April)

Lecture : Structural Editing

Workshop : The Editing Process – Structural Editing

Reading

• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, 253 - 257
• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 58-74, 138-154

MID SEMESTER BREAK 21 APRIL

Week 9 (Starts 28 April)

Lecture : Non-discriminatory Language

Workshop : Inclusive language

Reading

• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers. 48–62
• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 32–36
• 'Feminism and Philosophy of Language'

Week 10 (Starts 5 May)

Lecture : Editing and the Law: Copyright

Workshop : House Styles

Reading

• Janet Mackenzie, The Editor's Companion. 27–32; 38-57
• Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, 262-69

Extra Reading

• Libby Baulch, Copyright for book publishers, Australian Copyright Council, c1992. REF 346.940482 BAU
• Writers & copyright: a practical guide, Australian Copyright Council, 1997 Edition. 346.940482 WRI

Week 11 (Starts 12 May)

Lecture : Editing and the Law: Defamation

Workshop : Mock Editing Exam

download and print out these items and bring to the tutorial

1. multi choice
2. copy editing
3. Muphry ms
4. Muphry set

Extra Reading

• Michael Gillooly, The law of defamation in Australia and New Zealand The Federation Press, 1998. STA 345.940256 GIL  

Week 12 (Starts 19 May)

Lecture : In class Exam 1

Workshop : In class Exam 2

ASSESSMENT

The assessment for this unit is as follows:

1. Workbook completion (due Friday week 12) 15%
2. Manual editing exercise (due week 9) 15%
3. Group Project (due week 13) 30%
4. Exam (week 12) 40%

All assessment must be attempted/submitted. Failure to do so will mean failure of the unit.

Handing in assignments

Assignments are to be submitted in the tutor's pigeon hole.

Penalties for late assignments

Late assignments (without an extension) will be graded at a reduction of two marks per day.

Special consideration

If you feel that illness or personal difficulties have impaired your performance you may ask for Special Consideration which can facilitate late submission, and alternative arrangements for assignments. This can cover both emotional and physical difficulties. You need to contact a student counsellor to arrange this.

1. Completed workbook (due Friday of week 12) 15%

All of the exercises in the Unit Workbook should be completed during the semester. You need to hand up the workbook to your tutor at the end of the semester. They will mark it on a fail/pass/dinstinction (0/8/15) basis

2. Manual editing exercise (due Friday of week 9) 15%

Using copy provided undertake copyediting and proofreading work, showing all changes and mark ups. Type up final clean copy and submit all work.

3. Group Project (due Friday of week 12) 30%

Team project: publication assignment

This involves a team production of a newsletter, fanzine, anthology or other collection of writing; or any other sufficient and manageable project you design and clear with your tutor. We are assessing conceptual and editing skills, not design skills in this project (ie. Not artwork).

Each team member is required to edit between 2000 and 3000 words each as contribution to the final publication.

Submission includes the following:

• A short introduction/editorial outlining the audience you are targeting, the genre, aim and purpose;
• Style sheet/guide;
• Marked up copy. (Each student's contribution should be clearly identified);
• Final clean copy (with cover and contents page).

NOTE: As we are assessing editing skills, we will be looking for demonstration of the range of editing you have learned during the semester.

4. Exam (week 12) 40%

• Proofreading exercise;
• Copyediting exercise;
• Multiple-choice questions on lecture material.

STUDENTS' RIGHTS & RESPONSIBILITIES

NOTE ABOUT PLAGIARISM FOR ALL ARTS STUDENTS