This course is for students who wish to improve their editing skills. Approximately half of the class sessions will deal with proof reading, copyediting, and extensive textual
editing; the other half will deal with the editorial process, and its place within literary and general media production. By the end of the semester, students will not only have improved their editing skills, but also have increased their knowledge of what professional editors actually do, what specific abilities are necessary for the various editorial stages, and what professional opportunities are available.
All students will need the most recent—the 16th—edition of The Chicago Manual of Style. Twelve to fourteen substantial editing assignments will be due almost every week. Two further bits of information might be helpful as well. First, this course will be most valuable for students who already have extensive writing experience in other courses, or in their current occupations. Second, there is virtually no writing component to this course. Any benefits to your own writing will result from a semester of working intensively on other people’s texts.