Copyediting/WRIT 430

Copyediting and Manuscript Design
WRIT 430.101

NOTE: This is representative of the syllabi for this course. It is not necessarily the syllabus being used in any one semester.

Course Syllabus

Course Description: Copyediting and Document Design is an advanced writing seminar. Through an intensive and collaborative editing process, we will practice writing, editing, and designing documents for a variety of audiences and situations.

Learning Objectives:
Throughout this course, you will:

Develop an understanding of the editing process and its role in the development, printing, and use of a publication

Apply communication/design principles and techniques to a variety of expository writing and communication tasks

Copymark documents using established symbols and conventions

Construct and use a stylesheet during the writing and editing processes

Copyedit documents emphasizing spelling, capitalization, grammar, and punctuation

Perform substantive edits emphasizing the style, organization, and format of documents

Write brief edit-review summaries justifying editorial changes in a tactful manner

Course Schedule:

This course will be conducted as a seminar. That means you are not just a passive consumer of oxygen in the room! I expect everyone to complete assignments and to discuss the week's manuscripts in a thoughtful, constructive, and non-threatening manner.

I will schedule several students each week for in-class discussions of their work. You are responsible for providing me with an electronic copy of your manuscript at least one week in advance of your scheduled discussion date (so I can post it for your classmates' review). Your final version of the manuscript will be due no later than two weeks after your in-class presentation.