Blog #12

In Sullivan & Eggleston’s article, “Before You Begin,” the editing process is described and presented as a checklist in order to demonstrate the varying levels of commitment and requirements that are involved within the field. When reading the article, it felt like I was reading a “how-to” guide or “editing for dummies” manual, but regardless the material is concise and useful, pertinent not only to the EWM major but post-graduation as well. The authors enumerate different levels of editing including standard proofreading, editorial proofreading, copy editing, and substantive editing, therefore displaying an increasing level of detail and work attributed to each possible type. The questions of what level of work, who is the audience, when is it due, which format will be used, which references will be utilized, and who will answer questions regarding all information, all arise within the article as key components that are a necessary part of the checklist (provided at the end) to go through each time a piece is edited or editing work is done. I found the article to be helpful and will likely use it as a resource in the future within this class and beyond.