Customer Reviews

The Fine Art of Copyediting

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I'm a fan of THE CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE, but this book about "the fine art" is an excellent supplementary help. I'm an old hand at editing and I recommend it highly. Here, thank goodness, is a book to introduce you to the business of editing. I found information on all aspects of the profession. The details on editing procedures and the examples of notes, etc., are particularly helpful. Surprisingly, the concise manual of style in this book tells all you need to know to start right in editing.

This book is more about getting along with the people you work with than about copyediting. The author goes on at length about bolstering an author's ego but devotes only a few pages to the symbols of editing and how they are used. There are few examples or exercises. For those who actually wish to learn about the actual job I recommend Copyediting by Karen Judd or Style and Substance by Mary Stoughton. Both are excellent and contain many exercises and examples.

This well-crafted book focuses on the details of copyediting and as a bonus gives advice on human relationships in the editorial process. Well-written, insightful, concise, and punchy, this compact book provides a novice with the basics of copyediting and is a useful and fun review for old hands. I recommmend The Fine Art of Copyediting highly.

This lively and informative book is the one I always turn to as a ready reference. Stainton has the light touch and the right touch. She is alert to the real problems facing the editor. No wonder William Safire comments on back cover: "I recommend The Fine Art of Copydeiting."

No other book is needed than this abundant source of answers. The scope goes beyond what one can usually obtain from other books of this nature. I imagine it's indispensable for authors and wish that it were for reference librarians. (Based on their answers, I don't believe that to be the case.) Although not laid out as a textbook, it IS a textbook -the most comprehensive that I've yet seen.