Chapter 9: Proofreading: International Development Research Centre

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Chapter 9: Proofreading

Document(s) 10 of 10

What is it?
Proof stages
Line-break hyphenation
Layout

WHAT IS IT?

Many years ago, there existed what was known as the "galley proof." Galley proofs were produced by the printer or typesetter directly from the marked, edited manuscript. Proofreading galleys was a tedious process of comparing every character in the marked manuscript with every character in the proof to ensure accuracy.

Corrected galleys became page proofs. Proofreading pages involved checking that all the galley-proof corrections were made as well as correcting any errors in layout. Revised page proofs would follow, with blueprints and the finished publication close behind.

In today's world of desk-top typesetting, this system has become obsolete. Editors rarely mark all their corrections on a printed manuscript; many make all their changes electronically. So, how does IDRC Books define the "proof" and the duties of the "proofreader"? Good questions, please read on.

PROOF STAGES

First proofs

The first proof stage is most often a clean copy of the fully edited manuscript. This is sent to the author for review and reaction to editorial queries. It may also be sent to a proofreader. With first proofs, the proofreader should be checking the following things:

Spelling: Is it IDRC style? Are there any typos?
Punctuation: Again, is it IDRC style?
References: Are all cited references listed in bibliography? Are all bibliographical entries cited in the text? Does the bibliography follow IDRC style and are its entries listed in proper alphabetical order?
Acronyms: Are they defined at first mention? If there is a list of acronyms, are all acronyms properly listed? Does the list entry match what is in the text?

As well, the proofreader should be reading the manuscript with an "editorial eye." If any passages are still particularly difficult to understand, some light copyediting should be done or the proofreader should contact IDRC Books.

Of course, the specific requirements of each proofreading job vary. The proofreader must pay close attention to the objectives and duties detailed in the service contract and accompanying letter from IDRC Books.

Second proofs

The second proof stage is usually the first set of typeset pages. The proofreader working on these proofs should concentrate on the following items:

Line-break hyphenation;
Page breaks;
Figures and tables;
Text footnotes; and
Other formatting details (pagination, running heads, etc.).

Again, like in the first proof stage, the proofreader should be reading the typeset pages with an "editorial eye." Any missed grammatical, typographical, or style errors should be corrected, and the proofreader must pay close attention to the objectives and duties detailed in the service contract and accompanying letter from IDRC Books.

Third proofs

The third proof stage is corrected typeset pages. These may be checked in house at IDRC Books, by a freelance proofreader, or both.

The proofreader's job, in this case, is to ensure that all corrections marked on the first pages have been transferred properly to the second pages. Other items to check include line-break hyphenation, page breaks, and formatting details (as outlined in subsequent sections). Specific objectives and duties will be detailed in the proofreading contract and letter from IDRC Books.

LINE-BREAK HYPHENATION

Clear presentation

Ensure clear, unambiguous presentation by avoiding divided words at the end of the line as much as possible. If word division is necessary, good sense and readability should be your guides.

No more than two successive lines should end in a hyphen.

The last word in a paragraph or column or on a page should never be divided.

Do not divide
Do not hyphenate abbreviations, numbers, and contractions.

Examples: UNDP, 235 006 114.37, won't.

Although not strictly hyphenation, abbreviations used with numbers should not be separated from their numbers.

Examples: 16 kg, 0°C, s.4, 11:55 AM.

Misleading breaks
Avoid misleading breaks that may cause the reader to confuse one word with another, as in read-just and reap-pear. Similarly, such words as women and often should be left unbroken.

Caution
Watch out for words that change hyphenation with part of speech.

Example: Pro'ject (verb) and proj'ect (noun).

Source
The Canadian Oxford Dictionary (Second Edition) is the source for hyphenation rules for IDRC publications. Other dictionaries (particularly British dictionaries) may show slightly different hyphenation.

Rules

Few rules are absolute, but the accepted practice is summarized below.

Compound words
Break hyphenated compounds only at the hyphen, if possible.

Example: Court-martial, not court-mar-tial.

Divide one-word compounds between the elements.

Examples: Hot-house, sail-boat.

Divide between syllables
Usually, divide words between syllables (Oxford's Dictionary shows syllabication clearly for all its entries). However, not all syllable breaks are acceptable as line-end breaks.

Double consonant
When a consonant is double, divide it for the purposes of word division (equip-ping, rub-ber; see also "Words ending in -ing").

When a verb has an l preceded by a consonant, carry over the letter preceding the l.

Examples: Han-dling, dwin-dling, tin-kling.

One- and two-letter syllables
Do not carry two-letter syllables over to the next line. Similarly, final syllables in which a liquid l is the only audible vowel sound should not be carried over.

Examples: Fully, not ful-ly; stricken, not strick-en; pos-sible, not possi-ble; prin-ciples, not princi-ples.

Do not hyphenate in a way that would create single-letter word divisions.

Examples: a-gain, i-tem, e-nough, and e-ven.

Other points
Do not divide words of one syllable or words in which the second syllable contains only a silent e.

Examples: Aimed, helped, vexed, and so forth.

Avoid awkward divisions, such as would result from attempting to divide ev-ery, on-ly, eigh-teen, and peo-ple.

Prefix and suffix
Divide between a prefix or suffix and the root word.

Examples: Pre-fix, re-location, care-less, world-wide.

Words ending in -ing
Most words ending in -ing may be divided there; when the final consonant is doubled before -ing, however, the second consonant is carried over.

Example: Bid-ding, control-ling.

LAYOUT

As the proofreader, you should check certain layout features and note or correct any inconsistencies. Particularly check the following:

Page breaks;
Position of figures and tables;
Position of text footnotes; and
Format details.

Page breaks

Hyphenation across the page break
The last word on a page should never be divided.

Last page of chapter
The last page of a chapter should have at least five lines.

Text lines before or after headings
Headings just before a page break should be followed by at least three lines before the page break if the heading is the same type size as the text and at least five lines if the heading is a larger type size than the text.

Headings just after a page break should be preceded by at least three lines if the heading is the same type size as the text and at least five lines if the heading is a larger type size than the text unless the heading is at the top of the page.

Lines with run-in headings are treated in the same way as normal text lines.

Widows and orphans
Orphans are single lines left at the bottom of a page (or column) — they are better avoided.

Widows are partial lines carried over to the next page (or column) — unless absolutely necessary, they must be avoided. If three-quarters of the line is filled and the text is not spaced between paragraphs (that is, indented paragraphs are used), widows are permissible.

Figures and tables

Figures (both line drawings and photographs) and tables should be in the same two-page spread as the first reference to them. If necessary, they can be in the following two-page spread. In chapters or papers with very large numbers of tables and figures in relation to the amount of text, it may be necessary to put tables or figures before their first mention. Figures and tables should always be at the top or bottom of a page.

Sequence
The sequence must be in the correct numerical order (for both tables and figures) and in order of mention in the text.

Examples: Table 4 comes before Table 5.; If Table 5 is mentioned before Figure 1 then Table 5 appears first.

Run-on tables
Tables that continue on a second page have "(continued)" at the bottom of the first page (flush right and in italic) and "Table N continued." replaces the title above the continuation of the table or "Table N concluded." replaces the title above the last part of the table. The box head is repeated on each page.

Text footnotes

The footnote appears at the bottom of the text column in which it is mentioned. If the column is short because it is the end of a chapter, or there is a table or figure to complete it, the footnote still follows immediately after the text.

Generally, the footnote is separated from the text with a short rule. Where there are several footnotes on one page, there is only one rule.

References

IDRC style for references is to set the first line full width and indent subsequent lines. References in this style guide are set up in this way. However, the last draft of the manuscript may have references set up as standard paragraphs.

Format details

Check that pagination is continuous, except for the change from prepages to the main pagination, and sequential.
Check any running heads (or feet) to ensure that they are consistent and correct.
Ensure that the typeface is consistent (particularly in headings).
Check that the table of contents is correct in terms of page references and that the titles in the table of contents are the same as on the page referred to.
Check spelling of names carefully in volumes where the chapters have individual authors. If the volume is the proceedings of a conference, check that the authors' names are spelled the same way as in the list of participants.
Check that any internal cross-references refer to the correct page.
If there is an index, check a few entries to ensure that the correct pages are being listed. If there are errors, bring this to the attention of IDRC Books.
Check that facing pages are even (unless one is the end of a chapter).
In books with a column format, the columns on the last page should be even to within one line. If there is a one-line difference, the first column should be longer.

Page sequence
The parts of the book should be in the following sequence. Any inconsistencies should be brought to the attention of IDRC Books.

Recto, no folio Recto, no folio Verso, no folio Recto, no folio Verso and recto Recto, no folio (optional) Recto, no folio (optional) Recto, no folio (optional)	Half-title page Title page Copyright page Contents — first page Contents continue Foreword Preface Executive summary
[End of prepages]
Recto, no folio (optional) Recto, no folio	Part page — first counted page if the book has part pages Chapter 1 — first page
[Other chapters may be recto or verso if that is the book design]
Recto, no folio Recto, no folio (optional)	Bibliography Appendix 1 — first page
[Other appendices may recto or verso if that is the book design]
Recto, no folio (optional) Recto, no folio* Recto, no folio*	Index — first page "About the Author" (this page is not counted in total pages) "About the Institution" and "About the Publisher" (this page is not counted in total pages)

* The appearance and placement of these pages can vary depending on the type of book (single or multi-authored, single or multi-editored, single or copublished, and so forth) and the number of pages available at the back of the book).

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