Calendars for ENG 483

This page includes several different (and hopefully useful) ways of looking at our course calendar. Substantive changes made after midterm will be highlighted and underlined.

I hope for your feedback about these calendars.

Upcoming assignments & deadlines

Refer to the course web page for assignment handouts. They are bold, highlighted pink below.

1. Mar 18: VP final
2. Mar 20: SX memo
3. Mar 27: LE final
4. Apr 01: SX plan
   
5. Apr 15: SX draft
6. May 01: SX final project
7. May 08: SX portfolio
8. May 08: Final exam 8:00am

Upcoming classes, readings, & activities

Past classes are below.

Tue Apr 29 (week 15)

No class; there is no need. I will be in my office to handle individual questions.

• Preparing for class:
• Review your SX work: any questions for me?
  
• In class:
• Last-minute discussions of projects.
• Studio time to finish up projects and finalize supporting documents.

Thu May 01

• Final edited document: turn in your final edited documents to your clients so they have time to complete evaluations for me.
• Preparing for class:
• Reflect on the course. What worked well? What needs improvement?
  
• Review the syllabus and your notes from class. Make a list of any material you'd like to talk about.
  
• In class:
• Final course evaluations.
• Review and prepare for final examination.
  

Thu May 08 (exam week)

• Final examination, 8:00am, our regular classroom. I will bring coffee (please bring a cup) and munchies. Do not be late.
• Final project portfolio. See the assignment sheet for details.
  

Past classes

Tue Mar 18 (week 9)

• Final vulture portfolio. Time to move on!
  
• Preparing for class: read semester project assignment, my critiques on your work, and Anderson 19 (course pack). 
• In class: discuss assignment and Anderson readings. Talk about potential issues and prospective clients.
  
• Anderson 19:
• General guidelines for working with a client. Apply to real life as well as school!
• Format for proposal and editing plan.
• Communication guidelines.
• Consider a procedure: before you meet the client, starting to edit, reviewing drafts, finishing up.
  
• I will return any work you handed in before the break.

Thu Mar 20

• Client & project selection memo: turn in a memo indicating your semester project clients and the document you'll be working with. See the assignment sheet for details.
• Preparing for class:
• Look over your Leland essay draft. We'll start class with any questions about those.
  
• Be ready for a brief presentation about your semester project project.
  
• Identify documents you'll be producing in the course of editing (for example, the letter of transmittal).
• In class: explain your project to your classmates, covering both your client and the document you'll be editing. We will also discuss the assignment as needed, if any questions have come up since Tuesday. We'll spend much of the class discussing the documents you'll be producing as part of the project.
  

Tue Mar 25 (week 10)

• Preparing for class: read Rude 14 (course pack) on comprehensive (aka substantive) editing.
  
• In class: discuss Rude 14, look at some example editing plans, and begin writing a sample plan using a VP edit-piece. I'll distribute some handouts.
  
• Process of comprehensive editing as compared to light, medium, or heavy editing
• Revisit the service-call memo we've already looked at in class.
• What's on the table; where to learn more about popular forms
  
• Audience analysis and document evaluation
• Editing goals: difference between current and desired document.
• What is an editing plan? What are its goals? How detailed should it be? Look at a not-so-good editing plan. We got a jump on this Thu 4/20, so we won't spend a lot of time on this.
  

Thu Mar 27

• Final Leland essay. Review the assignment sheet before submitting.
  
• Preparing for class:
  
• Next week is review week. What do you want to review? Anything is fair game, from January to now.
  
• Look over Rude 14 again and identify trouble spots to discuss.
  
• In class:
  
• review as a group the practice editing from Tuesday (the Rybarski grammar piece). This will be the focus.
  
• further discuss editing plan content and format. See the example on the course web site. I'll share another as well.
  
• Specific questions about your editing plans are welcome.
  

Tue Apr 1 (week 11)

• Proposal & editing plan: see the assignment sheet for details. Submit a copy of the document you will be editing, too. No extensions will be granted for this deadline since I am going out of town April 2-5.
  
• Review week. We'll go over editing theory and practice which you select:
• style sheets

Thu Apr 3

No class. Take a break while I review your editing plan. Or read for next week. Do check email in case I have time to respond.

Tue Apr 8 (week 12)

• Preparing for class: Lanham 1: Action (course pack)
  
• Paramedic method: learn the steps
  
• Why is writing often unclear and wordy?
  
• Things to look for and revise
• Techniques for revision: who is kicking whom?
  
• Further reading: See also Joe Williams, "Actions & Characters," which I will distribute in class; read from Style if you own it already
  
• In class:
• Review Lanham.
  
• Practice applying the paramedic method to a sample document.
• I will return your proposals & editing plans.

Thu Apr 10

• Preparing for class:
• Apply the paramedic method to part of your SX edit-piece, or one of the VP samples.
• Look over your SX project: any questions before the weekend?
• Read Amy's section on expository style for Thursday: pp 383-403 of TCH.
  
• In class:
• Discuss what Amy points to.
• Discuss application, continue practicing improvement of style.

Tue Apr 15 (week 13)

• Project draft: review the assignment for details.
  
• Preparing for class:
• Read TCH 8: Quotations, and TCH 11: References. 
• Changing quotations
• Getting quotations to flow into surrounding text
• Common reference systems
• Things common to every reference system
• In class:
• Discuss methodology for editing quotations
• Discuss trouble spots indicated above
  
• (if I can get a laptop) Look at some online tools for managing references
  

Thu Apr 17

• Preparing for class: review U of Minnesota: "Working with fair use" (course pack)
  
• What is our responsibility as editors?
  
• Four part test
  
• Review Fair Use Analysis Tool
  
• Preparing part two: Next week is review week. What do you want to review? Anything is fair game, from January to now.
• In class
• Discuss four part test, other specifics
• Apply test to sample cases I'll bring to class
• Apply test to SX project editing
  

Tue Apr 22 (week 14)

• I will return SX drafts at the start of class.
  
• Review week. We'll go over editing theory and practice which you select. I'll update this calendar once we decide.
  
• Presentation by Rebecca: Electronic editing.
  

Thu Apr 24

• Review week. We'll go over editing theory and practice which you select. I'll update this calendar once we decide.
• Here's what folks are still messing up:
  
1. Introducing errors
2. Illegible marks or edits
3. Incomplete submissions (no style sheets or other dox)
   
4. Stylistic inconsistencies
   

Updated schedule (for original, see the syllabus)

wk	dates	readings	assignments
1	Jan 15, 17	Tue: Syllabus & assignments Thu: TCH Preface
2	Jan 22, 24	TCH 1: What Copyeditors Do Levels of Edit
3	Jan 29, 31	TCH 2: Basic Procedures Rude 24: Management	VP found pieces 1/29
4	Feb 5, 7	TCH 4: Punctuation TCH 5: Spelling & Hyphenation TCH 6: Capitalization	VP batch one 2/7
5	Feb 14	Leland Sample Essays	LE texts distributed 2/14
6	Feb 19, 21	TCH 14: Grammar TCH 15: Beyond Grammar	VP batch two 2/19
7	Feb 26, 28	Review week; texts TBD	Preliminary evaluations 2/26 SX client memo 2/28
8	Mar 4, 6	None	LE draft 3/6 VP final 3/6 Class evaluations 3/6
9	Mar 18, 20	Anderson 19: Service Learning	VP final 3/18 SX plan 3/20
10	Mar 25, 27	Rude 14: Comprehensive Editing	LE final 3/27
11	Apr 1	Review week; texts TBD	SX proposal & plan 4/01
12	Apr 8, 10	Lanham 1: Action	SX draft 4/10
13	Apr 15, 17	TCH 8: Quotations TCH 11: References U of Minnesota: Working with fair use	SX draft 4/15
14	Apr 22, 24	Review week; texts TBD
15	Apr 29, May 1	None	SX final 5/1 Course evaluations 5/1
EX	May 8	None	SX report 5/8 Final examination 5/8 8:00am

Assignments and deadlines which have passed

1. Jan 29: VP found pieces
2. Feb 07: VP batch one
3. Feb 19: VP batch two
4. Feb 28: SX client memo reschedule
5. Mar 06: LE draft

Past classes, readings, & activities

this section needs work

Tue Jan 15 (wk 1)

Introductions, hand out syllabus, go over important points, discuss editing

Thu Jan 17

Discuss any questions about syllabus; discuss TCH Preface; discuss "Service call" memo; discuss additional books to consider

Tue Jan 22 (wk 2)

Preparing for class: read TCH 1

In class: 

Thu Jan 24

Preparing for class: read "Levels of Edit;" read VP and LE assignments

In class: 

Tue Jan 29 (wk 3)

Preparing for class: ensure your VP found pieces are complete; read TCH 2

In class:

Thu Jan 31

Preparing for class:

In class: Guest speaker

Tue Feb 05 (wk 4)

Preparing for class:

In class:

Thu Feb 07

Preparing for class:

In class:

Thu Feb 14 (wk 5)

Preparing for class:

In class:

Tue Feb 19 (wk 6)

Preparing for class:

In class:

Thu Feb 21

Preparing for class:

In class:

Tue Feb 26 (wk 7)

No class; Bradley was sick

Thu Feb 28

Review of style sheets

Tue Mar 4 (wk 8)

Review of grammar and punctuation chapters

Thu Mar 6

No class; preparing for the break and completing individual work