Revisions! Revisions!
Although it’s next to impossible to eliminate revisions entirely, there are measures you can take to streamline the process. Here are a few tips to improve your workflow, save your budget, and get your text fit to print.
The Word File
Many of the extra fees incurred during the design phase are for revisions that could have been made to the original word file. Proofread and edit your text thoroughly before it goes to layout.
Spell check beware. This is a great tool, but use it with caution: correct spelling does not guarantee proper usage.
Style consistency. Styles are more about consistency than one-size-fits-all rules. Determine the styles and make sure they are handled in the same manner throughout the document (e.g., all bullet points start with a capital versus lower case; all sizes are in metric, etc.).
Formatting. The less formatting you do, the better. Much of what is formatted in a Word file gets undone during the layout. Of course, if a word should be italicized or bolded, go ahead—but leave items such as spacing, tabs, column widths, etc., to the designer. These are all easily created in a page layout program using clean, unformatted text.
Say no to caps lock. Every designer’s pet peeve! Typing with the caps lock feature presents a major problem at the design stage. The only way to remove the capital letters is to retype the text, resulting in potential typos, more design time, and often more fees. A designer can toggle between upper and lowercase letters with the push of a button—but only if the letters are lowercase from the start.
Reviewing the Layout
Seeing your words come together in their intended form is exciting. In addition to your standard proofing procedures, here are a few additional tips to ensure a smooth revision process with limited rounds.
Confirm, confirm, confirm. Verify names, contact information, and important dates. Call all the contact numbers yourself to make sure your readers will be able to reach the correct person or department.
Proof from a hardcopy. It’s easy to miss errors when proofing onscreen, so print out PDFs and proof the hardcopy.
Print revisions clearly. If your revisions are illegible or confusing, consider yourself signed up for Round Two. When marking up on a PDF, type your revisions in a note. Publisher’s Note: Even your local CSI team would be hard pressed to decipher writing created with the PDF pen tool.
Submit a hardcopy of all revisions. No matter how few revisions, submit a hardcopy or PDF with all required corrections so the designer has a visual reference to check the changes.
Many of the extra fees incurred during the design phase are for revisions that could have been made to the original word file. Proofread and edit your text thoroughly before it goes to layout.
Spell check beware. This is a great tool, but use it with caution: correct spelling does not guarantee proper usage.
Style consistency. Styles are more about consistency than one-size-fits-all rules. Determine the styles and make sure they are handled in the same manner throughout the document (e.g., all bullet points start with a capital versus lower case; all sizes are in metric, etc.).
Formatting. The less formatting you do, the better. Much of what is formatted in a Word file gets undone during the layout. Of course, if a word should be italicized or bolded, go ahead—but leave items such as spacing, tabs, column widths, etc., to the designer. These are all easily created in a page layout program using clean, unformatted text.
Say no to caps lock. Every designer’s pet peeve! Typing with the caps lock feature presents a major problem at the design stage. The only way to remove the capital letters is to retype the text, resulting in potential typos, more design time, and often more fees. A designer can toggle between upper and lowercase letters with the push of a button—but only if the letters are lowercase from the start.
Reviewing the Layout
Seeing your words come together in their intended form is exciting. In addition to your standard proofing procedures, here are a few additional tips to ensure a smooth revision process with limited rounds.
Confirm, confirm, confirm. Verify names, contact information, and important dates. Call all the contact numbers yourself to make sure your readers will be able to reach the correct person or department.
Proof from a hardcopy. It’s easy to miss errors when proofing onscreen, so print out PDFs and proof the hardcopy.
Print revisions clearly. If your revisions are illegible or confusing, consider yourself signed up for Round Two. When marking up on a PDF, type your revisions in a note. Publisher’s Note: Even your local CSI team would be hard pressed to decipher writing created with the PDF pen tool.
Submit a hardcopy of all revisions. No matter how few revisions, submit a hardcopy or PDF with all required corrections so the designer has a visual reference to check the changes.
Print revisions clearly. If your revisions
are illegible or confusing, consider
yourself signed up for Round Two.
When marking up on a PDF, type your
revisions in a note. Publisher’s Note:
Even your local CSI team would be
hard pressed to decipher writing
created with the PDF pen tool.
Submit a hardcopy of all revisions. No matter how few revisions, submit a hardcopy or PDF with all required corrections so the designer has a visual reference to check the changes.
Major revisions. Paragraph rewrites are best supplied as a new Word file or in a note on the PDF.
Proofreading marks. Standard proofreading marks should be used to communicate common edits. They’re great for eliminating confusion and streamlining the revision process. See the handy proofreading chart on the other side for details.
Take charge. Appoint one person to liaise with the designer. Make sure everyone involved submits their revisions to the main contact, who can compile and verify them, and then hand them off to the designer in one nice, neat package.
First impressions really do count. Don’t wait for the fifth set of revisions to do a thorough proofreading: put your best foot forward at the onset. The more proofing required, the sloppier the proofreading becomes as everyone begins to lose interest and gloss over text, potentially missing obvious errors and important omissions.
Press proofs. This stage ensures that the physical properties of a piece are correct—that everything is in its place, folds happen where they should, text doesn’t fall off the page, photos and illustrations print clearly, fonts are not jagged, colour is correct, nothing is missing, and so on. While the odd typo does get caught here, don’t rely on this stage to do a paragraph overhaul. Not only is it costly to redo film, plates or expensive proofs, you may lose your press date and have to go back in the queue, thus missing important deadlines.
The bottom line
Proofreading is a team effort, but ultimately the responsibility of approving the final document rests with the client or other assigned person(s). While a designer can eliminate extra spaces and improper line breaks, the assigned proofreader must rely on his or her knowledge of company products, information, and services to eliminate incorrect content. And finally, the more you polish a piece, the more you see that “needs” extra polishing. Rewriting paragraphs and changing the delivery of words can lead to an endless cycle of revisions. With that in mind, it’s important to know when to stop—such as now.
Submit a hardcopy of all revisions. No matter how few revisions, submit a hardcopy or PDF with all required corrections so the designer has a visual reference to check the changes.
Major revisions. Paragraph rewrites are best supplied as a new Word file or in a note on the PDF.
Proofreading marks. Standard proofreading marks should be used to communicate common edits. They’re great for eliminating confusion and streamlining the revision process. See the handy proofreading chart on the other side for details.
Take charge. Appoint one person to liaise with the designer. Make sure everyone involved submits their revisions to the main contact, who can compile and verify them, and then hand them off to the designer in one nice, neat package.
First impressions really do count. Don’t wait for the fifth set of revisions to do a thorough proofreading: put your best foot forward at the onset. The more proofing required, the sloppier the proofreading becomes as everyone begins to lose interest and gloss over text, potentially missing obvious errors and important omissions.
Press proofs. This stage ensures that the physical properties of a piece are correct—that everything is in its place, folds happen where they should, text doesn’t fall off the page, photos and illustrations print clearly, fonts are not jagged, colour is correct, nothing is missing, and so on. While the odd typo does get caught here, don’t rely on this stage to do a paragraph overhaul. Not only is it costly to redo film, plates or expensive proofs, you may lose your press date and have to go back in the queue, thus missing important deadlines.
The bottom line
Proofreading is a team effort, but ultimately the responsibility of approving the final document rests with the client or other assigned person(s). While a designer can eliminate extra spaces and improper line breaks, the assigned proofreader must rely on his or her knowledge of company products, information, and services to eliminate incorrect content. And finally, the more you polish a piece, the more you see that “needs” extra polishing. Rewriting paragraphs and changing the delivery of words can lead to an endless cycle of revisions. With that in mind, it’s important to know when to stop—such as now.