Umbridge, ...etc..., plotlines, oh my!. - Clumsy? Minor Points

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 126208


> bboyminn <thoroughly snipped>:
> Further, I doubt that /one/ editor proofreads cover to
> cover and makes the corrections. I suspect in a rush to get it out,
a team of editors are working on sections of the book, and that makes
> things like repetative phrases harder to catch. 
>
Carol responds:
Earlier I pointed out the difference between developmental editors and
copyeditors. For the record, proofreading is something different
altogether. It happens after the copyedited manuscript is set in type.
The proofreader corrects any errors made by the typesetter, and in
some cases is authorized to catch and correct (or at least query)
errors overlooked by the copyeditor. The author and publisher also
look at the proofs (the typeset pages) and correct any errors that
they spot at that point. The typesetter then incorporates all the
corrections, which are checked again and again until everything is (in
theory) exactly right. Obviously, though, the more people are involved
in the process, the more human errors and inconsistencies are likely
to creep in. And, as I indicated previously, there are bound to be
discrepancies between the British and American editions. But I doubt
that either the American or the British publisher divvies up the
copyediting among a team of editors. I, for one, would spot the
resulting inconsistencies and be sidetracked and annoyed by them. I
think the copyeditors are probably chosen for efficiency rather than
perfectionism. In other words, they know how to meet a deadline and
when to let a less than perfect sentence go--which is why someone
(like me) who values precision and conciseness would never be chosen
for the project. And the proofreaders are probably strictly limited in
the types of corrections they're allowed to make--all for the sake of
efficiency (and not offending a rich and famous author by suggesting
corrections that the editors missed). Nevertheless, as I said before,
we're *not* seeing the raw, unedited manuscripts or anything like them.

Carol, wondering how much red would appear on the pages of HBP if she
had the manuscript in her hands right now