BECOME A BOOK EDITOR

Meet your instructor, explore the course layout, and get an overview of assignments.

• Instructor introduction
• General housekeeping
• Assignment overview

Dive right in with an overview of the publishing industry, from what publishing is to the current landscape.

• What is publishing?
• The life of the book 
• Formats
• How books are sold
• The current landscape
• Case study: How a book gets published (Sally Rooney novel comparison)

Explore the inner workings of the acquisition process, including the roles of agents and editors and what to do once the book is acquired.

• How manuscripts reach editors 
• Agents pitch to editors
• Editors pitch to publishers
• Workshop: Writing a pitch together
• You’ve acquired a book: now what? 

Assignment #1: Pick a book published in the last six months
Explore questions such as what made you read it in the first place, what you like about it, what you think about how it was marketed, and more.

Learn how to read as an editor — discover how to approach a new book, the tools you will need, and how to provide constructive feedback that helps authors refine and grow their work. 

• Being the first reader
• What to look for in a submission
• Providing feedback
• Workshop: Rank 4 short stories, argue for them, explain what you hate — and fight!

Assignment #2: Write to the agent
Choose one of the stories read in class, then write roughly 500 words in which you explain to the author’s agent why you are turning down this particular submission.

Delve into the basics of editing, what it is, and the different types of editors.

• What is editing? 
• Style and voice
• Editing non-fiction vs fiction
• The genre umbrella
• Finding your niche
• Guest speaker

[Optional] Assignment #3: Examine text samples and explain where they fit and why. Then, review a list of covers, discuss where they fit, and explore the role of design in establishing a book’s presence.

Begin developing your editorial skill set — explore structural editing and writing comprehensive editorial letters to provide feedback.

• Approaching a structural edit
• The editorial letter
• Workshop: Apply developmental editing techniques to a few sample texts 

Assignment #4: Editorial letter
Choose one of the sample texts discussed in class and write an editorial letter to the author.

Expand your editorial skill set — delve into copyediting, grammar, cutting text, and pacing.

• What is a copyedit?
• The house style & the brief
• Grammar & style sheet
• Cutting text approaches
• Pacing: Purpose, tension, and chapter endings
• Demo: Copyedit a manuscript excerpt

Explore the legal aspects of book publishing, from legal reads and copyright to AI. 

• Legal & sensitivity reads
• Ethical considerations
• Copyright & rights management
• AI
• Guest Speaker

Gain an understanding of the basics of production, including scheduling, printers, and typesetters.

• What is book production?
• Managing the critical path: Editorial & production
• Printers
• Paper
• Typesetters 
• Workshop: Look at how example texts are laid out on the page

Assignment #5: Pick one: Future of AI OR What makes a text beautiful

1. Write 500 words on the future of AI (perils, dilemmas, etc) in the publishing industryOR
2. Give an example of a beautiful-looking bit of text and why you think that (500 words)

Explore the basics of cover design, as well as writing jacket copy and getting quotes.

• The importance of book covers
• Case study: Look at the cover artworks of novels such as The List by Yomi Adegoke and Our Share of Night by Mariana Enríquez
• How to write jacket copy
• How to get quotes
• Workshop: We’ll write a cover brief together and edit the jacket copy

Assignment #6: Effective Cover Reflection
In your opinion, what is the most effective book cover published over the course of the last year and why?

Learn about outreach and how to get people excited and talk about a book once it’s published.

• How to promote a book 
• The media: Critics, reviews, interviews
• The online profile: Booktok, SEO & metadata, ads
• Awards
• Case study: Explore some fun marketing campaigns, including ‘My Sister, the Serial Killer’ by Oyinkan Braithwaite and ‘Yellowface’ by R. F. Kuang
• Guest speaker

Be inspired! This is your opportunity to have a Q&A with an experienced editor to round off everything discussed so far.

Where to now? Explore how to put yourself up there and be successful in the world of publishing.

• Where to begin
• Upskilling
• Networking
• Q&A: Career advice

Final Project: Editorial Plan for a Book

Part 1: Select any book, showing how you’ve conducted your research and made your choice based on what’s promising, then create an editorial plan. 

Part 2: Select one of the provided texts, copyedit the extract, and then write a note outlining your process.