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Copyediting: A Practical Guide | 
 enlarge | Author: Karen Judd
Publisher: Crisp Learning
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $11.00
You Save: $13.95 (56%)
New (16) Used (22) from $4.44
Rating:  10 reviews
Sales Rank: 105516
Media: Paperback
Edition: 3
Pages: 328
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6 x 0.8
ISBN: 1560526084
Dewey Decimal Number: 808.027
EAN: 9781560526087
ASIN: 1560526084
Publication Date: August 13, 2001
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
"Every item intended for reading should be copyedited," says Karen Judd: books and periodicals, of course, but also appliance instructions and menus. Strange, then, that Judd's Copyediting is one of the few resources on the subject, but no matter. It's a terrific guidebook. Judd takes on all aspects of copyediting with startling authority, from copyediting symbols to advice on getting work. Intervening chapters cover punctuation and grammar, spelling, style and word usage, numbers and abbreviations, specialized copyediting, proofreading, and more. "Copyeditors ... know that Massachusetts is a commonwealth, not a state," says Judd. "They would know exactly how to address the pope if they met him. They don't mind going back over 1,000 manuscript pages because they have just decided to spell out numbers up to 100 after all." While they need not be good spellers or trivia buffs, they need to know when to look up a word or fact. And, though copyeditors tend to be stringent about the uses and abuses of language, "Copyediting means doing what the publisher wants, whether you agree with it or not." --Jane Steinberg
Product Description
Filled with sound, practical advice, this book is a must if you wish to become an effective copyeditor. In addition to being a comprehensive guide to the "real world" of copyediting and publishing, sections on diction and style answer practical questions not addressed in other copyediting books.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 5 more reviews...
 I don't care for it... March 8, 2009
C. Reed
Like other reviewers, I found the errors which fill this book made many of her examples confusing. The errors also make me question the credibility of this text. This is the third edition; there should not be as many as four errors on a single page.
Also, her tone is condescending at best. I'd rather not be spoken down to by someone who has produced such a poorly copyedited text...about copyediting.
This book is a required text for a graduate class (in an English and Publishing program) and we all spent a fair bit of time complaining about it.
In spite of this, it is reasonably helpful. I would, however, recommend purchasing stylebooks instead or at least in addition to this text.
 Review of Every Page perfect April 1, 2007
Heather Johannesen (Canada)
1 out of 7 found this review helpful
I recently purchased Every Page Perfect by Mary Lynn. I find the book to be indispensable. I don't know what I did without this book. I have used the book and I find a huge difference in the way I present my writing to the public and to editors. I recommend this book to both seasoned writers and beginners out there. Every Page Perfect is 8 1/2 x 11 and shows how to set pages up exactly as an editor would want them for all genres etc. It should be on everyone's book shelf. It is clear, comprehensive and friendly. Don't write without it!
keelia
Nice Reference Guide February 28, 2007
B. Stohrer (Brooklyn, NY)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book is simple yet in-depth. Recommended to anyone who works in copyediting. This may even be useful for people who work in more "creative" writing fields, since it talks about the importance of consistency vs. "correctness."
Copyediting: A Practical Guide August 4, 2006
Dernhelm (USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is a comprehensive book; the author covers everything you need to know to copyedit, and more. She discusses the uses of the copyediting and proofreading symbols, and when they should be used as well as spelling, grammar, style; numbers and abbreviations; footnotes and bibliographies, typemarking, and handling artwork.
She also explains how (and when!) to write queries, and the differences between copyediting textbooks, fiction, nonfiction, poetry, medical, and science (etc.) texts.
She discusses what publishers are looking for in a copyeditor--what to emphasize in your resume, and what to leave out. The author is an experienced copyeditor, so the book tells you how things really work, not just how they are supposed to work.
The book is well written. It is not hard to understand or tedious to read; and it is very well organized.
 Could have been the best, but... March 25, 2006
Daniel L Edelen (Mt. Orab, OH USA)
52 out of 54 found this review helpful
Karen Judd's "Copyediting: A Practical Guide" is one of the few books on this topic. Any help in this area is appreciated, and Judd's guide is extremely handy.
Pros:
1. Her examples are excellent, unlike some other grammar and punctuation guides. Got a strange sentence construction? Her examples will cover it. Not sure if that appositive needs commas or not? Judd gives the correct answer.
2. Methodical. The book delineates the technical aspects of copyediting well.
3. Covers proofreading techniques and notations not found in style and grammar manuals.
4. The trade paper size of the book makes it far less cumbersome than others that include workbook training. Judd's workbook questions are just as easily managed in the smaller format.
5. The price is right.
Cons:
1. This is an enormous con: There are enough errors in the book to confuse readers. Judd sometimes lays out a rule, but then the example is wrong. (A few other reviewers noted this, too.) In a book on copyediting, you'd expect perfect copy! Needs a revision badly.
2. While the copyediting and proofreading marks are extensive, there are not enough variants listed. Some publishing houses require marks that aren't here. I'm no expert like Judd is, but I've seen far more mark variants in my copyediting experience than she covers.
3. This book is "plain brown wrapper" and could use a layout freshening. Almost too dull to look at.
4. Some of the proofing marks are not crisply printed. As a suggestion, this book would benefit greatly from a two-color printing process that makes the marks stand out from the text more effectively.
5. The paper used in the book's construction is cheap, possibly leading to durability issues over the long run. For a true reference work, this is a shame.
Could have been the best value out there in a copyediting reference, but there are enough cons to relegate it to being merely good. A new edition would be excellent, but one doesn't appear to be on the horizon any time soon. Too bad for us.
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