The Five Critical Components of Form
The Five Critical Components of Form
In the opening lesson, we discussed an editor's job in terms of his or her role as a developmental editor or as a mechanical editor. Editing form falls directly into the realm of mechanical editing.
An editor's role as a mechanical editor overlaps somewhat with the role of the proofreader. While it is difficult to guarantee that grammatical errors will be removed in their entirety, the editor is expected to engage in this process. As such, an editor should be alert to five Cs:
Consistent format
Correct grammar
Coordinate punctuation
Compelling usage
Current spelling
When editing, an editor must ensure that the format of a particular document is internally consistent from beginning to end and that the format is consistent with the required style guide or the house style of the client or publisher. The following aspects should be considered:
Margins
Layout of the title page
Font type and size
Headings and subtitles
Numbering of pages, paragraphs, and sections
Spacing between lines, paragraphs, and sections
Indentation
Justification
Use of dashes and hyphens
Capitalization, italicization, and boldface
Table of contents
Footnotes, citations, and references
Luckily, formatting is generally pretty cut and dried. Either a document follows the required formatting guidelines or it doesn’t.
Merriam-Webster defines grammar as:
The study of the classes of words, their inflections, and their functions and relations in the sentence
A study of what is to be preferred and what avoided in inflection and syntax
A system of rules that defines the grammatical structure of a language
There are specific grammar rules designed to govern most sentence constructions, and the sentence constructions that lie outside these rules fall mostly under the classification of idiom and usage.
Traditional grammar describes eight parts of speech:
Nouns
Pronouns
Adjectives
Verbs
Adverbs
Prepositions
Conjunctions
Interjections
It is essential for an editor to have knowledge of, and proficiency with, standard grammatical construction. Grammar is quite a bit like science in that there are specific rules to apply in specific situations. But grammar is also an art. A writer or editor (or anyone working with a text) must know what to do when there are no rules or when the rules are ambiguous. A good writer or editor will know how to create new meaning using bits and pieces of the rules already in place.
Punctuation marks are symbols that indicate the structure and organization of written language, as well as the intonation and pauses to be observed when reading aloud. The rules of punctuation are constantly evolving and vary from situation to situation; certain aspects of punctuation are stylistic and thus are the author's (or editor's) choice.
Therefore, when editing a document and reviewing punctuation, an editor must be keenly aware not only of punctuation rules in general, but also of the punctuation rules of the form of English the author of the document is using (i.e., American English vs. Australian English vs. British English vs. Canadian English). The editor must ensure that punctuation is applied consistently and correctly throughout the document.
The importance of punctuation can be illustrated by reviewing the following two sentences:
While we were eating a skunk crawled under the picnic table.
While we were eating, a skunk crawled under the picnic table.
Without that one little comma, the reader might, at first glance, understand that the writer was eating a skunk!
Note: Grammar checkers in various word processing programs should not be relied on to catch punctuation errors. While they can often identify general errors, they will sometimes misidentify correct usage as incorrect and may miss some errors altogether.
Correcting for usage is critical in the editing process, as word choice can have a major impact on the style, tone, and implied meaning of the document.
For example, in Britain, the phrase "to knock up," means to summon, as by knocking at the door. In America, the phrase refers to getting someone pregnant. This is clearly a phrase we want to use correctly!
In other cases, certain words are commonly confused (accept/except), misused (hopefully), or are altogether nonstandard (hisself). When in doubt, it is important for writers and editors alike to consult a dictionary, thesaurus, or glossary of usage to ensure that all words and phrases are being used appropriately.
An editor should also check for colloquialisms (expressions that may be appropriate in informal speech but are inappropriate in formal writing) and jargon (needlessly technical or pretentious language that is inappropriate in most contexts). If you are editing a document in which it is perfectly appropriate to use colloquialisms and jargon, you must still verify that those words and phrases have been used correctly.
In dictionaries, usage labels indicate when, where, or under what conditions a particular meaning for a word is appropriately used. Common labels are informal (or colloquial), slang, nonstandard, dialect, obsolete, archaic, poetic, and British. (While it is not always the case, a word listed as British in a dictionary will often be the same in Canadian and Australian English. However, an editor should always consult a second source just to be safe.)
We have all learned to spell from repeated experience with words. As you edit, you will sometimes notice that a word just doesn't look quite right. When in doubt, consult a dictionary. An editor should especially watch for the kinds of errors that are missed by computer spell checkers (its/it's, our/out, principle/principal, on/of, etc.) on top of whatever other misspellings might be present.
A manuscript editor's style sheet helps him or her maintain consistency in spelling throughout a document or manuscript. A style sheet is an alphabetized list of words or terms to be capitalized, italicized, hyphenated, spelled, or treated in any way unique to the particular document. We'll look a little more closely at style sheets in an upcoming lesson. Suffice it to say that they are fantastic tools for editors, proofreaders, and even authors themselves.
The following are several tips to ensure words are correctly spelled and used in their proper contexts:
Use a dictionary not only for spelling and definitions, but also to research word division, pronunciation, usage, word origins, word endings and grammatical labels, and synonyms and antonyms.
Discriminate between words that sound alike but have different meanings.
Become readily familiar with the most common spelling rules, and develop a working knowledge of the spelling rules in the forms of English in which you do not typically write.
Note: Remember that spelling can vary tremendously among English-speaking countries. Be aware of the author's requirements.
Dictionaries sometimes also include usage notes. Such advice is based on the opinions of many experts and on actual usage in current magazines, newspapers, books, and other published material.
A text must have content in order to exist, and it won't be readable if it doesn't follow at least some style. However, form is what gives a document its finesse. It makes the piece readable and pleasurable. It streamlines a text and reduces confusion. Remember that anyone can get people to remember what they say, but if you want them to remember the way that you said it, you'll need good form.
Last Updated: 09/29/2022