Proof Reading

NOVASTAR

Has anyone done a Proof Reading course?

I had a email through about this and I am tempted to pay the £249 fee to do the training as it's something that i've always fancied doing.

If anyone could let me know what to expect I would be really grateful.

Thanks

hellnearth

I started one a few years ago and eventually gave it up. I was an English language teacher for 20 years, so assumed it would be a dawdle. Much like marking my students' written work.
It was a LOT harder than I'd expected. It's been a while now, but I remember that you are looking at two sets of proofs rather than one. You have to learn a set of symbols and you have to determine whether any errors are the writer's or the publisher's.
I was fine with the run of the mill spelling, punctuation etc. stuff, but got really bogged down .........and I have to say fed up........with things like scientifc reports that I couldn't understand or things that involved the checking of formatting for tables, lists of figures and that sort of thing.
I guess I'd had dreams of getting paid to read novels......sorted! ....but I think those kind of jobs are few and far between.
Do they offer any sample materials so you can get a flavour of what it's all about?

NOVASTAR

Thanks for replying Hellnearth.

I thought that it would be like reading novels and correcting them .... not sure if I like the idea of scientific reports, etc!

I will have to take a closer look at the sample materials. The email is on my OH pc and i'm at work ....

Many thanks

tyllwyd

I'm a freelance proofreader & editor specialising in legal textbooks, and it is nothing at all like having a read through a novel. Whatever the sample material is from the proofreading course might be very different from any work you would get - it depends on what type of publisher you are working for. It means reading line by line, mostly checking things like punctuation, spelling and layout, cross-references, as the previous poster said - very detailed work, concentrating hard.

Also, it is difficult to get accepted on to publisher's freelance lists - unless you have experience working in house or knowledge in a specialist area, there is a real chance you might not be able to get work.

NOVASTAR

Thanks tyllwyd for your reply.

I think that i'm better off keeping my money then by the sound of it.

It's useful to know that it's probably not quite what i thought it would be!

Thanks both once again