[ATTW-L] [EXT] technical editing class -- hard-copy markup?

[Searsmith, Kelly Lin]

I've been following this conversation with interest. I will add to the mix that I've been a professional writer and editor since the late 1980s. Over the years, I've found most workplaces and practitioners have transitioned from hardcopy editing to digital editing.

The most common practice I now find (and use myself) for non-production and pre-production documents (assuming something is going to print) is revising Word documents directly with changes tracked and some additional digital comments tucked in, with a cover email explaining global insights or taking up more substantive concerns. Our scientists at my current position tend to compose in LaTeX and edit together in Overleaf (so that is worth thinking about in a technical writing course), but the administrative and writing staff work in Word with share files in Box or Google Drive or a similar solution. So do the writers/editors of the trade magazine for which I've copy edited.

I do have at least one senior colleague who still prints out documents to make manual edits, finding she is able to read print with more exacting care. Certainly, there are others who prefer that mode for this and other reasons. Since students benefit from being given a wide range of diverse experiences in learning any complex epistemic performance like writing and editing, I believe that continuing to give students the experience of hardcopy editing is beneficial. I would not emphasize it / make it the primary mode, but I still believe it's good for students to have a brief experience of this foundational practice (including for its potential for slowing editors down and having them attend to what is explicitly on the page).

I am curious to know what accessibility issues each practice raises for editors with various disability concerns. That is worth addressing / thinking about as well.

All the best,
Kelly
_____________

Kelly Searsmith, BA (English & Psych.), MA (English), PhD (English), & EdM (Higher Ed);
   Illini Certified Research Administrator
Technical Research Writer, Dept. of Physics, The Grainger College of Engineering
Doctoral Student in Higher Ed Studies, Dept of Ed Policy, Organization, and Leadership, College of Education

Member, National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA)
   Chair, Professional Development Committee, NCURA Region IV, 2022-2023
Member, American Education Research Association (AERA)
Member, Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD)
Member, College Autism Network (CAN)

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
290Y Loomis Laboratory of Physics, 1110 W Green St., MC 704
Urbana, IL 61801-3003
(217) 300-5336

Physics Illinois<https://physics.illinois.edu/people/directory/profile/kellydm> / LinkedIn<https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-searsmith-15112b14/>

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