Introduction
It is common knowledge that attractively
produced publication carries the impression of being a good work without any
reference to the contents being well written or badly presented. So the production of publication is
the most important aspect of any publishing programme, more so of academic
publishing in view of the fact that audio-visual aids are trying to sweep off
the book. Production thus forms
the basis, rather the most important basis of publication of any type of
printed material-primers, language textbooks, reference books, publicity
materials, periodicals, etc.
Editor's
role in planning
The role of editor in any publishing programme
is of considerable importance.
The editor is the pivot of the wheel of academic publishing. His active participation rather
involvement in the publication programme is imperative if the programme has to
have the great stamp of success.
He is the figurehead in the starting of any project say by way of
commissioning of people well-known writers-to write or prepare the material
for a particular subject or topic of interest. His impact is felt in the right choice
of subjects and appropriate writers/authors known for their writings and
authenticity in the concerned field of study.
Editor's
role in production
The most essential
aspect of production is designing of different kinds of publications. The next stage of active participation
of the editor is in the designing and production of publications of various
types. He takes the key role
while participating in the discussions with his co-workers author, artist, the
designer and the production e The most
essential aspect of production is designing of different kinds of
publications. The next stage of
active participation of the editor is in the designing and production of
publications of various types. He
takes the key role while participating in the discussions with his co-workers
author, artist, the designer and the production expert with regard to the
production aspect of any publication.
His knowledge about the format and the design of a publication helps in
the adaptability and/or adjustability of the material to the required purpose
of the publication programme. His
knowledge of colour scheme, lay-out and placement of illustrations (both line
and half tone) in appropriate size and place, etc., helps in the overall
improvement of the quality of the publications. He takes interest in suggesting to the
artist ideas regarding the preparation of suitable/appropriate
drawings/illustrations for inclusion in the publications. He also suggests suitable colour
scheme for the drawings/illustrations.
He becomes one of the most important persons working in the entire
programme of publishing provided he sets aside the ego in him while
participating freely and frankly with all the co-workers and thus helps
effectively in bringing out quality publications on time.
The techniques of production for different
types of publications primers, language textbooks, reference books, publicity
materials periodicals, etc. , vary according to the category of the
publications envisaged for productions, the number of copies to be produced,
the size of the publication, the size and face of types to be used, number of
illustrations (both line and half tone illustrations) and placement of those
illustrations suitably. It is
quite evident that a production-oriented editor can be more effective and
pivotal in the programme of publications. His effective participation can be
felt in the various types of publications handled by the
organization.
Primers
In the case of primers the designing is to be
visualized keeping in view the simplicity, broad display and attractive
get-up. The determination of size
of the publication is the primary consideration in the designing of this
category of publication keeping in view the clientele for whom it is
meant. Since this category is
meant for children of various age-groups, it is imperative that this should be
very colourful, with number of illustrations appropriately placed to make it
very attractive. The size and the
face of the types should be quite big, bold and attractive. Visualising of the final product is
the most essential exercise that the editor and those concerned with the
production of this material should bear in mind. The sizes of the various types of
books in this category of publication it is very necessary to bear in mind the
size of the paper available for its printing. This is necessary to adapt the size
suitably according to the available size of the paper. This indirectly brings into play the
aspect of economics of production in any publication programme with a view to
keeping the cost down and also avoiding wastage.
The binding aspect
of this category of publication is very important as it is meant for children
of different age-groups who do not bother about the economic implications of
wear and tear of publications.
Therefore, good quality thick art card board etc., should be used for
binding purposes keeping in view the number of page that go into each category
of this book.
Language
textbooks and reference books
After the material has been accepted for
publication either as a textbook or as a reference book, the need to determine
its size arises. The size of the
publication of this category could be either crow quarto royal octavo. Here also the determination of the
size should be considered after keeping in view the availability of the size
of paper. After determining the
size of the publication, the print area of each page including folio numbers
and heading should be decided. It
is also necessary to determine the number of illustrations to be used and
their suitable placement. With
regard to the number of colours to be used, it is normal practise to go in for
black and white only unless the need is felt for addition of a colour or two
more. The size and face of types
to be used depends upon the category of publication namely, either language
textbooks or reference books. In
the case of language textbooks, the size of types could be 10, 12 or 14 point
depending upon the classes to which these textbooks are meant. In the case of reference books, the
size of types could normally be 10 point. For footnotes that appear at various
pages in the reference books, 8 point types are used. Regarding the face of types, normally
Times Roman, Univerrse, etc., are used.
Care is to be taken with regard to determining the style of binding for
these categories of books. This
depends upon the thickness of the book, i.e., the number of pages that it
contains. There are so many
styles of binding of books. But
in this instance, the normal style of binding for textbooks and reference
books is-section-sewn and cover drawn on or cloth binding.
Publicity
materials
The production of publicity materials,
folders, pamphlets, booklets, posters, etc., demands clear thinking and
visualizing the pattern of material to be produced. Much depends upon the type of
publicity one desires. For
example, if a publication which is in press is to be published, then one has
to think in terms of planning and bringing out a pre-publication pamphlet for
the purpose (e.g., Biology-NCERT).
Folders and pamphlets could be of different sizes and production of
these should be planned keeping in view the contents and the purpose for which
publicity is intended.
Periodicals
Dailies, weeklies, monthlies, bi-mothlies,
quarterlies, annual and bi-annual numbers. For this group of publications, time
factor is the most important and so planning and production need to be done in
accordance with the periodicity of the item under consideration.
1.
Daily
: Time factor is
the most important in this case and as such there is not much scope for
day-to-day changes in the pattern of publication. Normally a set pattern is
followed.
2.
Weekly : Though time factor is most important
material for a couple of issues could be planned well in advance, of course
with an eye to adjustment and adaptability.
3.
Monthly : Material for a couple of issues should
be planned well in advance as in this case also time factor is quite
important.
4.
Bi-monthly and
Quarterly : Time
factor, though quite important is not that hard pressing as in the case of
weeklies and monthlies.
Therefore, planning may be done with greater ease and comfort. Needless to add, planning of couple of
issues in advance is well advised.
5.
Annual and
Bi-annual: As plenty of time is available, considerable
thought and care should go into the planning and production of this type of
publication.
Textbook
editing :
G.L. Anand textbooks have come to occupy and
will probably continue to occupy a unique place in the teaching-learning
process. Although education is
supposed to be child-centered, yet in actual practice, it is (whether we admit
it or not) textbook-centred, textbooks, despite their various shortcomings,
have merged as the greates single tool of the teaching-learning process. On the one hand, they provide the
general framework within which a particular subject should be taught, and on
the other, they provide guidance to the teacher as well as the student for the
best possible approach to the subject.
Moreover, the
textbooks are the most objective tools of education. The teacher can never be expected to
be so objective as the textbooks are.
They also bring about uniformity in education in the entire
region/country in which they are prescribed. Although they cannot replace the
teacher, yet they are thought to be more dependable and trustworthy by the
society, because the knowledge imparted by them is not only secular but more
organized and systematic. It is
not possible to imagine a system of education in the present times which can
give knowledge in such a systematic way without the aid of textbooks,
howsoever brilliant teachers we may have in our society. Textbooks help the teacher also is
conducting his task of imparting education in a planned way. Due to all these factors, text books
have a unique position in the system of education.
Need to
improve the quality of textbooks
It can perhaps be inferred from the above
discussion that the quality of education imparted to the children in a country
will, to a large extent, depend upon the quality of textbooks brought out by
it. The Central Government as
also the State Governments in India
are not
oblivious of this fact.
Improvement of the quality of textbooks is one of the major factors
which has made the government to enter in the field of textbook publishing in
a big way. This has argued well
for the textbook publishing in the country, since the standards of textbooks
have definitely improved. But
there is constant need to keep a check on quality, both in content as well as
in production. In fact, there is
still a great scope for improvement in both. The textbook editor has a very
important role to play in this context.
Unfortunately his role has not so far been properly understood and
fully recognized by the government as well as other textbook publishing
agencies.
The Role of
the textbook editor
To ensure quality is
the main job of the editor. Right
from the time the manuscript is conceived, the editor is very clear in his
mind about the purpose of the book or the textbook. Before reading the manuscript, he must
ask this question again: What is the purpose of the book he is going to
edit? And after he has read the
manuscript once, he must ask himself the second connected question: Does it
fulfil the purpose for which it was conceived and written? Suppose, a textbook
on social studies is addressed to the students of Class V. The first thing the editor must know
the purpose or the objectives of the education board or the syllabus committee
members in getting the textbook prepared. The editor is also supposed to know
the skills, the understandings and the values the textbook is supposed to
impart to the students. It is the
business of the editor to see the textbook fulfils all its requirements
well. This will ensure the
quality of its contents.
The textbook
editor is however not supposed to go into the details of the syllabus and
evaluate the manuscript on that count.
He is to be content with checking the requirements of the publisher (whether
it is a private firm or government agency) and the needs of the consumers (or
the society) in whose hands he is passing the textbook. A textbook editor is a good citizen,
loyal to his country. He is a
nationalist. He does not allow
anything to go in the textbook which is against the spirit of the constitution
of his country or is likely to prove harmful to the society. If the author errs, the editor should
check him on all these points. It
is absolutely necessary that all textbook producing agencies, whether
government or private, must have trained and competent editors to ensure the
quality of contents of our textbooks.
Short orientation courses of textbook editors should be organized to
ensure quality textbooks for the country.
It must however be
added that a textbook editor need not necessarily be an educationist. But he has a deep interest in the
education of those to whom he passes in the printed form what the author has
written. The textbook editor must
at the same time be conscious that he is performing a very important task, the
effect of which on the readers is going to be tremendous. As is well known, the printed word has
a tremendous influence on the human mind. Even the best writings of the world
are not likely to have much effect if they are not put into print. The textbook editor causes a written
manuscript into print. By doing
so, he indirectly puts the seal of authentication on the manuscript, because
printed words are likely to be taken as authentic. This puts a great responsibility on
the textbook but also he should thoroughly examine the factual information
given in it. In case he is not
the master of the subject of the textbook, he should get it examined by the
competent experts in the field.
Inaccuracies of content are intolerable in a textbook. A textbook therefore needs a very
close scrutiny.
The Editor
and the author
The inaccuracies observed in the manuscript
should be brought to the notice of the author, so that he makes necessary
corrections. There are
inaccuracies of various kinds and various degrees. Small inaccuracies of spelling, etc.,
should not be referred to the author.
Others which involve rewriting a chapter or portion of it must be
referred to the author. Here we
must have a word of caution.
Conveying to the author his shortcomings or mistakes is a very delicate
matter. The author need not be
offended or humiliated in this process.
He is the creator of the manuscript and must get due respect, whatever
his weaknesses are. The editor
is, in fact, a link between the publisher and the author. He must understand both and try, so
far as possible, to satisfy both.
He must understand that he is not the boss of the author. But this does not mean that he should
be unduly indulgent towards the author's writing. He must be strict about his business
and should never compromise on quality without being unduly harsh or
lenient. A textbook editor
therefore must be a man of cool temperament.
Examination and
scrutiny of contents of a manuscript require clear understanding and sound
judgment, which are two great assets of an editor. Besides being a man of sound judgment,
an editor must be perfect in his trade.
That is, he must possess sound technical knowledge of his job. A good skill in language is the first
such requisite. The editor must
feel at home with words, like a good wordsmith. This is absolutely necessary if he is
an editor of language textbooks.
He must be a good visualiser and must understand the principles of
design. A good knowledge of types
and production processes helps him in doing a good job and ensures high
standards of production without any wastage.
National
textbook style manual
Textbooks must have
a uniform style regarding capitalization, abbreviations, use of numerals,
hyphenation and word breaking, punctuation, format, paper sizes, use of
foreign words, numbering system (for chapters, illustrations as well as
paragraphs), references, footnotes, spellings, index, symbols, bibliography,
etc. This not only ensures
quality but saves valuable time of the editor. We in the NCERT have formulated a
style manual for our textbooks in English as well as in Hindi. This, however, is not so comprehensive
as it should be. It would be
preferable if instead of all textbook producing agencies having separate style
manuals, we have one common style manual for all such agencies. This can be named as National Textbook
Style Manual. Such manuals are in
vogue for the use of authors, editors and publishers in many countries. The Indian Standards Institution has
also published some such manuals.
These manuals have been prepared after due research and can therefore
form the basis of a National Style Manual for Textbooks. They also give knowledge about
margins, print area and other details of format. The editor must have perfect knowledge
of the paper sizes and book sizes so that no mistake is made in choosing the
correct format and size for a particular textbook. For ready reference, one typed sheet
should all these details is enough for his day-to-day needs. I.S.I. Standards can be referred to
for further details.
Illustrations in a textbook
A textbook, since it is not meant to be
read for pleasure, is never interesting to read, howsoever interesting lessons
you may introduce in it. The
reader knows that is meant for examination. He therefore cannot enjoy even the
most humorous lessons. It is
accepted by all that textbooks are a dull matter. This dullness of textbooks can be
broken only by one device, and this is by introducing beautiful pictures in
the text along with the reading matter.
A clever editor, however, does not use pictures for this purpose
alone. He uses the pictures as
illustrations, so that they not only beautify but help in understanding the
text also. If used judiciously,
illustrations in a textbook occupy only next place to text in order of
importance.
Illustrations are of
many types. It is for the editor
to decide whether a black and white halftone illustration will be appropriate
at a place or a colour transparency: whether a drawing could serve the purpose
or a photograph would do better.
Here editor's skill enables him to make sound judgment. If he makes a wrong decision in the
matter of illustrations, there is no chance to this mistake being corrected
unless the illustration is replaced by a new one, which involves unnecessary
wastage. Selection of
illustrations requires knowledge, experience and production skill. An editor generally faces more
problems with illustrations than with manuscript. Illustrations, to be true, are the
most tricky thing to handle.
Sound judgment and maturity in visualization
help in the right choice of illustrations, otherwise even with increased costs
we may have shabby reproductions.
If the editor is able to go through his task of selection of
illustrations well, the results are bound to be excellent.
However, the illustrations may increase the
cost of the textbook considerably.
The editor has therefore to be selective. The illustrations must be suitable for
the subject of the text. It is
actually the subject of the book that determines the types of illustrations
needed. But the knowledge of the
subject and suitability of the illustrations to the subject do not
suffice. The editor must be able
to distinguish between a good illustration and a bad illustration from the
production point of view.
Moreover, it is absolutely necessary that the editor is able to work
with his photographer or his artist.
That is, he should be able to make them realize the requirements of the
job and he should, at the same time, know their capabilities. The communication gap between a editor
and his artist may create chaotic
conditions in the editorial department. The editor must know from whom to
expect what. He should have full
knowledge of all the sources of illustrations available to him.
Use of
colours
Colours are good for children's book. But there is nothing bad in black and
white illustrations, provided their selection and quality are good. Making a book colourful does not
necessarily make it attractive.
It is better for a textbook editor to use minimum number of colours in
these days of soaring prices because colours add a lot to the price of the
textbook, which is to be purchased by the poor parents also.
Observing
the deadline
After the manuscript
has been edited and the illustrations finally selected, the manuscript is
ready for press. But before
sending it to press all technical markings should be checked once again, so
that after the manuscript leaves the editor's desk, there is no scope for
second thoughts. The processes,
through which a book has to pass after it leaves the editor's desk till it
comes out of the press in printed form are intricate and involve many people,
including the printer. This is
usually the period of bottlenecks, which appear at various stages in this
period. So, in editorial planning
it is absolutely necessary to make provision for emergencies.
A textbook has a deadline. It must come out well before the start
of an academic session so that it is available to the students on time. All editorial plans are set according
to this calculation. But just
when the book is about to come
out, there is either a labour trouble in the press or there is a drastic power
cut or some unknown and unheard of emergency appears on the scene. The students need the book urgently
and there are questions in the Parliament or the Assembly. The editor makes numerous visits to
the press, reads proofs day and night and tries to bring out the textbook near
the schedule. These are the most
agonizing moments for a textbook editor.
At this stage, the deadline of the textbook appears to be a real
deadline in its original meaning for him. (In ancient times, there were open
prisons, and the prisoners were prohibited to go near a certain line drawn
around the prison enclosure.
Anybody going near this line was to be shot dead. Thus came the word `deadline'. Though its meaning has softened much
with the passage of time, yet for the textbook editor, a deadline is as
terrorizing as it used to be in ancient times!
Obviously, the
textbook editor survives these agonizing moments. The conclusion is that a good textbook
editor never loses his balance in spite of all the hazards which are a part of
his trade and profession. He uses
his judgment boldly to take decisions and is willing to take responsibility
for them.