Quote:
Originally Posted by starrigger
Good question. Sometimes they just reduce the plates and that's all there is to it. But more often they do what you say, and in that case, new proofs may go out to the author for scrutiny, and are presumably also proofread by a second party. This also an opportunity to correct errors that crept into the hardcover, and sometimes make final revisions (usually minor).
It's also a big PITA. (By this point, the last thing you want to do is read that @$#@# book again.) But you want the book to go out in the best shape possible, so you do it.
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Jeff, I think this is where the disconnect between the publishers and e-book enthusiasts occur. The publishers in these threads are looking at the editing process - "the book will sell better if you cut this scene, speed up this page and add more explanation here" - as part and parcel of creating an e-book, not just the copy proofing required of new plates. The e-book enthusiast, however, feels that once a book has been printed, the copy editing is finished. All then that is required is copy proofing, the same as any other galley proofing that any new paper edition's plates needs. PITA yes, but not a Manhattan Project either.
The other aspect is could this work (e-book copy proofing) be offloaded sucessfully from the Author's/Publisher's back? When I look at the quality of some of the commercial offerings, it wouldn't take much. Many e-book enthusiasts are willing to scan/proof favorite books for books/authors
pro bono publico, but suggesting using this "free" labor has always been met upon with scorn by publishers. Yet I look at the thriving Public Domain efforts in the world, and doggone it, it's not bad, and steadily improves over time. Perfect? Probably not, but neither are commercial proofing jobs. And I can't understand why "outsourcing" free labor is such a bad idea...