Editing Digital Products

Digital services such as websites, e-books, or other emerging platforms are fast becoming key business opportunities in the current digital revolution. Spearheading development is the new and emerging role of the digital editor. Tasks such as sourcing, developing, producing and editing engaging digital content are vital skills for today's competitive publisher.

This course is designed to specifically increase knowledge and understanding of editing content within the digital environment and to enable the production of top quality digital content and services.

Programme

• Content – what users see
• How digital differs from print
• Types of content
  • PDFs, animations, simulations, simple interactive activities, audio, PowerPoint presentations, images, etc
• Considering the content structure
  • Include different types of digital resources
  • Coordinating links to any printed material to ensure consistency
• What the user doesn't see
• Creating templates that work
  • Need for strict template instructions and briefs (with examples) for author, copy-editor, proofreader and developer
  • Managing corrections with developers
• Understanding and writing metadata
• Working with XML
• Managing the process
• From manuscript to live – an outline of the process
• Tracking the process
  • Documentation needed
• Asset management
  • Asset lifecycles
  • Asset management software
  • Naming files – why is it so important?
• Bug management
  • Types of bugs (errors, request for changes, etc) – cost implications of corrections
  • Tracking bugs.

Who will benefit from this course?

All members of the digital publishing team, particularly commissioning editors, development editors, e-content editors, e-producers, developers and picture researchers.

Your tutor

Sarah Sodhi is a freelance digital editor at the forefront of digital editing techniques. Her clients include many educational publishers, including Nelson Thornes and Scholastic. She started working in production in 1998, moved across to editorial in 2001 and now enjoys the opportunity to do both as a freelance.

Note that most of our open courses can also be run as in-company events.