Sub-editing non-literary texts: mass production or tailor-made?
This article offers insight into the work of a professional Estonian sub-editor of non-literary texts, a field that has not been widely studied. For this, seven non-literary texts which varied widely in terms of style and target audience were analysed for level of change (primary, secondary), type of intervention (“Addition”, “Replacement”, “Deletion”, “Translocation”), type of change (“Style” (e.g. replacing obscure words), “Content” (changing the meaning), “Language” (e.g. punctuation), “Formatting” (e.g. correcting titles and headings of tables), type of the fragment affected by the change and the range of change.
Even though conclusions are made as cross-case analysis, we also present results for each case so as not to leave the reader to make hasty conclusions. For example, the types of changes sub-editors made were stylistic in five texts, linguistic in one and formatting in another text, so to say the most frequent (overall 43.7%) type of changes are stylistic is true, but nevertheless misleading. On some occasions, a sub-editor’s changes and corrections are provided with the explanations by the same sub-editor. These were collected during semi-structured text-based interviews.
Sub-editors were also asked to describe the text they were editing, their work process and comment on the communication with the text’s author. The results exhibit the importance of normative but also communicative understanding in sub-editing non-literary texts.
Alumäe, Tanel, Ottokar Tilk, Asad Ullah 2018. Advanced rich transcription system for Estonian speech. – Human Language Technologies – the Baltic Perspective: Proceedings of the Eighth International Conference, Baltic HLT 2018. Frontiers in artificial intelligence and applications 307. Amsterdam: IOS Press, 1–8.
AMSS = Tiina Paet, Argo Mund, Tuuli Rehemaa 2013. Ametniku soovitussõnastik.
https://www.eki.ee/dict/ametnik/
Argus, Reili, Katrin Kern, Helika Mäekivi 2022. Keeletoimetamine. Kõrgkooliõpik. Tallinn: Tallinna Ülikooli Kirjastus.
Bisaillon, Jocelyne 2007a. Professional editing: Emphasis on the quality of a text and its communicative effectiveness. – Written Documents in the Workplace. (= Studies in Writing, Volume 21.) Ed. by Denis Alamargot, Patrice Terrier, Jean-Marie Cellier. Amsterdam, Oxford: Elsevier, 75–93.
https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004253254_007
Bisaillon, Jocelyne 2007b. Professional editing strategies used by six editors. – Written Communication 24 (4), 295–322.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088307305977
Creswell, John W. 2013. Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design: Choosing Among Five Approaches. Los Angeles etc.: Sage.
EKI teatmik = Toim. Peeter Päll. Koost. Peeter Päll, Maire Raadik, Ülle Allsalu, Katrin Hallik, Katre Kasemets, Margit Langemets, Tiina Leemets, Sirje Mäearu, Tiina Paet, Geda Paulsen, Lydia Risberg, Arvi Tavast, Mari Vaus 2022–. Eesti õigekeelsuskäsiraamat. Tallinn: Eesti Keele Instituut. https://eki.ee/teatmik/.
EKKR = Mati Erelt, Tiiu Erelt, Kristiina Ross 2020. Eesti keele käsiraamat. Uuendatud väljaanne. Eesti Keele Instituut. Tallinn: EKSA.
Erelt, Mati 2019. Lause õigekeelsus. Juhatused ja harjutused. 4., täiendatud tr. Tallinn: Emakeele Selts.
Ezzy, Douglas 2002. Qualitative Analysis: Practice and Innovation. London: Routledge.
Franklin, Bob, Martin Hamer, Mark Hanna, Marie Kinsey, John E. Richardson 2005. Key Concepts in Journalism Studies. London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: Sage Publications.
https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446215821
Hion, Mari 1971. Süntaktilised parandused kirjastuse „Valgus“ käsikirjades. Diplomitöö. Käsikiri Tartu ülikooli eesti keele osakonnas.
Jõemets, Triin 2022. Keeletoimetaja tööprotsess kümne keeletoimetaja hinnangu ja toimetamistöö näitel. Magistritöö. Tallinna Ülikool.
https://www.etera.ee/s/o7d9Ialg6y
Kasik, Reet 2002. Tekstianalüüs ja tekstihoole. – Keel ja Kirjandus 7, 457−463.
Kasik, Reet 2007. Sissejuhatus tekstiõpetusse. Tartu: Tartu Ülikooli Kirjastus.
Kerge, Krista 2003. Tekstilingvistika ja toimetamine. – Keel ja Kirjandus 4, 271−280.
Laflamme, Caroline 2009. Les modifications lexicales apportées par les réviseurs professionnels dans leur tâche de révision: du problème à la solution. Doktoritöö. Québec: Université Laval.
https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/thesescanada/vol2/QQLA/TC-QQLA-26291.pdf
Laherand, Meri-Liis 2008. Kvalitatiivne uurimisviis. Tallinn: Infotrükk.
Miller, Kai 2017. Keeletoimetaja roll ja töö sisu tõlke toimetamisel 20. sajandi teisel poolel. Magistritöö. Tallinna Ülikool. https://www.etera.ee/s/sw1BAWmWlH.
Mäekivi, Helika 2020. Keerukast klaariks. Kantseliit ja tema kaaslased. Tallinn: Ecoprint.
Prono, Judith, Martha DeLanoy, Robert Deupree, Jeffrey Skiby, Brian Thompson 1998. Developing new levels of edit. – 45. annual Society for Technical Communications (STC) conference, Anaheim, CA (United States), 17–21 May 1998.
https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc710077/
Risberg, Lydia, Habicht Külli 2021. EKI keelekool: loendipõhisusest kasutuspõhisuseni. – Postimees, 23. oktoober.
https://arvamus.postimees.ee/7367811/ak-eki-keelekool-loendipohisusest-kasutuspohisuseni
Solum, Kristina 2017. (Im)politeness between copy-editors and translators: Working from different islands? – FLEKS – Scandinavian Journal of Intercultural Theory and Practice 4 (1).
https://doi.org/10.7577/fleks.2438
Solum, Kristina 2018. The tacit influence of the copy-editor in literary translation. – Perspectives 26 (4), 543–559.
https://doi.org/10.1080/0907676X.2018.1458888
Taukar, Marju 2020. Algupäraste ja tõlgitud eestikeelsete tekstide sarnasused ja erinevused. Doktoritöö. Tallinna Ülikool.
https://www.digar.ee/viewer/en/nlib-digar:430720/366104/
Titscher, Stefan, Michael Meyer, Ruth Wodak, Eva Vetter 2000. Methods of Text and Discourse Analysis. London etc.: Sage Publications.
https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857024480
Uuspõld, Ellen, Argo Mund 2015. Õpetusi ja harjutusi algajale keeletoimetajale. Tartu: Tartu Ülikooli Kirjastus.
Vandendaele Astrid, Ludovic De Cuypere, Ellen Van Praet 2015. Beyond „trimming the fat“: The sub-editing stage of newswriting. – Written Communication 32 (4), 368–395.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0741088315599391
Weber, Jean Hollis 2010. Copyediting and beyond. – New Perspectives on Technical Editing. Ed. by Avon Murphy. Amityville, New York: Baywood Publishing Company, 85–105.
ÕS 2018 = Eesti õigekeelsussõnaraamat ÕS 2018. Toim. Maire Raadik. Koost. Tiiu Erelt, Tiina Leemets, Sirje Mäearu, Maire Raadik. Eesti Keele Instituut. Tallinn: EKSA.
