Outline

Overview

Students will acquire skills in manuscript assessment, writing reader's reports, structural editing and managing the dynamics of author/publisher and agent/publisher relationships, as well as scheduling, planning and budgeting. They will develop an understanding of publishing strategy and insight into commissioning and acquisitions.

Unit details and rules

Academic unit	Media and Communications
Credit points	6
Prerequisites ?	MECO6916
Corequisites ?	None
Prohibitions ?	None
Assumed knowledge ?	None
Available to study abroad and exchange students	Yes

Teaching staff

Coordinator	Rodney Morrison, rodney.morrison@sydney.edu.au

Type	Description	Weight	Due	Length
Assignment	Structural editorial report	25%	Week 07 Due date: 12 Oct 2020 at 23:59	1250 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Reader's report	35%	Week 10 Due date: 02 Nov 2020 at 23:59	1500 words
Outcomes assessed:
Assignment	Publishing proposal	25%	Week 11 Due date: 09 Nov 2020 at 23:59	1250 words
Outcomes assessed:
Presentation	Pitch	15%	Week 12 Due date: 16 Nov 2020 at 18:00	5 minutes (500wd equiv)
Outcomes assessed:

Assessment summary

Pitch: Students are required to prepare and deliver an oral publishing proposal for a book published in the past decade they have read and enjoyed at a mock acquisitions meeting.
Structural editorial report: Students are required to read the supplied manuscript and write a sructural editorial report using the supplied template.
Reader’s report: Students are required to read the supplied manuscript and write a reader’s report using the supplied template.
Publishing proposal: Students are required to prepare a corresponding written proposal for the book published in the past decade they read and enjoyed and that they pitched at a mock acquisitions meeting.

Detailed information for each assessment can be found on Canvas.

Assessment criteria

The University awards common result grades, set out in the Coursework Policy 2014 (Schedule 1).

As a general guide, a high distinction indicates work of an exceptional standard, a distinction a very high standard, a credit a good standard, and a pass an acceptable standard.

Result name	Mark range	Description
High distinction	85 - 100
Distinction	75 - 84
Credit	65 - 74
Pass	50 - 64
Fail	0 - 49	When you don’t meet the learning outcomes of the unit to a satisfactory standard.

For more information see guide to grades.

Late submission

In accordance with University policy, these penalties apply when written work is submitted after 11:59pm on the due date:

Deduction of 5% of the maximum mark for each calendar day after the due date.
After ten calendar days late, a mark of zero will be awarded.

Academic integrity

The Current Student website provides information on academic integrity and the resources available to all students. The University expects students and staff to act ethically and honestly and will treat all allegations of academic integrity breaches seriously.

We use similarity detection software to detect potential instances of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breach. If such matches indicate evidence of plagiarism or other forms of academic integrity breaches, your teacher is required to report your work for further investigation.

Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) and automated writing tools

You may only use generative AI and automated writing tools in assessment tasks if you are permitted to by your unit coordinator. If you do use these tools, you must acknowledge this in your work, either in a footnote or an acknowledgement section. The assessment instructions or unit outline will give guidance of the types of tools that are permitted and how the tools should be used.

Your final submitted work must be your own, original work. You must acknowledge any use of generative AI tools that have been used in the assessment, and any material that forms part of your submission must be appropriately referenced. For guidance on how to acknowledge the use of AI, please refer to the AI in Education Canvas site.

The unapproved use of these tools or unacknowledged use will be considered a breach of the Academic Integrity Policy and penalties may apply.

Studiosity is permitted unless otherwise indicated by the unit coordinator. The use of this service must be acknowledged in your submission as detailed on the Learning Hub’s Canvas page.

Outside assessment tasks, generative AI tools may be used to support your learning. The AI in Education Canvas site contains a number of productive ways that students are using AI to improve their learning.

Learning support

Simple extensions

If you encounter a problem submitting your work on time, you may be able to apply for an extension of five calendar days through a simple extension.  The application process will be different depending on the type of assessment and extensions cannot be granted for some assessment types like exams.

Special consideration

If exceptional circumstances mean you can’t complete an assessment, you need consideration for a longer period of time, or if you have essential commitments which impact your performance in an assessment, you may be eligible for special consideration or special arrangements.

Special consideration applications will not be affected by a simple extension application.

Using AI responsibly

Co-created with students, AI in Education includes lots of helpful examples of how students use generative AI tools to support their learning. It explains how generative AI works, the different tools available and how to use them responsibly and productively.

Weekly schedule

WK	Topic	Learning activity
Week 01	Publishing strategy and list development overview	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 02	Commissioning and acquisitions overview	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 03	Working with agents	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 04	Working with authors	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 05	Manuscript assessment and reader's reports	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 06	Manuscript development	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 07	Structural editing of fiction	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 08	Structural editing of non-fiction	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 09	Editing children’s and young adult manuscripts	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 10	Working with anthologies and edited collections	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 11	Legal and ethical issues in publishing	Seminar (3 hr)
Week 12	Diversity and inclusion in publishing	Seminar (3 hr)

Attendance and class requirements

Attendance: According to Faculty Board Resolutions, students in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences are expected to attend 90% of their classes. If you attend less than 50% of classes, regardless of the reasons, you may be referred to the Examiner’s Board. The Examiner’s Board will decide whether you should pass or fail the unit of study if your attendance falls below this threshold.
Lecture recording: Most lectures (in recording-equipped venues) will be recorded and may be made available to students on the LMS. However, you should not rely on lecture recording to substitute your classroom learning experience.
Preparation: Students should commit to spend approximately three hours’ preparation time (reading, studying, homework, essays, etc.) for every hour of scheduled instruction.

Study commitment

Typically, there is a minimum expectation of 1.5-2 hours of student effort per week per credit point for units of study offered over a full semester. For a 6 credit point unit, this equates to roughly 120-150 hours of student effort in total.

Required readings

The prescribed readings for this unit can be accessed through the Library eReserve, while the recommended weekly seminar readings are available on Canvas.

Prescribed readings:

Australian Government Publishing Service, Style Manual for Authors, Editors and Printers, Wiley, 2011
Elizabeth Flann, Beryl Hill, Lan Wang, The Australian Editing Handbook (Third Edition), Wiley, 2014

Recommended readings:

Clémence Michallon, ‘So You Want to be A Novelist?’, The Independent, 2 June 2019
Jonathan Lee, ‘Elizabeth Schmitz: Editing Under the Radar’, Guernica, 18 February 2014
Craig Lambert, ‘Andrew Wylie: Fifteen Percent of Immortality’, Harvard Magazine, July–August 2010
Joshua Robertson, ‘Mark Gottlieb of Trident Media Group’, The Book Tavern, 25 January 2019
Julian Thumm, ‘Sophie Hamley: the Business of Writing’, The Australian Writer’s Marketplace, 4 October 2012
George RR Martin, ‘Editors: the Writer’s Natural Enemy’, Coastcon II, 10 March 1979
J.D. McClatchy, ‘Shirley Hazzard: the Art of Fiction’, The Paris Review, Spring 2005
Blake Morrison, ‘Black Day for the Blue Pencil’, The Observer, 6 August 2005
Barry Harbaugh, ‘Yes, Book Editors Edit’, The New Yorker, 12 March 2014
Gary Kamiya, ‘Let Us Now Praise Editors’, Salon, 24 July 2007
Adolfo Aranjuez, ‘Death of the Editor’, Overland, 26 July 2017
Mandy Brett, ‘Stet by me: Thoughts on Editing Fiction’, Meanjin, Autumn 2011
Charlotte Wood, ‘I have had my vision’, Sydney Review of Books, 16 May 2014
Hilton Als, ‘Joan Didion: the Art of Non-fiction’, The Paris Review, Spring 2006
Sinead Gleeson, ‘Kill Your Darlings: the Importance of Editing’, The Irish Times, 28 July 2014
Lauren Rohrig, ‘Publishing Profiles: Megan Tingley’, YPG, 6 June 2013
Simon Garfield, ‘Granta: from Student Rag to Literary Riches’, The Guardian, 30 December 2007
Margot Kahn, ‘How and why to edit an anthology: addressing the naysayers’, janefriedman.com, 27 November 2017
Andrew Lipstein, ‘And we oiled each other up and ran naked in the dust of Sparta: an interview with Richard Nash’, Os-1x, 18 February 2015
Lianne Tan, ‘Lessons in Publishing Law’, Legal Vision, 31 March 2017
‘Whose Life Is It Anyway? Novelists Have Their Say On Cultural Appropriation’, The Guardian, 1 October 2016

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are what students know, understand and are able to do on completion of a unit of study. They are aligned with the University's graduate qualities and are assessed as part of the curriculum.

Outcomes
Graduate qualities

At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:

LO1. understand how books are commissioned and acquired and the impact of editorial decisions on publishing budgets and schedules
LO2. assess market conditions and other external considerations with regard to the viability of publishing projects
LO3. develop structural editorial skills in children's books, fiction books and non-fiction books
LO4. establish and maintain constructive relationships with agents
LO5. establish and maintain constructive relationships with authors
LO6. assess manuscripts and develop skills in writing reader’s reports and structural editorial reports
LO7. understand the principles of copyright, permissions, libel and defamation and cultural appropriation
LO8. prepare and deliver a publishing proposal for a mock acquisitions meeting including a basic P&L
LO9. understand diversity principles with regard to publishing acquisitions

Graduate qualities

The graduate qualities are the qualities and skills that all University of Sydney graduates must demonstrate on successful completion of an award course. As a future Sydney graduate, the set of qualities have been designed to equip you for the contemporary world.

GQ1	Depth of disciplinary expertise Deep disciplinary expertise is the ability to integrate and rigorously apply knowledge, understanding and skills of a recognised discipline defined by scholarly activity, as well as familiarity with evolving practice of the discipline.
GQ2	Critical thinking and problem solving Critical thinking and problem solving are the questioning of ideas, evidence and assumptions in order to propose and evaluate hypotheses or alternative arguments before formulating a conclusion or a solution to an identified problem.
GQ3	Oral and written communication Effective communication, in both oral and written form, is the clear exchange of meaning in a manner that is appropriate to audience and context.
GQ4	Information and digital literacy Information and digital literacy is the ability to locate, interpret, evaluate, manage, adapt, integrate, create and convey information using appropriate resources, tools and strategies.
GQ5	Inventiveness Generating novel ideas and solutions.
GQ6	Cultural competence Cultural Competence is the ability to actively, ethically, respectfully, and successfully engage across and between cultures. In the Australian context, this includes and celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures, knowledge systems, and a mature understanding of contemporary issues.
GQ7	Interdisciplinary effectiveness Interdisciplinary effectiveness is the integration and synthesis of multiple viewpoints and practices, working effectively across disciplinary boundaries.
GQ8	Integrated professional, ethical, and personal identity An integrated professional, ethical and personal identity is understanding the interaction between one’s personal and professional selves in an ethical context.
GQ9	Influence Engaging others in a process, idea or vision.

Outcome map

Learning outcomes	Graduate qualities
Learning outcomes

Responding to student feedback

This section outlines changes made to this unit following staff and student reviews.

Deletion of crossover content including publishing contracts, supplier management; addition of new diversity and inclusion content.

Disclaimer

The University reserves the right to amend units of study or no longer offer certain units, including where there are low enrolment numbers.

To help you understand common terms that we use at the University, we offer an online glossary.

Current students

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links

MECO6944: Manuscript Acquisition and Development

Semester 2, 2020 [Normal day] - Camperdown/Darlington, Sydney

Overview

Overview

Unit details and rules

Teaching staff

Assessment

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment criteria

Late submission

Academic integrity

Learning support

Learning support

Simple extensions

Special consideration

Using AI responsibly

Weekly schedule

Weekly schedule

Attendance and class requirements

Study commitment

Required readings

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes

Graduate qualities

Outcome map

Responding to student feedback

Responding to student feedback

Disclaimer

On this page

Useful links