SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATION

CMNS 372-4

THE PUBLISHING PROCESS

Prerequisite:

60 credit hours.

This introductory course follows the book publishing process from the acquisition and editing of manuscripts through to promotion, marketing and distribution. As we deal with each topic, our discussion will move from basic concepts, precepts and axioms to specific case studies dealing with particular kinds of publishing companies (e.g. literary, regional and general trade) and particular types of books (e.g. children’s, genre, fiction and poetry). We will also examine Canadian publishing in the context of the international scene.
Working in groups that simulate publishing companies, students will evaluate titles and decide whether or not they would publish those books.
Format: The first class will be a General Introduction to the course. Subsequently, the course will be divided into five units (as indicated below). We will spend two weeks on each unit, and each unit will comprise the following elements: lecture, discussion of readings and the ongoing simulation exercise ( as the decision-to-publish process unfolds). Once the five units have been completed, the remaining classes will be devoted to final presentations of each group’s decisions.

Schedule:

UNIT I EDITORIAL
UNIT II DESIGN AND PRODUCTION
UNIT III MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION
UNIT IV PROMOTION
UNIT V THE BIG PICTURE: Canada and International Publishing:The Future of the Book.

Course Texts:

V. Frith, ed.,CMNS 372 Workbook and Selected Readings
[Note: The ‘Workbook’ section of the Workbook and Selected Readings will enable students to keep a record of publishing terms and basic concepts.]

Assessment:

Mid-term Essay 25%
Group Work 25%
Final Examination 50%
[Note: The Final Exam will be based on the material that the students have collected in their workbooks. Essay questions on the exam will be selected from a list that will be distributed at the end of the last class.]

The School expects that the grades awarded in this course will bear some reasonable relation to established university-wide practices with respect to both levels and distribution of grades. An addition, the School will follow Policy T10.02 with respect to “Intellectual Honesty”, and “Academic Discipline” (see the current Calendar, General Regulations Section).