Proofread QC - Scribe

Check the following to confirm the quality of documents supplied by a proofreader. This quality control checklist presumes that a proofread was conducted on a PDF file produced using the WFDW. This checklist also contains items that go beyond the scope of a standard QC to ensure quality in the publication.

Materials/Resources

Are all materials and resources present?

Proof pages in PDF format

Final copyedited manuscript with all queries resolved and tracked changes accepted (Word document)

The .sam exported from the InDesign typeset

Hub-processed Word document (.docx converted from .sam)

Style sheet (Word document)

List of additional specifications (grammar, spelling, style, typography)

List of queries in the manuscript and responses to them

List of proofreader corrections, queries, and comments (Word document)

Do the proofreader’s comments correspond accurately to the reference files?

Proofreader’s Corrections and Comments

Does reviewing the proofreader’s list of corrections reveal any proofreader errors?

Check for omissions of necessary aspects.

Check for typos.

Check for misinformation about text formatting or graphics placement.

Check for suggested edits to quotations that should remain unchanged.

Check for the introduction of non-Unicode characters.

Have any errors been noted as individual issues that must be treated globally?

Do any of the proofreader’s notes interfere with the author’s voice or intentions?

Do any of the proofreader’s notes contradict the style guide or publication instructions?

Does reviewing the proofreader’s list of corrections reveal any problematic sections of the manuscript that indicate a need for a more in-depth review?

Front Matter

Do elements such as the book title, author name, and publisher match between the half title, title, and copyright pages?

Is the Library of Congress Catalog-in-Publication Data present?

Does the Table of Contents (TOC) include all required sections?

The TOC should include TK materials like the index.

Do the TOC listings match the corresponding text?

TOC listings should match chapter titles and heads in the body for wording, italics or other character style variations, and capitalization.

Note: Publishing conventions can result in some valid mismatches, such as “List of Figures” in a TOC pairing with “Figures” as the chapter title in the book.

Do the TOC levels correspond with the header levels in the book?

PDF Rendering

Does scanning the proof pages reveal any errors or inconsistencies in the PDF’s rendering?

Does the general appearance of the PDF meet the book’s criteria?

Examples: color vs. grayscale; PDF size; gutter width

Typography Checks

For a complete list of possible typography checks, see the Typeset QC Checklist.

Does a scan for general typographical issues reveal any errors?

Check for stacks, widows, and orphans.

Check for bad line breaks.

Check for uneven white space.

Check for improperly centered or misaligned content.

Are elements of the same structure rendered consistently?

Graphic Elements

Are graphic elements placed consistently and following the rules for the design?

Examples: tables, graphs, charts, photographs, illustrations

Are graphic elements numbered or labeled sequentially and following the format as specified in the style guide?

Does each graphic element include the same text elements?

Examples: header, caption, credit

Do the text elements correspond correctly with the graphic elements?

Are columns equally or appropriately spaced in tables?

Are the lines and text content of graphs clean and legible?

Is the image quality of photos acceptable?

Pagination

Do the pages appear in the proper order?

Do the pages use the proper numerals format (arabic or roman)?

Standard Pagination Rules: Verso pages should use even numbers. Recto pages should use odd numbers. Roman numerals are used for front matter sections. Arabic numerals are used for body pages. Some publications may use different or additional numbering systems for specialized sections, most commonly in text books or books with image galleries.

Running Heads

Do all running heads match the corresponding chapter title, part title, or author name, or otherwise meet the criteria for the book?

Are italics or other character styles appearing correctly in running heads?

Bibliography/References, Notes, and Glossaries

Are references formatted consistently and following the rules of the style guide?

Examples: reference paragraphs and parenthetical citations

Are footnotes and endnotes formatted consistently and following the rules of the style guide?

Do the footnote/endnote references in the body text correspond with the footnote/endnote numbers and paragraphs?

If blind endnotes, have key terms or phrases been identified, and do they match between the body and the note paragraphs?

Are all glossary paragraphs formatted consistently, and do the glossary terms in the body match the terms in the glossary paragraphs?

Terms

Does reviewing the items noted by the proofreader reveal any errors or inconsistencies for terms?

Have key terms and frequently used terms been spelled consistently and accurately?

Examples: proper nouns and common terms in various forms

Spelling and Grammar

Does reviewing the items noted by the proofreader reveal any spelling or grammatical errors introduced by the proofreader?

Check foreign language terms and specialized terminology.

Does running spell check of the .sam file reveal additional errors in text?

If time allows, does running a grammar check reveal additional errors in text?

Queries and Instructions

Have all queries been resolved?

Do all queries or instructions provide complete information to facilitate the resolution of the issue?

Index

Does a spot check of the index reveal any errors?

Do the page locators correspond with the appropriate pages?

Do the terms between the index and the body text match in spelling and rendering?

Do “(continued)” entries appear correctly for index terms that cross from a recto page to a verso page?

Alt Text

Is alt text present and accurate?

Text Checks

Convert the file to .sam in the Digital Hub.

Do the file stats reveal any errors?

Do the searches from the Regular Expressions Resource reveal any errors?