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Publishing and Production

Module description

How are books made? And how do working practices shift as books move through different mediums – from those in paper we hold in our hands to those we listen to through ear buds or read via screens? What decisions inform the cover and typographical design of books, in print and across different digital platforms? What organisations comprise the publishing industry: an ecology of interconnected businesses centred on the production of book-related content? Through this module you will engage critically with these questions, while also gaining practical experience of producing a physical and digital publication (connected to EASM176), using industry standard software for typesetting and cover design. Practice-based learning is enriched by theoretical and archival perspectives that explore business models, environmental sustainability, digital platforms, and book history.      

Module aims - intentions of the module

Through a series of assigned readings, practical and archival workshops, guest lectures and a field trip, this module will build a critical understanding of production in the publishing industry. Through the course, you will learn how to typeset and design a book (developed editorially in EASM176), experiencing production on a micro level. You will also consider production in terms of the macro industry contexts that manage the circulation of published creative content, what we might call the ‘ecology’ of the publishing industry.  

By producing a publication, you will build a skill set in industry standard software (Adobe InDesign) that will be informed by critical approaches to typography and understanding of book cover design history. You will explore digital publishing and the ‘platformization’ of the industry, analysing how content is repurposed in different formats, including audiobooks and EPUBs, and will have opportunities to produce creative content in varied mediums.

You will learn project management and team-working skills connected to the production of books, gaining critical insight into raw materials and environmental sustainability, and how to approach working with printers and distributors. You will also learn how the business of publishing informs production decisions, examining different business models and sizes, considering how publishing industries interconnect, socially, economically, culturally, and ecologically.    

This module has been designed to develop fundamental skills for working in the publishing sector today. It will stimulate entrepreneurial agency while providing solid grounding in the practical aspects of production applicable to a wide range of different publishing contexts.    

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate advanced knowledge of and aptitude in core skills and practices associated with production management roles in the contemporary publishing industry, including principles of design, formats, materials and distribution.
• 2. Gain technical knowledge of industry standard design software (Adobe InDesign) to produce books and other forms of creative content
• 3. Demonstrate a conceptual and strategic understanding of publishing as a dynamic and evolving industry and the impact of this on production processes.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Analyse the strategies, inequalities, strengths, and weaknesses of specific publishing initiatives.
• 5. Analyse the history of book design and production informed by historical and archival approaches
• 6. Demonstrate understanding of how publishing industry ecologies are constrained and enabled by different factors including technology, environmental and sustainability issues, funding and business size.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Gain experience of participating in and managing a complex project involving different timeframes and workflows
• 8. Acquire experience in building relationships and partnerships with a range of individuals and organisations
• 9. Work in teams in a responsive and collegiate manner

Syllabus plan

Although the module’s content might vary from year to year, practical publishing work will be enriched by archival sources alongside readings on conditions that inform contemporary publishing. The module will consistently cover the following:

• Materials and Book Production
• Histories of Book Design
• Business models and publishing industry ecologies
• InDesign – typesetting and cover design
• Audio book production and podcasts
• Digital publishing and platforms
• Environmental sustainability
• Communicating and building relationships with printers and distributors
• Project management and decision making

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 50%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of referral will be capped at 50%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Anton, Kelly Kordes. Adobe InDesign Classroom in a Book (2021)
• Baines, Phil. Penguin by Design: A Cover Story 1935-2005. (2005)
• Bhaskar, Michael. Curation: The Power of Selection in a World of Excess. (2017)
• Bullock, Adrian. Book Production. (2012)
• Bullock, Adrian and Walsh, Meredith. The Green Design and Print Production Handbook. (2013)
• Genette, Gerard. Paratexts: Thresholds of Interpretation (1997)
• Hall, Frania. The Business of Digital Publishing (2013)
• Hayles, N. Katherine. Postprint: Books and Becoming Computational (2020)
• Hendel, Richard. Aspects of Contemporary Book Design (2013)
• Lupton, Ellen. Thinking with Type, 2nd ed. (2010)
• Levy, M; Mole, T. (eds.) The Broadview Reader in Book History. (2014)
• Magadán-Díaz, M., Rivas-García, J.I. Environmental Sustainability and Business Models in the Spanish Publishing Industry. Pub Res Q 37, 546–557 (2021).
• Nash, A., Squires, C. and Willison, I. (eds.) The Cambridge History of the Book in Britain: Vol 7 The Twentieth Century and Beyond (2019)
• D-M Withers (2021) Honno: The Welsh Women’s Press and the Cultural Ecology of the Welsh Publishing Industry, c. 1950s to the Present, Women: a cultural review, 32:3-4, 354-371, DOI: 10.1080/09574042.2021.1973726

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• Squires, C., Markou, H. An Ecosystem Model of Small and Medium Sized Enterprises Publisher ‘Tiers’: Publisher Size, Sustainability and Cultural Policy. Pub Res Q 37, 420–438 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12109-021-09811-y
• Spjeldnæs, K. Platformization and Publishing: Changes in Literary Publishing. Pub Res Q 38, 782–794 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12109-022-09912-2
• Phillips, A. Does the Book Have a Future?. In A Companion to the History of the Book (eds S. Eliot and J. Rose) (2019). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119018193.ch56
• The Bookseller – available through Library
• Publisher’s Weekly – available through Library
• Publisher’s Association Website - https://www.publishers.org.uk/
• Publishing Research Quarterly
• Logos
• Glossary of Book Publishing Terms - A–Z Glossary of Book Publishing terms (harpercollins.co.uk)

Key words search

Publishing, Book Production, Materiality, Design, Business Models, Digital Publishing and Platforms, Sustainability, Project Management