What are those squiggles?

They’re traditional proof correction marks used by typesetters and editors, normally at a document’s proofing stage – after the drafting but before final print.

Proof correction marks show where changes need to be made to copy, such as the insertion or deletion of a word or phrase, where a new paragraph needs to start, or where a space needs to be inserted before or after a word.

Traditionally, the proofing stage was when a document’s galley proofs came back from the typesetter. The galley proofs were the ‘proof’ of what the document would look like when printed and the last opportunity to correct mistakes.

Because typesetters worked manually until the 1980s, literally using metal blocks of type to set out a document, it was difficult for extra spaces to be added, or words to be transposed, or two paragraphs joined.

Today with track-changes and spelling and grammar tools at our fingertips we’re all typesetters and proof readers.  But users beware…