Editing is an important foundation for all good creative writing, yet it can often be overlooked. This unit has a dual purpose: it will enable pupils to edit their own work and that of others, becoming aware of the importance and impact of editing. The unit will also illuminate the work of the AHRC-funded 'The Edinburgh Edition of Walter Scott's Poetry: Engaging New Audiences'. The project has the important role of bringing together Scott's complete poetical works, including several unpublished works, and editing them so that:
- Scott's notes are placed where he originally intended
- Errors that may have been introduced in the initial editing and publishing process are as close as possible to what Scott intended
- Full explanatory notes are present to help twenty-first century readers understand and enjoy the poems
Click here for lesson plan and appendixes in PDF. 
Click here for the lesson plan in Word.
Click here for Appendix A in Word.
There is some formatting in Appendix A that may not be readable by screen readers. Click here for the document with simple formatting.
Click here for Appendix B in Word.
There is some formatting in Appendix B that may not be readable by screen readers. Click here for the document with simple formatting.
If you are interested in viewing someone using a printing press, please click here . The press in this video is from the twentieth century and is therefore slightly different than the one Scott's printers used, but it shows you the letters, clips and frames. In the video a man takes small metal letters, no bigger than the tip of your thumb and places them backwards on a small metal clip. He then places the clips on a page-sized frame, covers the letters with ink, places paper on top of them, and then rolls a printing press over them, producing a printed page.
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This work was supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council Grant Number AH/V011111/1.
It is part of The Edinburgh Edition of Walter Scott's Poetry: Engaging New Audiences. It was developed by Dr Anna Fancett as part of the Walter Scott Research Centre at the University of Aberdeen with the support of Abbotsford, Scott's home in the Scottish Borders and The Association for Scottish Literature.
