You will frequently be asked to assist with preparing the BYU devotional speeches for publication. Following is an outline of the speeches publication process, starting with the preliminary steps we take before putting red pen to paper. (Note that you will not be expected to perform many of these duties; this information is strictly for your information to help you get a handle on the broad picture.)
At the beginning of the semester—Kay Johnson, secretary to the vice president over our division, e-mails a list of upcoming devotional speakers. You will be given a copy of this list, but keep in mind that it’s confidential, especially in the case of General Authorities. For security purposes, General Authority speaking engagements at the university are not announced until a week before the speech. To be safe, only discuss Speeches-related information with those outside of P&G what has been made public knowledge by the Daily Universe or University Communications.
One month before the speech—We e-mail the speaker this notice:
Professor Smith:
At BYU Publications & Graphics we edit and format devotional talks for the BYU Speeches Web site (speeches.byu.edu).
As you plan for your devotional address to be given on January 1, 2000, please keep in mind that we will be checking all references against original, primary sources. Therefore, we may be asking you to provide photocopies of any references to which we do not have access. We will need a copy of the page on which the quote appears (showing the page number) and the title and publication date pages. This will help us tremendously as we prepare your talk for publication.
I will contact you again after you present your speech.
Thanks and best wishes!
(Please note that Karen handles all correspondence with General Authority and other high profile speakers—do not contact any such figures without express instruction from Karen or P&G management.)
Also, you may be asked to proofread the announcement printed in the Daily Universe (see right). These have high visibility so make sure to verify and re-verify all place names, titles, and facts.
The afternoon after the speech—A second e-mail is sent to the speaker:
Hi Brother Smith,
I wanted to check with you to make sure we prepare the correct version of your devotional talk for publication. I have the version you sent January 1 to speech@byu.edu. Do you want us to go ahead with that one, or do you have an updated version you'd like us to work with?
Also, some speakers deviate from their written talk during their speech and they like us to compare what they said to what they wrote so they can look at the differences and decide exactly what they would like published. Others just read it straight from the teleprompter, though, and don't need us to do any comparisons. Would you like to see a comparison?
Thanks for your time and let me know if I can help in any way.
If the speaker would like an mp3 comparison—We use tracked changes on the Word file we received via speech@byu.edu to mark any differences between the written text and the spoken delivery:
1. Check speeches.byu.edu to download the mp3 of the speech. If the mp3 does not appear after 48 hours days, inquire first with Natalie Miles to see if the problem lies with the Speeches site, and if that is not the case, inquire with Dennis Welker at BYU Broadcasting, the audio specialist who prepares the mp3 file.
2. While listening to the speech use tracked changes to mark any differences between the transcript and the audio delivery of the speeches. For example if the speaker said:
I am overjoyed to be here with you all here today.
But the transcript read:
I am happy too bee here with you all today.
You would edit it, using tracked changes, as such:
I am
At this stage do not fix any errors such as spelling, grammar, or missing punctuation—that will come later. Also, don’t ignore marking deviations that actually make the text more unclear or incorrect. Fixing those issues will also come later, and marking them gives the speaker the chance to decide how he or she would like to handle it.
When the mp3 comparison is ready—The speaker is sent the file with this message:
Hi Brother Smith,
Attached is the comparison we made between the original transcript and the verbal delivery. We marked the differences using tracked changes in Word so you'll be able to look at each difference individually and decide which way you'd like to go. Thanks for reviewing this—as soon as we receive a final manuscript from you, we'll verify the references, do a quick copyedit, typeset it, and then send you a proof for your review. Thanks again for your time and help!
(Please note that Karen prefers to send the speaker the mp3 comparison along with the final manuscript, not prior to editing, as is being illustrated here. As a general rule of thumb, we defer to the wishes of the speaker as to when they would like to do a review of the mp3 comparison.)
After the speaker reviews the mp3 comparison and prepares the final version of their text—The text is given to Natalie Miles to be prepared for editing. She removes all the codes and formatting so the text becomes plain text. She also removes any graphics, as the current Speeches policy does not allow the inclusion of graphics.
When Natalie is done preparing the text, it is ready to be edited. Read on for the next steps.
