Everyone wonders what it takes to put together a SWE magazine every two months. This article is intended to help explain the process and the lead times required to make it all happen. It also should give you an appreciation for the unique nature of the Editorial Board and the special skills of our Editor, Anne Perusek. With topics selected, the EB decides who might write an article or be an expert on the subject. Then EB members solicit articles and await or encourage their delivery.
Articles are due four months in advance of the magazine's first issue month.
The EB Chair collects articles for a given issue and prepares them for distribution to and review by EB members. Minor changes to an article may be handled at the editor's discretion, but more substantial changes require additional interactions between the editor and the author. This is done while she is considering graphics to highlight articles and cover art work or photos. In the end all of these separate pieces must be arranged into the multiple pages of the magazine - in the format required by the publisher. She does this through skillful use of her desktop publishing software.