Prior to that Thompson worked as general editor at the News Review newspaper in Santiago and at AMC Publishers in Taipei, Taiwan.
"Being a sub requires an extreme attention to detail, adherence to house rules in the form of a style sheet and extensive knowledge of the rules of good grammar and correct spelling," he advises aspiring sub-editors.
"On the other hand, though, a sub also needs to be creative, quick with catchy headlines and copy, and have an eye for the aesthetics of good layout and images," he says.
"When working online, a bit of IT knowledge doesn't go to waste either. So all in all, it's a left brain and right brain job."
A sub really needs to be a good all-rounder, he says, 'with sufficient knowledge of writing, editing, photography and design to judge pages as a whole.'
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