Proofreading
What is a proofread?
A proofread happens once a manuscript has already been copy-edited. A proofreader aims to catch any errors or typos that may have been introduce into the manuscript during either the copy-edit or during the revisions after.
When should I hire a proofreader?Have you sent your story to a copy editor and completed all of the necessary revisions?
If the answer is yes, your story is ready for proofreading.
If the answer is no, the story must be copy-edited before it’s ready for proofreading.
How much does it cost and how long does it take?
Visit the costs of editing page to see time and cost estimates for an 80,000 word novel.
Here's what you get:
What’s covered?
Detail-oriented topics, such as:
What’s not covered?
Big-picture issues or craft of writing issues, such as:
Here’s what I do:
A proofread happens once a manuscript has already been copy-edited. A proofreader aims to catch any errors or typos that may have been introduce into the manuscript during either the copy-edit or during the revisions after.
When should I hire a proofreader?Have you sent your story to a copy editor and completed all of the necessary revisions?
If the answer is yes, your story is ready for proofreading.
If the answer is no, the story must be copy-edited before it’s ready for proofreading.
How much does it cost and how long does it take?
Visit the costs of editing page to see time and cost estimates for an 80,000 word novel.
Here's what you get:
- One round of proofreading.
- Silent (untracked) changes to remove extra spaces, unnecessary hard returns, or wonky formatting.
- In-text edits using Track Changes within the manuscript to correct typos and errors.
- A style sheet showing all of the decisions made about capitalization, spelling, hyphenation etc.
What’s covered?
Detail-oriented topics, such as:
- grammar,
- punctuation,
- spelling and hyphenation,
- word choice,
- ensuring that the text adheres to a style guide, either The Chicago Manual of Style, or Oxford/New Hart’s Rules.
What’s not covered?
Big-picture issues or craft of writing issues, such as:
- plot and structure,
- head hopping,
- point of view,
- narration,
- character development (arcs, motivation, and descriptions),
- ineffective dialogue,
- info-dumping,
- showing and telling,
- setting and description.
Here’s what I do:
- First, I check the manuscript for decisions about capitalization, spelling, hyphenation, names, dates, places etc.
- I create a style sheet to refer to these decisions as I edit. (This helps me make sure that Mary isn’t ever Marry.)
- Next, I read the manuscript. I look for grammatical errors, typos, strange formatting, remaining Tracked Changes,
- I ensure consistency and accuracy of things such as the table of contents, page numbers, and headers or footers.
- If any questions arise, I use comments to point out areas that might need revision.
- I send a clean manuscript and the style sheet to the author who accepts the final changes and corrects any text with a comment or question.
- I answer any questions that come up in the process.
- Your book is ready to be published!