TYPES OF EDITING
Copyediting
Copyediting, commonly called line editing, is a light form of editing that applies a professional polish to a book by being a grammar-only editing process. The editor reviews your work, fixing any mechanical errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
Some professionals divide copyediting and line editing into two separate edits, copyediting being the lighter, grammar-only edit, and line editing being a more intense look at each sentence’s meaning. Always clarify with your editor what is included in his or her copyedit to be sure.
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Developmental Editing
The developmental editor looks deeply at the organization and strength of a book on a page-by-page basis. This type of editing offers specific suggestions and edits to improve the story’s structure, pacing and characterization. It is thought of as a very comprehensive and iterative process. The editor considers everything from pacing to characters, point of view, tense, plot, subplots, and dialogue. Weak links are exposed and questioned. The editor scrutinizes order, flow, and consistency. The editor will ask questions such as: Is this the right number of chapters? Are the chapters and paragraphs in the right order? Are there any places in the book where the pacing lags? Is there a hole in the information or story presented? Are the characters likable? Developmental editing considers all the aspects of a manuscript that make the book readable and enjoyable. It is extensive editing and can be time consuming but is worth the investment if you are serious about succeeding as an author.
Editorial Assessment
An editorial assessment provides a high-level overview of a manuscript's strengths and weaknesses, focusing on big-picture issues like plot, character development, and overall story structure. It's a report-style critique offering recommendations for improvement. Developmental editing, on the other hand, involves a more in-depth, page-by-page analysis, offering specific suggestions and edits to improve the story's structure, pacing, and characterization. It can be thought of as a more comprehensive and iterative process, while the editorial assessment is a more focused, one-time evaluation. In an editorial assessment, the editor does not actually offer edits, but rather a written report to the author of what they, the editor, feels needs to be addressed to make the book an enjoyable or educational read.
Line Editing
Line editing takes a more intense look at each sentence’s meaning. It’s a unique edit that falls between copyediting and developmental editing in intensity. In line editing, the editor looks at your book line by line and analyzes each sentence. The editor considers word choice and the power and meaning of a sentence. The editor considers syntax and whether a sentence needs to be trimmed or tightened. Line editing helps to make your prose sing.
Mechanical Editing
Mechanical editing refers to the application of a particular style, such as The Chicago Manual of Style or Associated Press (AP) Style. The editor looks at punctuation, capitalization, spelling, abbreviations, and any other style rules. Mechanical editing is sometimes included in copyediting.
Proofreading
Proofreading involves looking at the text closely, line by line, to spot any typos and issues with consistency and correct them. It does not involve any other editorial analysis (i.e. sentence structure, storyline development, verb/noun agreement, etc.)
Substantive Editing
Substantive editing considers a work’s organization and presentation. It involves tightening and clarifying at a chapter, scene, paragraph, and sentence level. It focuses exclusively on the actual prose of a book.