Get premium membership and access questions with answers, video lessons as well as revision papers.
- Substantive editing - Developmental (substantive) editing is about the big picture. This is where you’ll want to start if you’re new to editing, that way you won’t waste time fine-tuning sections that may not make it into the final draft. Developmental editing can help you fix things like these: question
In developmental editing the editor works with the author of the story right from the beginning, helping the author develop the concept from start to finish. Usually associated with books and screenwriting but certainly not limited to those.
Rewrite– rewriting editing has to do with fixing an existing manuscript. Rewriting is just that and it can be as difficult or even more challenging than starting from scratch. Like copyediting, rewriting is a specialized skill. Often good re-writers are not good copyeditors and vice versa – the skills are distinct.
Copyediting or copy editing – both spellings are correct. This is usually the final editing a manuscript goes through before it’s published. It requires someone who has patience, a great eye for detail and a thorough understanding of both the rules of grammar and of common usage, plus a good sense of when to use them. Also called line editing. Not so by the way, the term publishing used to refer to print; now it includes print and extends to the huge variety of way written things show up online. Copy editing is about grammar, punctuation, and proper word usage.
- Proofreading. similar to copyediting. The term comes from the idea of ‘proving’ or correcting a manuscript. Normally associated more with shorter manuscripts. Also refers to proofreader’s marks recognized by most print publishers. Proofreading marks are not used as much today because so much editing happens on the computer without paper. Proofreading is the final step in the editing process and results in the final don’t- touch-it-again draft. This is where you catch spelling mistakes, typos, missing words, isolated punctuation errors, and the like. It’s the step that requires the most attention to detail, so if you’re doing it on your own work, it’s often essential to set the manuscript aside for a period of time so you can approach it with fresh eyes. Another helpful trick is to read your work aloud at a slow, measured pace.
NatalieR answered the question on June 15, 2022 at 12:27