The Editing Pencil

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In business, clear and effective communication is essential. Every word counts. Your business documents—reports, online materials, and corporate communications—need to be as clear  and precise as possible. Mistakes can affect your reputation and bottom line. That's where professional editing can help.

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What can professional editing do for you?

An editor can:

• Check for consistency and clarity so you won’t confuse your readers with ill-defined terms or inconsistent spelling.

• Make sure all figures and tables are included and located where they should be.

• Point out problematic usage, especially when talking about gender, race, and ability/disability.

• Make you sound polished and professional!

• Catch embarrassing typos before they make it into print or the web.

 

 

 

Here are the types of editors and what they do.

 

A developmental editor helps the author in developing and writing the content, determining how to present it, and identifying what kinds of documentation and/or permissions may be necessary for publication. The developmental editor also advises the author regarding rewriting specific sections or reorganizing the text.

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The substantive editor reviews the manuscript’s organizational structure and presentation. In-house editors, and/or the author’s colleagues or peers may also handle this type of editing and review. Sometimes, the same person may provide both developmental and substantive editing.

 

The copy editor’s job begins after the manuscript is finished and has been reviewed by the developmental editor and other colleagues or peers. The copy editor, sometimes called a line editor, handles the mechanics of editing: grammar, spelling, punctuation, and the use of a consistent style.

 

The copy editor verifies that you’ve defined any unusual terms or acronyms, ensures all dashes and hyphens are used correctly, and that all figures, tables, media, graphics, etc. are included and formatted consistently.

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Depending on the project, the copy editor may also perform other services as requested, such as formatting and/or verifying references, checking URLs, and identifying biased language.

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The proofreader is the final set of eyes before the document is published. The proofreader ensures that all revisions have been done, are correct, and that no additional errors have been introduced into the text. The proofreader also checks for things such as hyphenation at the ends of lines, missed spelling errors, the consistent use of typefaces and fonts, the correct locations of tables and illustrations, paragraph spacing, and text alignment, etc.

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What kind of editor do you need? Let's talk about how I can help you. Visit the Services page or email me.
 

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