After self-editing, authors can opt to go through several levels of editing using a professional editor:
- Developmental editing
- Line editing
- Copyediting
- Proofreading
Are these the only editorial processes that writers need?
No. For instance, an author with a manuscript might look to get a beta read or manuscript evaluation as well prior to a developmental edit. And quite frankly, not every author chooses or needs to go through all the levels. It is my recommendation that a copyedit and proofread should always be completed and that these services should be done by two different editors or done with significant time in between stages.
Do all freelance editors offer all these services?
Some do, and some don’t. Some only offer a single service. Either way is fine—neither is a red flag. It’s just an individual editor’s business plan of what works for their business.
Are these definitions standard across the industry?
Unfortunately, no. When working with an editor, it’s a good idea to get a clear cut definition from the editor. If you are seeking a line edit or copyedit for a manuscript, it’s appropriate to ask for a sample edit: Some editors charge for them, and the sample edit is a separate charge. Others will charge for it, then apply the price of the sample to the edit. And others offer complimentary sample edits. All three circumstances are normal in the industry.
Developmental Editing
A developmental edit, also known as a dev edit or DE, looks at the big picture of your work. It is a macro look at your piece. You’ll need to be open to making a lot of changes here. For instance, in fiction, this is where you and your editor will look at revising your plot; adding, reordering, or removing whole scenes or even chapters; addressing any major head-hopping issues; deciding whether characters work and make sense; and figuring out whether your content fits the genre you are working in.
After a developmental edit, you will not likely have a publication-ready piece. Expect awkward wording, typos, and grammatical errors to be mostly untouched. Some dev editors may make some small tweaks, but a typical developmental editor leaves these details for later editing stages.
Line Editing
A line edit focuses on flow and strengthening readability. Some authors are comfortable with their overall plot, pacing, and characterization, so they will jump right to line editing or even copyediting and skip the developmental edit stage.
With line editing you can expect your editor to keep and eye out for sentence level issues, like flow and readability, repetition, clarity and ambiguity, word choice, wordiness and awkward phrasing, and consistent tone and voice. Line editing is not rewriting or ghost writing—a writer’s voice, at minimum, should remain intact or, better, enhanced.
When it comes to fiction, some editors like me also look for a consistent point of view by pointing out minor issues of head-hopping, noting minor plot inconsistencies (if the character was outside, how are they suddenly getting a glass of water from the kitchen in the next sentence?), noting and advising on points of telling versus showing, and helping with dialogue tags and actions beats.
Copyediting
Often after a developmental edit comes a line edit, then a copyedit (also known as a copy edit or CE). Some editors combine line editing and copyediting into one when performing a heavier edit.
When getting back a copyedit, expect your editor to make edits in regards to consistency in style (like Chicago or AP), hyphenation, spelling, grammar, punctuation, capitalization, syntax, and number formatting.
Proofreading
If you have had your work copyedited, it’s time for a proofread. Proofreading is your last chance to catch any egregious errors.
This level of editing keeps an eye out for a lot of the same issues as in copyediting. However, this check should involve very few corrections to the text. This check cleans up more of the errors missed in copyediting (since editors are human too!) as well as errors introduced in the previous steps.
Larger issues such as plot inconsistencies, head-hopping, and the like are not intended to be addressed at this level of editing.
In terms of printed material or material set in a pdf, proofreaders look at page breaks; headers and footers; page numbers; bad breaks; and widows and orphans.
How to Know What Level of Editing to Pick?
Not every manuscript needs every level of editing. Some authors are comfortable with their plot, pacing, and characterization and can move directly to line editing. Others may need a developmental edit before moving on to the sentence-level work.
If your manuscript has already been through the editing process and you’re wondering what comes next, feel free to reach out. I’m happy to help you determine which level of editing makes the most sense for your work.