Because we firmly believe that every manuscript needs at least two separate sets of professional eyes on it, our Copyediting & Proofreading service is a package deal that’s only available to clients we’ve collaborated with on critique.
If your manuscript has been professionally critiqued, we can feel confident that any weaknesses in the story or content are either intentional or so dear to your heart that no one could convince you to fix them. We can feel confident that you’re satisfied with the book’s style, tone, and structure, and are not interested in exploring the improvements that line editing could introduce.
Copyediting is a painstaking, time-consuming process that’s part slog through the mire, part sacred duty. It’s expensive, too. We want to make sure you’re investing wisely, so don’t be surprised if we encourage you to focus your efforts on earlier stages of the writing process instead of going straight for the final polish. Your writing will be all the stronger for it.
When we do elect to copyedit a manuscript for one of our clients, it is treated to two full editing passes by two seasoned editors. If our copyediting rates seem high, this is why. We believe it’s worth it.
Rule #1:
Don’t spend a dime on copyediting
until you know your story’s superb.
Too many aspiring authors spend a fortune on copyediting for manuscripts destined to get (at best) lukewarm reviews and generic rejection letters. This is the equivalent of rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. We want nothing to do with it.
Let’s define terms, then.
What is Copyediting?
Copyediting deals with language — not with content. It makes the language of a text correct and consistent while preserving the meaning and voice of the original.
A copy editor will correct mechanics like spelling, grammar, punctuation, syntax, and word usage, and impost a consistent style on a manuscript. (We default to the Chicago Manual of Style.) In the context of copyediting, style refers to the treatment of numbers and numerals, quotations, abbreviations, acronyms, italics, and so forth.
What is Proofreading?
Proofreading is a final editing pass to catch typos and errors the copyeditor may have missed. Some publishing houses or editors perform this check after a manuscript has been prepared for publication. At My Two Cents Editing, we call the second round of copyediting the proofreading pass.
Copyediting and Proofreading are not Line Editing
Line editing can be thought of as deep copyediting. Whereas copyediting aims to make a piece of writing clear, correct, and consistent, line editing goes deeper, seeking to improve flow, rhythm, style, and structure. This is where the magic happens and your writing improves.
We no longer provide line editing for full manuscripts, but we’d be delighted to teach you how to line edit your own work. Please check out our Line-Editing Sessions for more information.