Once your book’s structure and syntax are settled, it’s time to clean up typos, continuity errors, and other errors that can distract your reader from your work. Copyediting and proofreading address questions like these:
- Is this spelled correctly?
- Is this the word the author meant to use?
- Should this be hyphenated or not? Should this be capitalized or not?
- Is this too repetitive?
- Does the book maintain continuity?
- Does this fact need to be checked?
- Is this visually styled appropriately?
Copyediting and proofreading are both polishing edits—they’re what you do when your larger edits are complete (and in the case of proofreading, when your book is laid out for publication). These types of editing aim to clear away hiccups that will distract readers from your story and characters.
—Brian McClellan, author of the Powder Mage series
Looseleaf usually doesn’t do copyedits on manuscripts that authors submit for traditional publication (most agents and publishers don’t expect your book to be perfect, and your publisher should pay for copyediting). Looseleaf only does proofreading on books that have already been copyedited at a professional level and laid out for publication.
What Each Edit Includes
Copyediting happens before the book is laid out for publication and proofreading happens after. Because of this, proofreading is more restrained—only truly essential changes are recommended.
Copyediting
Copyediting includes one round of edits to ensure the manuscript adheres to industry standards for publishing (according to The Chicago Manual of Style and genre-based expectations); to correct grammar, usage, punctuation, and syntax/phrasing issues; to maintain continuity; and to recommend minor tweaks to word choice and style that may lessen the reading experience. Sometimes larger story and character issues will be noted, but such large-scale changes are usually inappropriate in a copyedit. Before getting a copyedit, make sure your book is where it should be in terms of plot, character, tone, etc.
Your copyeditor also creates a style sheet specific to your book that includes character names, places, and storyworld terms along with usage and style choices specific to your style.
Proofreading
Proofreading includes one round of edits to ensure a formatted book adheres to industry standards for publishing (according to The Chicago Manual of Style and genre-based expectations); to correct grammar, usage, and punctuation; to maintain continuity; and to identify any distractions or errors in formatting. Because changes after formatting can be labor-intensive and expensive, proofreading recommends restrained and minimal changes.
Pricing
- Copyediting: $0.03/word
- Proofreading: $0.02/word
Contact Us About Copyediting or Proofreading
Learn More
Learn more about the other types of editing Looseleaf offers. or visit our resources page to learn more about editing and design.
