“The End”… Now What?

You’ve got your manuscript completed, and you’ve read it several times and done some editing on your own. Now what? It’s time for an editor!

Let’s face it… there are almost as many types of editors as there are pizza toppings, and some will be familiar to you while others perhaps won’t. So, today, let’s talk about the ones most frequently used by self-publishing “indie authors”.

High level editors don’t really get into the nitty-gritty of the physical manuscript with you. These will typically be your developmental editor and then your line editor.

The developmental editor looks at the big picture arc of the manuscript; the relationships between characters, character development, the book’s tone, the way chapters and scenes are strutured, and the market it might ultimately appeal to.

Line editors get deeper into language use, along with paragraph and sentence structure. They may move things around a bit, and will suggest words and even phrases that help strengthen the story. Line editors don’t get into punctuation and grammar though, so writers with budget constraints may choose to go straight from developmental to copyediting.

Where developmental and line editors are your high level specialists, copyeditors and proofreaders work closely with the words.

Copyediting gets more into the weeds with the use of words and follows standard English grammar rules. Copyeditors create the “style guide” to document dates, places, names, character descriptions and so much more. The style guide will be grow with the story and be constantly referred back to for accuracy. Style guides may also carry over into the next book, if the author is developing a series. Copyeditors will watch for spelling, grammar and punctuation, and may suggest alternative words. It’s definitely the copyeditor’s job to notice if someone was once described as having short blonde hair but then becomes a shaggy redhead without mention of an appointment at the salon!

And finally there’s the proofreader! They will refer to the same style guide created by the copyeditor conduct the final review of the manuscript before it goes to print. Headers, footers and page numbers will also be checked. Proofreading is vital, and a separate proofreader with a fresh set of eyes is a real benefit, but also sometimes a luxury. Many editors will provide bundled proofreading and copyediting as a single service and many authors will seek this out.

So there you have it. The four main editing roles are developmental, line editing, copyediting and proofreading. If you can afford it, go for all four! If you can’t, either because of time or financial constraints, then you might opt for developmental and copyediting. Or even just copyediting… but ALWAYS copyediting!