In a running theme with my previous post, this post also comes about due to the uncertainty that many writers have around the world of editing. I am commonly confronted with the realisation that many new writers don’t know what kinds of editing exist.

More often than not, I am approached by someone who wants an edit on their manuscript and when I ask what sort of edit they are looking for, I invariably get the question “What are the different types?” in return.

The aim of my ramblings today is to provide some clearer insight into what these different types of editing are, in the hopes that I can arm you with the ammunition you need to quickly and effectively get the editor that will champion your manuscript for you.

If you haven’t yet, I would highly recommend reading this in tandem with my previous post 5 Questions to ask yourself before approaching an editor, which delves more into what you should consider about your work before you seek an editor’s helpful hand.

Before we dive in, it must be noted that all of these types of editing are offered by freelancers and are open to anyone to seek out. However—and this is a big caveat—whether these are actually vital to you or not really depends on your goals for publishing your work. Are you seeking to self-publish or are you hoping to land that big publishing contract? Your goals are largely going to dictate which services may suit you best and which may just be overkill. I hope to demystify that for you.

Without further waffling, I hope you obtain some value out of my brief explanations of the three main types of editing, and then the two secondary types of editing, that you may encounter during your journey towards publication.

Structural Editing

Structural editing (also known as developmental editing or substantive editing) is your first, big picture edit. This is where the editor will look at the various aspects of your manuscript and how they come together to tell the story. At this level, the editor will break down the plot, characters and their arcs, the setting of the story, the tone and pacing of your story, and the overall structure of the manuscript. This is where the editor might suggest that a character doesn’t suit the story, or that there is a plot hole somewhere, and suggest ways in which this can be fixed or addressed. They might suggest that Chapter 26 actually would work better as Chapter 12. These are those structural elements that the editor will look at.

What does the feedback look like?

Structural edits are, more often than not, going to be returned to you in the form of a report that covers everything about your manuscript, often going as deep to cover your story chapter by chapter, or scene by scene. Some editors will also provide a marked up version of your manuscript, which is usually filled with comments pertaining to the various aspects that need to be looked at.

Is structural editing right for me?

Structural editing is a must—for everyone. Anyone who writes a book for publication will go through a structural edit. Where the answer to this question gets tricky is whether you should go out and get a freelancer to do a structural edit for you or not.

For those who are looking to self-publish and become indie authors, then yes, I would recommend having a structural edit on your manuscript. It is a vital part of the process to have an external eye—and mind—work on your manuscript with you, to help you get past your own biases (we all have that one character we absolutely love that we’ll attack anyone who says anything bad about them), to see the big picture items that you’re not seeing because you’re too close to the work.

Now, those of you seeking to get published traditionally: Well, it couldn’t hurt to get a freelance editor to do a structural edit. Get the right editor, it might help you get to that finish line. But, as it currently stands, this is what you’ll go through once you are signed with a publisher. Best part is you don’t pay for it either!

Ultimately, whether you decide to fork it out of your own wallet is entirely up to you and what your goals are.

Line / Copy Editing

In the standard publishing process, after the structural edit, you will have got your feedback and made the changes, perhaps rewritten some sections to fix the high-level issues. With all that done and dusted, then you go into copy editing, sometimes known as line editing, and sometimes these are separated out into different types as well.

I like to look at the term line editing when explaining this to writers. This is the part where the editor goes through line-by-line and edits the work. This is the main idea of editing that will normally come to your mind, the red pen marks everywhere, scratching out words and replacing them with other words. The line editor will look at each of the sentences and then help fix up any grammatical errors, errors in syntax, and move some sentences around to help with the flow of the writing, to name but a few aspects.

Copy editing is much the same as line editing; however, it is a fraction shallower, focusing more on the grammatical and syntax errors and looking at consistency and continuity of names, places and the timeline.

What does the feedback look like?

This feedback will always appear in the form of mark up on your manuscript itself. As we live in the digital age, you will mostly receive your copy edits in the Microsoft Word version of your manuscript. The Track Changes function makes this an industry standard for a good reason. The mark-up is clearly shown, comments are easy to track, and the changes can be easily accepted or rejected.

Is line or copy editing right for me?

It most certainly will be important to have at least a copy edit before preparing your manuscript for final production. Whether you want to pay for this and go with a freelancer, again, will come down to what your publishing goals are.

Self-publishing indies, you should definitely invest in a good copy editor. They will help bring your manuscript to a polished and professional level and leave you confident that your book will be presented to the world in the best light.

If you’re going with a publisher, they will almost always do this for you. I would hold off and spend those hard-earned pennies on other forms of edits that will help you get your foot in the door.

Proofreading

Then, for the last stage, comes proofreading. The word ‘proof’ comes from the term used for what is the final, printed version of the book, that has been set out to look how it will be when it’s published. That is called the ‘proof’. The proofreader then goes through this, which is now fully edited and ready for publishing, and just gives it that final glance to see if any slight errors were missed. This is looking for typos, spelling errors and perhaps some missed punctuation. Proofreading is also vital for looking at formatting and design aspects to help identify any errors or issues. This includes looking at line spacing, fonts and typography, page numbering, headings and titles, to name but a few.

What does the feedback look like?

Proofreads are commonly what most laypersons will expect when they think of the term ‘editing’ as this will be a marked-up manuscript with a focus on correcting any spelling errors, typos, formatting issues, and just generally any small errors that need to be polished. Any more than that, then you are going into the realms of copy editing.

Is proofreading right for me?

I’m going to sound a bit like a broken record here, but again, this depends on your publishing goals. Much like with copyediting, this is a good thing to do if you’re self-publishing as copy editors are still people and may miss a couple of things. Proofreaders are there to pick those up. If you’re happy with a couple of errors (or you hired a god-like copy editor) then you may be okay just doing this step yourself and spotting those final errors as best you can.

Professional Beta Read

Now I would like to discuss some types of editing that aren’t exactly editing but that you could look into obtaining from a freelancer or an editing business.

First off is a beta read. Most of you reading this, as writers and aspiring authors, will know what a beta read is. You probably have your friends, your book club, or members of your writing group as beta readers. This is always a great thing to have! However, you may find benefit in getting a professional to do a beta read for you.

Editors—myself included—may offer services in this light. This is a good entry-level service for writers to get initial and early feedback on their manuscripts. A good beta read will help identify those main strengths and weaknesses of your manuscript, giving you a good idea of which areas you need to work on. Usually, this will not provide you with actionable editorial advice. Rather, this just gives you a report of sorts that shows where those weaknesses are—the rest is up to you.

What does the feedback look like?

Now this will likely differ from editor to editor, and it may differ if you get a professional beta reader who is not normally an editor.

This may be in the form of a page or two answering specific questions, or it may be in the form of a report. Ultimately, though, beta reads will always aim to highlight specific aspects of stories that need to be looked at early on in the writing process. Do the characters all work for the story? Are there any major plot holes that need to be filled? Does the writing suit the genre and intended audience? These are all things that should be answered in a beta read, in whatever form the reader prefers to give it.

Is a professional beta read right for me?

This one, I can say with absolute certainty, is a great option for everyone. Beta reads are especially helpful when you have an early draft of your manuscript and are still working out the kinks. A professional beta read can give you early insight into what’s working and what isn’t—where changes need to be made and where you are already shining. I recommend a beta read for anyone and everyone.

Manuscript Assessment

Then we look at Manuscript Assessments. These go by various names: manuscript assessments, manuscript appraisals, manuscript evaluations, the list goes on.

A tricky aspect of manuscript assessments is that they will very likely differ between everyone who does them. Many will focus on the marketability of your manuscript and indicate whether it is ready to be submitted to a publisher. Others (and likely most) will be like a mini structural edit, looking at the high-level aspects of your manuscript. In comparison to a beta read, a manuscript assessment will offer actionable editorial advice on how to strengthen the weaker aspects of your manuscript to help polish it before querying.

What does the feedback look like?

As far as my experience has shown me—and based on what I myself do—is that you will receive a report, highly outlining the primary strengths and weaknesses of the manuscript, and what you can do to strengthen those weaker points. Often, the report is anywhere between 5 and 10 pages long, which all depends on how much there is to say.

Is a manuscript assessment right for me?

Much like the beta read, I recommend this for anyone seeking to publish their book, whether they are going the traditional route or the indie one. Hold up—where’s the catch? I do need to stress that this option should be a later consideration on your journey, and it should be something to look at after a round or two of self-edits, revisions and rewrites. If you need help before you get to that level, you’re better off looking at a beta read.

If I had to lay some weight on either side, I would recommend this more for those going down the traditional publishing route as it can help you determine those kinks that need to be ironed before submitting, so you know your story is at the best it can be before the publisher provides their input.

For those indie authors reading this, a manuscript assessment can absolutely be useful to you. However, based on my earlier indication that a structural edit would be a good start point, I would recommend rather putting the investment toward such. You will gain far more out of the structural edit.

Wrapping up

At this point, I hope you have a clearer idea of the types of edits out there and what sort of service may be best suited to your needs.

Going forward, my plan is to bring about more posts like this—ones that help to demystify the process of editing, how to work with an editor, and what you can do to make working with an editor a delight!

Until then, feel free to get in contact with me here if you want to learn more about working with an editor. My website does also have some information on the services I offer, ranging from the various types of editing I’ve mentioned above to mentoring services where I can help you along your writing journey.

Thanks for reading!