One of the most frequent questions I'm asked is whether editing and proofreading are the same. While both do overlap in areas, they are perceived in the publishing industry as two very different skill sets. Both provide different outcomes and writers should be aware of what they do.
So, for first-time clients unsure about the difference between editing and proofreading, and which service they need, here's a summary:
Editing comes before proofreading in the process and involves an editor making changes and suggestions that will improve the overall quality of writing, particularly in relation to language use and expression. There may be a need for substantial changes at this stage, with the editor often having to rewrite and even restructure large amounts of text to ensure the writer's message is clear and achieves its purpose.
Proofreading is the final quality check at the end of the editing process after layout/formatting and before publication. Changes should be limited as the layout is usually completed by then and the proofreader should avoid making unnecessary and potentially costly changes.
Because it is near the end of the publication process, the proofreader should be checking for any remaining errors that MUST be corrected, concentrating on:
Grammatical errors
Spelling mistakes
Typos
Punctuation (corrected only if it is definitely wrong, otherwise it should be left alone)
Any other equivocations that may mislead the reader
The proofreader should also check for consistency of style, but again, this should involve making the least number of changes, even if this goes against the writer's style guide.
In summary, proofreading is about eliminating the errors that no-one else saw, only correcting something if it is clearly wrong. Anything else, even if it could be improved, should be left alone.
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