Copyediting/Line Editing

Copyediting is advised for the following situations:

·      The manuscript is complete, or very nearly so, and may have been through one round of editing. It is in fairly good shape, content-wise, but needs polishing, tightening, and/or needs to be brought into compliance with style guidelines.

·      English is not the author’s first language.

Copyediting, or line editing, generally entails all the work of proofreading, but also addresses issues of structure, style, logic, and flow. Whereas a proofreader provides a final read in order to eliminate any remaining small errors, a copy editor reads a manuscript literally line by line, not only making sure that syntax is correct and that each sentence is clear and concise, but that each sentence (and paragraph and section) proceeds logically. Copyediting may also include rewording or minimal rewriting where a sentence is unclear or awkwardly phrased.

Copyediting entails:

·      Grammar and syntax

·      Spelling

·      Accuracy

·      Clarity

·      Consistency

·      Logical flow

·      Style

·      Voice; tone

·      Diction (word choice)

·      Concision (eliminating repetition, redundancy, wordiness)

·      Adherence to style guidelines (e.g., Chicago Manual of Style and/or the guidelines of particular journals and publishing houses).