Manuscript editing describes the process of carefully scrutinizing and correcting every word and punctuation mark in a manuscript. It is also known as copyediting or line editing. It can be a very important stage of the process of submitting and publishing work successfully.
It is a service that can be carried out in-house by a publisher. This is usually the case with published books. In the case of students or academics who want to publish or submit theses, scientific papers, or other academic documents, they have a range of options available. Manuscript editing is used here to describe editing for academic purposes and even for fiction purposes. It does not refer to non-traditional publishing, such as blog editing.
For academics submitting their works to scholarly journals, they can rely on the editing and proofreading services that the journal may have. Students and academics have two major options.
They can hire professional editing services from a host of online proofreading websites or they could hire personal freelance editors on their own. In any case, both scholarly journals and online editing websites rely heavily and sometimes completely on freelance editors.
A successful manuscript edit is a process that involves several stages of editing and proofreading. However, more important than that, it involves proper communication between the author and editor to make sure that they are working toward a common goal. Self-editing is important, and all writers should edit their own work using style guides and self-editing checklists. However, here, the concern is with paid professional editing services.
In this article, I discuss what goes into manuscript editing and the best practices to follow to ensure that you end up with a manuscript that you can take pride in. We also discuss the pricing and fees associated with this service.
What is manuscript editing?
Manuscript editing simply means editing and proofreading the contents of a manuscript. It differs from developmental editing, which is a more drastic form of editing that involves written work being completely reorganized or rewritten.
There are various stages of editing a manuscript. Let’s quickly list them below before we go on to describe them in detail:
Developmental editing
Mechanical editing
Substantive editing
Proofreading
Developmental editing can even be described as one level above manuscript editing. It involves drastically revising, reorganizing, and rewriting a work after editor feedback.
Substantive editing refers to rewriting or revising existing content. It differs from developmental editing, which is a more drastic stage of revising and organizing.
Mechanical editing refers to consistently applying a particular style, also known as a style guide — which will be described later. It involves things like grammar, punctuation, capitalization, and so on.
Proofreading is the last stage of editing. It refers to the stage of correction where the manuscript is transformed into the format in which it will be published but before publication. For example, PDF for journal manuscripts.
Each of these stages of editing will be further explained in the following sections. However, for now, read on to learn more about the job of a manuscript editor.
A manuscript editing sample
I have provided an editing sample below. An edited manuscript has three elements: 1. the deletion of material; 2. the addition of material; and 3. comments for improvement and clarity left by the author. The first two are not always clear-cut. Sometimes the changes made to a sentence by an author involve rearranging and restructuring words.
This would involve both deletions that show up as being crossed out with a colored line in Word's Track Changes. The addition of material also shows up as colored words. In Word Track changes, the author has the right to reject or accept the changes made by the author. Here is an example of an edited manuscript:
The job of a manuscript editor
A manuscript editor carefully examines and corrects a document according to a set of rules, also known as a style guide in academic writing. Several professions in academia, NGOs, and publishing require manuscript editing.
They include:
Professors
Students
Book authors
Academics trying to publish in scholarly journals
Corporations writing white papers
NGOs writing policy briefs
This type of service ensures that students, book authors, and academics can submit or publish work successfully. So what does manuscript editing entail?
A manuscript editor is responsible for polishing your writing to make sure as much as is humanly possible that there is no eros. Of course, you first have to define what an “error” is for each document.
“Organise” may be an error in a book published in the US. However, if it is being published in the UK for a British audience, then it would be perfectly fine. That is because a UK audience expects the word to be spelled in such a way, whereas the US audience would expect it to be spelled as “organize.”
This is why a manuscript editor edits and proofreads according to a style guide. The style guide is a set of rules to follow consistently to ensure that the manuscript is corrected accurately. A style guide exists on two levels.
First, there is the general level. There are common and widely accepted rules for English usage and spelling that every editor is supposed to reinforce when editing a manuscript. This includes spelling, grammar, and punctuation.
Then, there is the second level, which is specific to a style guide. Perhaps, an author requires a certain word to be spelled in a way that no classic book on word usage or dictionary would agree with.
Or maybe the organization requires for certain words to be capitalized where they would not ordinarily be capitalized. The job of the editor is to look out for and enforce these rules and expectations according to a specific style guide.
What are the different types of editing?
Editing can be described as existing in stages or a process, with the first stage being developmental editing and the last stage being proofreading. In all, the four stages of editing are 1. Developmental editing; 2. Substantive editing; 3. Mechanical editing; and 4. Proofreading. Let’s take a look at what each stage entails. You are free to hire the help of a professional editor at any stage of the process of writing your manuscript.
1. What is developmental editing
Developmental editing refers to the extensive revising and organizing of content in a manuscript. In the publishing industry, developmental editing is not seen as manuscript editing per se. Proper manuscript editing only occurs after the developmental editing has been executed.
There is some controversy on the difference between developmental and substantive editing. The development editor can come in either before, during, or after the author writes and completes their manuscript. Here is a list of things that a developmental editor is responsible for before writing:
Guiding the author in conceiving the topic
Help the author plan the overall structure
Assist in developing an outline
Coach authors in writing each chapter
If the developmental editor comes in after the manuscript is complete, they will focus on fixing organization and structure issues in the manuscript.
Here is a list of responsibilities they usually take on:
Moving content from one chapter to another
Requesting additional material or content when deemed necessary from the author
Making big-picture arguments more tight or solid
The developmental editor does not always come in as part of a smooth process at the beginning of the planning and writing stage. Sometimes, even close to the proofing stage, a publisher may deem it necessary to radically revise the author’s manuscript.
This would more resemble extensive substantive editing.
2. What is substantive editing?
Substantive editing is the correction of content in a completed manuscript in the early stages of the manuscript when heavy changes are required. It focuses on organizing and presenting existing content. It typically involves the following:
Rewriting to improve style
Rewriting to eliminate ambiguity
Reorganizing sections that lack coherence
Adjusting or recasting tables
As can be seen from this list, substantive editing involves major changes. For major substantive editing, the editor should make sure that they are on the same page with both the publisher and the author.
Only after agreement among the three, should an editor go ahead with major substantive editing.
3. What is mechanical editing?
Mechanical editing means correction that involves consistently applying a particular style to a written document. This includes text, tables, references, and illustrations. Mechanical editing would involve questions of punctuation, spelling, etc.
Here is a full list of what may be involved:
Capitalization
Spelling
Hyphenation
abbreviations
Punctuation
How numbers are presented
Grammar
Syntax
Usage
Mechanical editing is closely related to style. Therefore, a style guide should be closely followed when implementing mechanical editing. This style guide could be based on the requirements of the publisher or major style guides (e.g., APA, MLA, CMoS).
4. What is proofreading?
Proofreading refers to the correction of a manuscript in the format in which it is going to be published but just before publication. Proofreading has both a general and industry meaning. Generally speaking, proofreading is the term we use to describe carefully examining every component of a manuscript to find and correct errors.
This is done at every stage of the editing process. However, in the publishing industry, it has a more specific meaning. It refers to combing for errors in the final version of the manuscript.
The final version of the manuscript refers to the format in which the manuscript will be published. So, this is the last stage before final publication. This is usually the PDF version of the manuscript for both book publishers and many journals.
The author is usually responsible for this stage of editing. The editor will mark what should be corrected and the author will make the changes.
Here is a list of what is typically involved in proofreading:
Correcting spelling errors
Correcting word breaks
Correcting errors in typeface and font
Checking page numbers and running heads
Checking illustrations and tables
Proofreading for coherent meaning and sense
Proofreading and editing for minor details can be carried out in Microsoft Word or other software such as PDF and Latex. Substantive editing in Word may be difficult for an author to follow. However, proofreading is typically a lighter form of editing that involves queries and pointing out errors that the author will find easier to follow.
Online proofreading companies often make a distinction between proofreading and editing. Proofreading often refers to editing work closer to the final stage of publication, while editing refers to work on manuscripts that require more substantial work. In most cases, the cost of proofreading services may be marginally cheaper than editing services.
5. The editing process
Most authors think of the professional manuscript editing process as a kind of mystery. However, all authors may learn from the editing processes that a professional editor goes through. After all, authors themselves have to go through a self-editing process that resembles what professional proofreaders have to go through.
Professional editing is a combination of relying on editing skills and knowledge and AI-powered proofreading software. The editing process is made up of three stages:
The Processing Stage
The Copyediting Stage
The Proofing Stage
Before, an editor embarks on any of these stages, they need to have a style sheet. A style sheet outlines the formatting, layout, spelling, and preferences for a manuscript. It specifies things like:
Whether or not to use serial commas
Spelling preferences
Hyphenation style
Character names and descriptions
The changes made throughout the manuscript will depend on the style sheet.
In the Processing Stage, the editor prepares your manuscript for editing. The Copyediting Stage is where the actual work of correcting the work sentence by sentence occurs. The Proofing Stage involves going through the copyedited manuscript and finding small errors to make sure that the final document is as close to perfect as possible.
The processing stage can be described as the mechanical stage. It is work that can be carried out without even thinking. The professional editor makes use of proofreading software at this stage or native features in Word, such as "Find and Replace."
However, editors who are interested in efficiency rely on proofreading software for this stage. An excellent proofreading tools for this purpose would be PerfectIt. To learn more about how PerfectIt and other proofreading tools work, you can check out this article: 6 Best Proofreading Software Tools.
So what does this stage entail? In this part of the manuscript editing process, the editor does the following:
Turn double spaces into single spaces
Turn double hyphens into em dashes
Turn hyphens between numbers into en dashes
Turn underline into italics
Place punctuation marks inside quotation marks
With the right proofreading software, these things can be achieved with the click of a button. In fact, you may not even need an editor to do this for you and you can carry this out yourself.
Copyediting is where the editor starts examining every word or sentence for correction. In the processing stage, the work is mechanical. The editor puts no thought in it. However, in this stage, the editor has to decide:
When it makes sense to make major changes to sentence structure
When to ask for clarity from the author
When to deviate from the style guide
For example, the author may be using US English. However, there are instances where UK English may be appropriate, such as in trade or brand names. The editor needs to carefully go through the document and make the necessary changes.
Proofing is the final stage. It comes after copyediting. No matter how careful and skilled your editor is, they probably missed a few things. Professional editors usually allow the document to rest for a few days to come back and finish this final stage of editing.
It involves picking up anything that was missed in the copyediting stage. It can also occur after a review of the copyedited manuscript by the author. In this part of the process, it also makes more sense to rely on proofreading software such as PerfectIt.
6. Editor discretion
A manuscript editor has to be discrete. What do I mean by that? Reviwing and correcting your document does not simply begin and end with scrutinizing and correcting the author’s text. It involves a process of clear communication. You as the author should take care to set clear guidelines of what to expect from editing.
An editor should not go too far in "correcting" the work of the author to the extent that the author cannot recognize their style. To avoid confusion and miscommunication, the following rules or best practices should be adhered to:
Authors should make it clear what they require: developmental, substantive, or mechanical editing
Editors should clearly explain their specific changes in comments in the Word comment function whenever possible
Editors should accompany edited manuscripts with “cover letters” broadly explaining and summarizing their changes
Using the Track function in Word has the advantage of allowing the author the privilege of accepting or rejecting changes and recommendations in their manuscript.
The final decision on how the manuscript turns out is always in the hands of the author. Make sure that you hire the services of an editor who respects that author's privilege.
7. The cost of manuscript editing
The cost of manuscript editing varies depend on where you look and who you ask. In this article, I compare eidting costs from the Editorial Freelancers Association with those from famous online academic editing companies. The EFA is a member association for international editors and is based in New York.
They are a major authoprity of editing prices and rates in the academic and literary writing industries. The informationincluded here are median rates based on information collected from members in a survey that took place between November 2023 and mid-January 2024. You can consult the original study by the EFA for more detailed information: EFA editorial rates.
Academic proofreading and editing companies are online editing businesses that offer 24-hour editing services. There are dozens of them, and they rely on a combination of in-house and freelance editors. They usually have the following features in common:
24-7 online services
Turnaround times ranging from two hours to one week
A pair review system, with two editors looking at your manuscript
Well-trained and proficient editors
Mostly students and academics as customers
Famous names in this online editing industry include Scribbr, Paper True, Scribendi, Editor World, and so on. Please check out this previous article to learn more: The table below shows the top ten companies and the prices per 1000 words.
This is from a previous article that sought to rank the services of these companies. You can check it out here: Ten Best Copyediting Services. The table below shows regular editing rates according to the EFA and popular online editing companies:
Editing Authority or Company | Editing Cost per Word |
Wordvice | $0.048 |
Scribbr | $0.042 |
EFA | $0.045 |
Scribendi | $0.037 |
The table shows that pricing can range between $0.037 per word to $0.048 per word. Read on to see how these prices fare compared to what we offer here at EminentEdit.
Get in touch for help in editing your manuscript |
How EminentEdit can help edit your manuscript
EminentEdit provides high-quality manuscript editing services to ensure that your document is submission-ready. This means if you’re a student or academic, you can submit work that you can take pride in. We're a small group of professional editors with extensive experience.
Our editing services cover basic proofreading for punctuation and grammar. In addition, we cover extensive and deep changes to your document by providing line-by-line editing. This means reviewing and correcting the structure of sentences to reach the appropriate stanbdard. Such a service covers:
Fixing sentence syntax and structure
Formatting according to academic style guides such as APA, CMoS, MLA, etc.
Formatting references
Providing extensive commentary on how your manuscript could be improved
Line-by-line editing is exactly what it sounds like. We focus on eliminating all errors in every sentence or line in your manuscript. Take a look at our price chart to see how we match low cost with value:
Type of Editing | Description | Price Per Word ($) |
Regular Manuscript Editing | Line-by-line editing to improve tone and sentence structure. | $0.03 |
Manuscript Editing & Formatting | Regular manuscript editing in addition to formatting your manuscript | $0.04 |
Regular Proofreading | Editing to uncover and fix minor grammar, punctuation, and style errors. | $0.02 |
Our regular editing prices begin as low as $0.03/word. However, if you are a first-time customer willing to pay upfront, regular editing services you qualify for a discount of $0.02 per word.
Our help doesn't just start with copyediting the final product. It also includes help from the very beginning of your project. This includes editing and double-checking your project proposal, including thesis and essay proposals. Get in touch with one of our representatives: CONTACT US AT EMINENT EDIT.
References
Chicago Manual of Style 17. https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/book/ed17/part1/ch02/toc.html
Norton, Scott (2009). Developmental editing: A handbook for freelancers, authors, and publishers. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 1–4.
Cite this EminentEdit article |
Antoine, M. (2024, August 14). Manuscript Editing | All You Need to Know. EminentEdit. https://www.eminentediting.com/post/manuscript-editing |
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