Different types of editing and how to know which type you need

Martha Warner Author

This blog post will guide you through the different types of editing and how to identify which one is right for you.

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Photo by Andrew Neel on Unsplash

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Editing is part of the writing process that many writers, creators, and business owners think they can skip. For some, it works out okay. But for others, it doesn’t. If you aren’t investing in an editor, you’re taking a risk that your copy will be incorrect, inconsistent, and full of errors.

Editing is a general term that refers to looking at a piece of work for something specific to improve the quality of the piece. Written work can be edited, but videos, clothing, design, and so many other things (pieces) can be edited as well. To further complicate the term, professionals don’t always agree on the terminology within editing, which is why it’s important to always get a solid understanding of the scope of work when working with an editor.

With so many different types of editing available, it can be hard to know which one is right for your work. We’ll lay out some of the different types of editing that are available to you from accessibility editing to copy editing to help you decide what you need.

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Accessibility editing

Think about the last time you read something complicated that made your eyes struggle to help your brain understand. It could have been in a different language or maybe a specific vernacular that you’re unfamiliar with. Maybe the font was too small or the words blurred together. That difficulty you may have faced is similar to the struggles that someone who is differently abled may have.

Have you ever considered if your writing is accessible to readers?

After a piece is written, there are ways an accessibility editor can help make a document accessible to more readers, including:

• Assisting with proper structure and navigation

• Correcting headings

• Choosing accessible fonts and colors

• Adding in and properly labeling hyperlinks

• Formatting lists correctly

• Using accessible language

• Labeling images with alt text

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All pieces of work should be accessible. This article is a great resource to dive deeper into what accessibility all entails and has many other links for further learning.

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Developmental editing

Developmental editing is often like having a partner in your writing. A developmental editor often works alongside the author as the author moves from ideas and outline to develop those into cohesive chapters. They help refine ideas, narrow down what is and what isn’t working, and provide feedback and questions that spark ideas.

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Developmental editing is comprehensive, takes a significant amount of time, and is reliant upon the writer.

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Dissertation editing

A Martha Warner specialty!

A dissertation is a large research project that graduate students need to prepare for their doctoral degree. Pending approval by the university and the dissertation committee, many dissertation students hire a dissertation editor for line editing, copy editing, and/or proofreading.

At Martha Warner, LLC, we make sure your dissertation chapters are ready for your committee review and publication.

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Line editing

Line editing is just like it sounds–going line by line to determine the coherence of sentences, the cohesion of paragraphs, the consistency of the ideas, and the overall flow of the piece. This type of editing is crucial and incredibly important especially for writers who struggle to manage their ideas.

Line editors tend to be very astute at movement and flow, and they have a strong understanding of audience. They can pick up a sentence that is out of place and know where it would be better suited. They often make suggestions based on denotation as much as connotation.

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Proofreading

Most often when people think of editing a written work, they think of proofreading. Proofreading is looking for errors in MUGS: mechanics, usage, grammar, and spelling for correctness.

Oftentimes, writers have great ideas, but if they focus on their grammar and punctuation, they’ll get caught up in perfecting that rather than focusing on mastering getting their message across. When that happens, the editor has to do more developmental and line editing because the ideas aren’t there.

I typically tell my writers not to worry about proofreading errors. We can fix a misspelled word, but it’s more difficult to fix a broken idea.

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Copy editing

Copy editing is sometimes confused with proofreading. Copy editors tend to check a document before it is printed or published to make sure it’s complete and correct. Copy editing is looking at the final copy to determine if there are errors like spacing, margins, etc.

Copy editing is the last step of the editing process. And although most issues should be resolved by this stage, it is super important that your work goes through the process. A fresh set of eyes on any piece of work can catch mistakes that you may have looked over or missed in previous rounds of editing.

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How to choose the right kind of editor for your project

When deciding what kind of editor will be best for your project, take a look at your work and decide what type of editing you need. If you are in the beginning stages of writing and you need additional help with the content or structuring your work, a developmental editor might be best. If you believe your work is complete but you just want another set of eyes to catch any grammatical errors, a proofreader might be a great choice.

Most editors will request a sample writing and will ask some version of the following questions?

• What type of writing do you have?

• Who is the audience of your written work?

• What are your goals with your piece?

• What are you most confident about?

• What do you see as your biggest areas of concern?

• What do you hope to accomplish when working with an editor?

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You should consider your goals for your project and the level of editing you feel you need to help you decide who the best type of editor to work with will be. Great news for you is that Martha Warner, LLC has all of these types of editing services available!

If you are in need of any type of editing, reach out! We have a great team that will be able to help you from the beginning stages all the way to the completion of your project. Rest easy with the knowledge that your content will flow with clarity and consistency.

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Categories: editing