The author’s need for an editor

We cannot overemphasize the author’s need for editing. Editing helps the author have a flawless manuscript for publishing. There are various ways to go about it. You can choose to self-edit or have a friend, colleague or even a professional editor review your work.

Self-editing is the cheapest option but might not always yield the best results unless you spend enough time, sometimes weeks, months, or even years, editing your work. Your proximity to the work is the weakness of this route of editing. Having a friend or colleague edit your work is better, but unless they are actual editors, they too may have limited results.

Hiring a professional editor costs money, but the advantages far outweigh the cost when you use a reliable editor.

There are three stages of editing, namely; content editing, copyediting, and proofreading.

Content editing.

A content editor is also called a developmental editor and helps check that your content is engaging. They also ensure that they clearly convey the core message of your research to your readers. You might not need a content editor if you are sure of your content. That means you have done the research and put in all that is required, content-wise, to have an engaging, informative, and accurate body of work.

Copy editing.

A copy editor looks at the punctuation and grammar of your work. They are the next stage of editing that an author should go through to publish professionally. They ensure the sentence structure of your work is correct and they also tackle any other structural issues with your work. They are sometimes known as line-editors as well, meaning they go over your work line by line ensuring that every ‘i’ is dotted and ‘t’ is crossed.

Proofreading.

A proof editor is another key person you need to have professional work ready for publishing. They go over what the copy editor has done to ensure nothing is missed in the process. But their chief function is the format of your work. After they proofread your work, then it can be printed.

Visit our website for more resources. If you are not sure what your work needs or would like to have your work edited professionally, let us know. We will be more than happy to point you in the right direction and assist you with your needs.