To me, editing is about reassurance.
It’s easy to miss mistakes in your own writing. Having someone else review your work before you publish gives you confidence that the content you put out into the world will represent you and your business well.
But editing is about more than errors in grammar and spelling. It’s also about readability, structure, and making things easy for your audience to understand. In an online environment, those factors are incredibly important since people tend to skim quickly; you need to get your point across as efficiently and effectively as possible.
Editing also ensures a topic is covered completely. When you write about a subject close to you – like your business – it is hard to see things from the perspective of a customer or client. They probably don’t know everything you know, and some of the details you think don’t matter actually might. Having an outsider assess what you’ve written can help identify any gaps that need filling.
Types of Editing
There are different types of editing and the line between them is especially relevant in the world of book publishing. When editing business writing, I find most clients prefer not to compartmentalize and want everything done together. I can focus on specific types when asked, like copy editing alone or just a final proofread, or take an all-in approach.
Here is the way I see the types of editing, based largely on this very detailed breakdown from Editors Canada:
- Structural or content editing. I look at whether the document is organized for easy comprehension. Outcomes: suggesting cuts and rewrites, moving blocks of text around.
- Stylistic or line editing. I check for consistency of tone and overall flow. For example, does the tone shift between formal and conversational or casual? Those kinds of shifts can be jarring and detract from a document. Outcomes: suggested revisions in wording, shortening sentences, breaking down paragraphs as needed.
- Copy editing. A copy edit is heavy on corrections in things like punctuation, spelling, naming conventions, repetition, incorrect usage – the sort of nitpicky things editors are known for. Fact checking is also part of a copy edit. Outcomes: typically there are a lot of little corrections and notes made if something fails the fact check, with links to new sources, as needed.
- Proofreading. Proofreading comes after a document has been edited and is just a final pass to ensure there are no remaining errors. Outcomes: usually just small issues that are easily corrected.
My Editing Experience
I am a generalist, with degrees in history, French language and literature, and library science. I have written for many different industries and can get up to speed on a subject fast. I know how to fact check and can find relevant and reliable sources quickly. My trusty style guide and dictionary – both hard copy – are always within reach when I have questions about punctuation, spelling, and other issues of style and structure, as all editors do.
I have edited for a variety of small business clients. I currently work as a copy editor with PEI Living magazine and volunteer as senior editor with The Pixel Project where I work primarily on blog content.
The Editing Process
The editing process starts with a consultation to learn more about you, your business, and the general tone you are working toward.
I will ask whether you have a style guide to follow and familiarize myself with it. If not, I default to Canadian Press and the Oxford English Dictionary. (If American conventions are preferred, I am a big fan of Merriam-Webster for both spelling and thesaurus functions and can follow whatever style guide you suggest.)
I am happy to use shared documents so we can track changes or create separate revisions of a document at each stage of editing. If you have a system you use, I can follow that as well. I’m very flexible and, as a former software trainer, very conversant with technology and generally able to learn new tools quickly.
To get started on your next editing project, contact me for a free consultation.
Photo of fountain pens by Thomas Griggs on Unsplash.