I want to publish my book but I’m confused! Do I need an editor, a line editor or a proofreader?

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I want to publish my book but I’m confused! Do I need an editor, a line editor or a proofreader?

27 Jun

I was recently writing back to a prospective client who had got very confused about the different types of editing and proofreading and the process needed for publishing their book. I sent them some resources from this blog and thought it might be useful to share those here, too.

So, here are some articles I’ve written about the different kinds of editing, the process of editing and proofreading (and where your beta readers fit in to that process) and how to make sure your editor and proofreader are, ahem, on the same page. At the bottom are two articles I’ve written about how to deal with an editor – that can feel like an alarming process in itself, so hopefully I’ll reassure you there!

This one talks about the different kinds of editing and proofreading (it’s biased towards fiction but also works for non-fiction):

https://libroediting.com/2014/05/22/do-i-need-editing-or-proofreading/

This one sets out the processes you go through and their order:

https://libroediting.com/2016/10/19/what-questions-should-i-ask-my-beta-readers/

It’s certainly best to have different people do the edit and final proofread, as it’s not great to have the same eyes going over and over a text (that’s why we can’t proofread our own work!). If you use two people for these stages, make sure your editor provides you with a style sheet to pass on to your proofreader – more on style sheets here:

https://libroediting.com/2016/01/14/what-is-a-style-sheet-for-people-using-editors/

And when you’re ready to talk to an editor (or proofreader), here are two articles explaining that side of the process, so you and your prospective editor can experience a smooth process and happy negotiation:

How to request a quotation from an editor:

https://libroediting.com/2016/11/30/working-with-an-editor-1-how-do-i-request-a-quote-from-an-editor-or-proofreader/

Ideas on negotiating and booking in your project:

https://libroediting.com/2016/12/07/working-with-an-editor-2-how-do-i-negotiate-with-an-editor-or-proofreader-and-book-my-project-in/

I hope you’ve found this very quick guide to dealing with the complexities of getting your book edited and proofread, and how to deal with contacting an editor, useful. If you have, please share this article using the buttons below, or leave me a comment. Thank you!

5 Comments

Posted by Liz Dexter on June 27, 2018 in Copyediting, proofreading, Writing

Tags: Copyediting, proofreading, writing

5 responses to “I want to publish my book but I’m confused! Do I need an editor, a line editor or a proofreader?”

The Story Reading Ape

June 27, 2018 at 3:28 pm

Reblogged this on Chris The Story Reading Ape's Blog.

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The Owl Lady

June 28, 2018 at 1:23 pm

Reblogged this on Viv Drewa – The Owl Lady.

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Andie @ Andrea's Nirvana

August 2, 2018 at 9:44 am

This is a great guide! Definitely clears up plenty of misconceptions around editing. Thank you for this very educational post 🙂

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- Liz Dexter
  
  August 2, 2018 at 11:19 am
  
  You’re welcome, I’m glad I could help!
  
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Anna Pavol

August 7, 2018 at 10:15 am

Very informative post! So many people don’t understand the differences between these services.

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