Copyediting vs. Proofreading: Everything You Need To Know

December 19, 2024

Copyediting vs. Proofreading

Copyediting vs. proofreading: What’s the difference? When so many terms are swirling around out there in the writing and publishing world, it can be tricky to keep them all straight!

Hi, I’m Kaitlin, an editor for indie romance authors. In this post, I want to share everything you need to know about copyediting and proofreading, the benefits of each, and how to choose the right type of editing for your book!

Does the difference between copy editing and proofreading matter?

My answer is yes, it definitely matters!

I’m often contacted by newer authors who say they need a proofreader, but after talking with them I find out they really mean they need a copy editor. This is important because these are two different types of services with different end results, and I need to know what the author’s goal is.

This also matters because (surprise!), these two services also come with different pricing. One involves more substantive editing than the other, and that’s why it’s important to know which kind of edit your book actually needs.

What to know about copyediting

There comes a point in your manuscript where your timeline, chapters, and characters—all the major structural pieces —are in place and there are no more significant story changes to be made. At this point, your book is ready for a copyedit! A copy editor is an expert in making your manuscript shine in the 5 Cs: Clarity, Coherence, Consistency, Correctness, and Conciseness. They ensure that the text will connect with your readers in the way you, the author, intend. Your editor will also create a style sheet to guide the rest of the editing process (more about style sheets below).

What to know about proofreading

Proofreading is the final line of defense before publication to catch any errors that may have slipped through in previous revisions. This type of edit focuses on the mechanical details such as grammar, punctuation, and formatting. It won’t be concerned with style, voice, or story consistency (which is why a professional copyedit is super important!). This type of edit simply makes sure your manuscript is as error-free as possible before publishing.

Copyeditor vs. Copy Editor

You may see both of these spellings floating around and wonder which is correct. Like many things in language, both are acceptable!

The Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS), the gold standard for fiction editing, recommends copyedit and copyediting (one word). This aligns with other commonly used copy words such as copywriter and copyright. You can find this in their hyphenation table (7.96) in the “noun + noun, single function (first noun modifies second noun)” section.

Merriam-Webster (M-W), the dictionary used by copyeditors everywhere, lists copy editor as two words, but the verb copyedit as one. Copyeditor is listed as an acceptable variant.

Honestly, which word you choose isn’t a dealbreaker. Although the one-word version of copyeditor has increased in popularity in recent years, you will likely see both versions. Don’t automatically judge someone based on how they style this word (let’s be honest, we shouldn’t judge someone for how they spell a word anyway!).

Five Differences Between Copyediting and Proofreading

1. The Style Sheet

The style sheet is one of the deliverables produced in a copy edit. It’s a document that records all the stylistic choices about your manuscript: the tone of voice, specific grammar rules followed, all the details about your characters, important timeline details, and more. A copy editor creates this document as a reference guide to ensure consistency across all revisions during the editing process. Perhaps its most important function is that it helps proofreaders know what are actual errors and what are intentional style choices!

Still a tad confused? No worries—I give a full rundown on style sheets here!

IMPORTANT: If your copy editor doesn’t provide a style sheet, they are not giving you a true copy edit. It means your “editor” is likely untrained and not capable of providing you with a quality service. A style sheet is ABSOLUTELY necessary. You literally cannot perform a copy edit without it!

Repeat after me: Without a style sheet, it’s not a copy edit.

Another note on similar terms (whew, so many terms!): A style sheet is NOT the same thing as a style guide. A style guide is a large reference tool that GUIDES the way fiction is edited (for example, The Chicago Manual of Style) and serves as a standard for editing choices across entire genres of writing.

2. Pricing

Since copyediting and proofreading are two different services, they come at two different price points. This is an important consideration when you’re an indie author working with a tight budget!

A copy edit is more expensive because it entails a more in-depth service. You receive more with the edit—your editor will be creating your style sheet, making sure the content and tone are cohesive, fixing your grammar mistakes, and really polishing up your work to a professional standard.

Proofreading is less expensive because the proofreader doesn’t refine your actual writing. They’re not investing as much mental energy into improving your manuscript. They’re simply focused on removing technical errors (which is still important!) as the final step before publication.

3. Timeline (which step in the editing process)

Copyediting occurs after all major story and structural changes are in place, but while there’s still room for small changes. If your manuscript has already gone through the developmental and line editing phases, a copy edit comes next. (For a deep dive into the four types of editing a fiction novel may require, check out this blog post!) The exception to this timeline is if your editor provides a combined service of line editing and copyediting.

Proofreading is the final step before publication. Nothing content-wise is changed—it’s a final check to make sure your manuscript is free of errors. This step helps catch any technical flaws that may have been overlooked, and it’s especially important for checking for any formatting inconsistencies in the final copy.

4. What gets corrected?

What exactly does a copy edit fix? This type of edit will be focused on refining the readability, consistency, and flow of your writing. It will also flag any inconsistencies within your characters or plot.

Proofreading, on the other hand, reviews the final copy of the manuscript to identify and correct just the technical details: typos, punctuation mistakes, incorrect grammar, and formatting issues.

5. What doesn't get corrected?

A copy edit isn’t quite as broad as a developmental edit (where whole sections may need to be removed, added, rewritten, or switched around). It isn’t going to flag major content or story issues. It won’t cut out pieces of the story or suggest major changes to your characters or timeline.

Proofreading won’t edit anything that’s not found on the style sheet. If your copy editor made a style sheet (and they should have if they’re worth their salt!), your proofreader will use that to help them know when certain spellings, stylistic choices, etc. are intentional or if they are mistakes. This way they will only be fixing errors that need to be fixed!

An Example: Copyediting vs. Proofreading

I don’t know about you, but it helps if I can visualize the concept we’re talking about. So let me show you an example of how each type of editing will impact your manuscript.

Check out the picture of the sample text that needs to be edited.

You’ve probably noticed there are quite a few errors in punctuation, formatting, and spelling. There are also several things that a copy editor would be able to check and correct (or leave alone) by using the style sheet.

Here's what the sample looks like after a copyedit:

You’ll see that the editor removed extra spaces, formatted the ellipsis properly, changed character details and spellings (based on notes from the style sheet), corrected a timeline error, fixed punctuation and capitalization, and changed the spelling of a word with two acceptable spellings (based on the author’s preference).

Next, here’s a look at what a proofreader might do with the exact same sample when they don’t have access to a style sheet:

Proofread text:

In this example, the extra spaces were removed, the obvious misspelling was fixed, and the punctuation errors were corrected. The proofreader capitalized Airlines, knowing it should be a proper noun, but they didn’t check to see if that was the correct title for the company in the story. Because the proofreader didn’t have a style sheet, the spelling of “all right” was left alone (because it’s not a typo if it’s an acceptable variant!), the timeline issue was not addressed, and the character details were left alone. Is the text’s content grammatically accurate? Yep! Is it true to the author’s style and intent? Unfortunately, no.

(For a few more examples, check out this article and this one.)

In an ideal world, authors would hire both a copy editor and a proofreader. But as we’ve already established, some authors only want a proofread. The sample above is a great example of why that isn’t a good idea (and why a style sheet is necessary!).

Why do authors opt for a proofread instead of a copy edit?

The first reason many newer authors favor proofreading over copyediting is that they simply think they are the same thing. Perhaps this was you (until you read this blog!). That’s okay! Now you know they are actually different services with different benefits.

Another reason is that, generally, proofreading is much cheaper. When you’re on a tight budget, it’s tempting to skip the more expensive service and go straight for a proofread. But here’s why I don’t recommend this:

If you read a book and notice inconsistencies or mistakes, that automatically pulls you out of the story world. You guessed it: That’s not a good thing! Getting your reader fully immersed in your story world is a crucial part of providing a great reading experience.

The more readers are pulled out of the story world, however, the more likely they are to put the book down—or even give it a less-than-favorable review (ouch). You’ve probably seen reviews that say, “this book could have used an editor.” Maybe that author used a proofreader but not a copyeditor. These small things can have a huge influence on the reader’s perception of your written work.

Here’s the thing: When a reader has a good experience, they are more likely to purchase or preorder other books from you. It’s worth the investment to make sure your work is edited thoroughly and professionally!

Side note: No matter how skilled your editor is, or how many editors you hire, there will always be a small margin for error. After all, editors and proofreaders are human, not machines! The gold standard for an error catch rate is 95%. That’s basically an A+, so it’s still a great score! But it also means that even with the best editors, 5% of errors could still slip through. This doesn’t mean you wasted your money or you chose a bad editor. It just means no one is perfect!

Do you understand copyediting vs. proofreading?

Now that you have a solid understanding of the difference between copyediting and proofreading, the only thing left is to find a great editor! Get a head start by reading my blog post on choosing the right editor for you.

I also offer fiction editing services, starting with a free 1000-word sample edit so you can see if working together is a win! Book a free consultation here and let’s chat!

Copyediting vs. Proofreading: Everything You Need To Know

December 19, 2024