bookpublishing

I wanted to use this post to get back to basics a little. One of my earliest questions when I began in book publishing was “What is the difference between proofreading and copyediting?” It was confusing to me at first because depending on what type of publishing you do, the definitions vary. In book publishing it goes like this:

Proofreading - To proofread is to mark errors for correction. Typically these errors involve typos, misspellings, and other on-the-surface errors: incorrect page numbers in a table of contents, incorrect running heads, incorrect caption, etc. Proofreading is usually done toward the end of the book process–the book has already been designed and all the material is present.

Copyediting - To copyedit is to check consistency and accuracy. Although part of a copyeditor’s job may be to proofread to remove common errors, a copyeditor must also maintain the structure and tone of the project. Copyediting is done early in the process to solve larger problems that could have a big effect later in the process. If a whole chapter needs to be moved, it’s much easier to make this change during copyediting than during proofreading. It is possible that not all the material is available during copyediting, but the real purpose is to check over the main text.