Book editing services come in all shapes and sizes—literally.
From mini-reviews to major story-level editing to all-encompassing grammar corrections, there are many types of edits you can send your manuscript (MS) through!
Plus, each can be of varying degrees (what we commonly refer to as levels of editing; though some editors use the words types and levels interchangeably), and they come in at all stages of the writing process.
Well, then, how do you decide when is the right time for any of it?
Worry not!
With valuable inputs from two experienced Indian fiction editors, Varun Prabhu and Inderpreet Kaur Uppal, I’ve done the hard work of matching your writing stage to the suitable editing type, so you can feel confident about hiring the perfect editor for your book!
But first, here are the most common terms, broadly grouped and briefly described, for different editing services (Levels are mentioned within each type wherever applicable).
Types of Book Editing Services
Beta Reading/Early Reviews
Reviewers prepare mini reports that provide overall feedback; may be done by a writing community or author coach or avid reader.
Manuscript/Editorial Evaluations/Critiques/Reviews
Detailed reports by professional editors summarising the strengths and shortcomings of your story; involves no changes/edits in the actual MS or book file.
“Manuscript critique is a good option if the story isn’t final but you don’t want exhaustive inputs of a developmental edit for your work before you finalize your manuscript.”
Inderpreet Uppal, fiction editor
Developmental/Structural/Substantive Editing
Editors work directly in the file, moving things around, adding, deleting text, and leaving comments to weed out loopholes in the plot, inconsistent character traits, and errors in the logic of the story as a whole.
Content Editing/Fact-checking
Editors research and verify facts in genres like historical fiction/fantasy, “STEMLits”, and science fiction genres. Usually provided in combination with another service, like copyediting.
Sensitivity/Diversity Reading/Critique
Editors check for and remove any instances of bias/prejudice/stereotyping in the portrayal of characters of an ethnicity/culture different from the author’s own.
Line/Comprehensive Editing
Editors go through the story at sentence and paragraph level to ensure the smooth flow of language, uniformity in style, tone, and appropriate pacing, and clarity and readability on the whole. May be combined with the copyediting service.
Copyediting
To make grammar-related corrections, resolve faulty punctuation, ensure correct capitalisation, enforce uniform spelling choices, and fine-tune many more minute aspects of the writing.
Editing Levels: Light, Medium, Heavy
How to choose? The level of copyediting required in the MS differs from one book to the other. This is a decision to be taken by the editor and not the author, but as an author if you ask the editor which level they are working at and why, a good editor should be able to explain in detail and with good reasons why the MS needs a particular level of copyediting.
Proofreading
Proofreaders check page proofs (a typeset print-ready PDF of the book, with layout and formatting already completed) with a fresh set of eyes and a fine-toothed comb for any leftover errors that might distract readers from flowing along with your engaging narrative.
“The last one is proofreading, which deals with correcting errors that editing passes might have missed.”
Varun Prabhu, fiction editor
Now that we understand what all those editing terms mean, it’s easier than ever to match your writing stage to the editing services you can consider!
| Writing Stage (from start to end) | Suitable Editing Service |
|---|---|
| 1. Creating the story concept This is the stage of ideation, where you, as a writer, brainstorm and outline your plot, or maybe get right (write?) to it and produce that very first draft! | Book/Story/Author Coaching As editing can only begin once you have some kind of story written down, this is the step where book coaching services and writing workshops come in to help you plan your MS. |
| 2. Completing the first draft After you have a rough-hewn frame for your story and enough content to take it for a test drive. | Beta Reading & Manuscript Critique With detailed feedback from a third-person perspective, an evaluation will work to enhance your MS and take your initial story idea to a whole new level, at par with its industry competitors! |
| 3. Finalising the basic structure of your story When you are done incorporating and implementing revisions after receiving external feedback on your story, but you still don’t feel fully satisfied with how it’s all turning out. | Developmental Editing & Content Editing Provides you a mentor-figure who’ll dive into the depths of your story by your side. Working directly in the MS file (in a word-processing software), the editor will take action to get all the elements of your story into shape. |
| 4. Getting ready for publication/posting When the plot and structure of your novel has been decided after completion of the big-picture editing step(s). | Sensitivity Reading & Line Editing Now, it’s time to make sure that the story flows seamlessly and that the logic of details and word/phrase choices are watertight. |
| 5. Ensuring perfect grammar Your work is almost done! Only the “grammar check” remains between you and the publish button. Your MS should still be in a word-processing software like MS Word or Google Docs at this stage so the editor can work their magic. | Copyediting & Fact-checking It’s all about perfecting the language here. The eagle eye of a copyeditor won’t let any modifiers dangle or proper nouns cased low! This is THE type of edit that even the best writers must set aside a budget for. |
| 6. Getting ready to print your formatted book Once the final look or layout of the pages of your book has been decided. The print-ready, formatted/composed/typeset PDF version of the MS is referred to as page proofs. | Proofreading This is not only about rooting out stubborn grammatical errors or typos in the proof. A fresh pair of eyes are crucial at this stage to be able to check everything from page numbering to the space between letters. Another MUST-INVEST step (important: the editor who has already worked on your book is NOT qualified to proofread it!). |
Information overload? Go through the table and terms again as many times as you need to build a robust understanding of each service, until you no longer feel intimidated about approaching an editor ever again 🙂
And if you’ve got questions, comment! In the next post, I will bring you the answers to common doubts on this topic from Varun and Inderpreet. Subscribe to the blog to get notified when it’s published!
Further Reading and Resources for authors on editing types
Veteran fiction editors Louise Harnby and Crystal Shelley provide some excellent explanations on this topic on their websites, shared below.
The different levels of editing. Proofreading and beyond by Louise Harnby
The Editing Process: A Guide for Self-Publishing Fiction Authors by Crystal Shelley
Collaborators
Apart from the following, I would also like to thank ICF members Zarine Arya and Kaneez Zehra Razavi for their feedback.
Varun Prabhu
Varun Prabhu is a storyteller at heart, working behind the scenes to help authors bring their manuscripts to life. As a ghostwriter and editor, he refines narratives and shapes compelling fiction, occasionally donning the hat of a cartographer to map out fictional worlds. He freelances under his brand, Urna Creative, offering creative support to writers navigating the publishing landscape.
Beyond the world of books, Varun is a voracious reader, a prolific writer, and a passionate TV show enthusiast. He’s also a cricket fanatic and sometimes displays a keen interest in politics.
Inderpreet Uppal
Inderpreet writes for her love of writing, edits manuscripts and reads endlessly. An authors’ editor with a decade of experience, she provides manuscript critique, linguistic editing, substantive editing, copyediting, and developmental editing for fiction and nonfiction. She enjoys romance, paranormal and contemporary fiction while ignoring horror, violence and gore. Inderpreet is the author of Generously Yours, We Women Wonder, Self-Editing, Editing, and Editors and has contributed a love story called “Love Paused” in The Blogchatter Book of Love.
She lives in the capital city of India, New Delhi, where she enjoys its rich culture, delicious street food, and a lit nightlife.
ABOUT THE GREEN PENCIL
Hey there! I’m Shruti, a professional freelance copy editor and proofreader from Lucknow, India. I’m also the author of two self-published children’s mystery books.
At The Green Pencil, I offer editorial services to help fiction as well as non-fiction authors (from India and other corners of the globe) elevate their writing from final draft to delivery-ready.
Like all editors, I genuinely want to see your book out there in all its glory, unblemished by errors of any kind; and I do not intend for an exorbitant fee that you can’t afford to come in the way of that.
Reach out to me today to know my custom quote for your work-in-progress! 🙂
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