Editing Services | What Errors? | Style Guides | Fees

Whoever thinks a faultless piece to see, thinks what ne’er was, nor is, nor e’er shall be.
— Alexander Pope

Here are examples of a lightly edited manuscript page — one edited on paper, the other on screen in MS Word.

Suggested reading for writers, editors, and publishers

What Errors?

Here are the kinds of things I look for according to the services you have requested.

• Proofreading and Other Projects
• Copyediting and Substantive Editing/Rewriting Projects Only
• Substantive Editing/Rewriting Projects Only

Proofreading and Other Projects

Grammar

• Subject and verb agreement

Punctuation

• Proper use of commas, periods, semicolons, etc.
• Sentence fragments and comma splices

Spelling

• Commonly misspelled words (separate, not seperate)
• Usage mistakes (principal for principle)
• Consistency throughout (boo-boo or booboo)
• Typos (to0l for tool)

Formatting

• Same-level headings capitalized consistently
• Standardized format for dates, phone numbers, etc.
• Conformance to style guidelines

Copyediting and Substantive Editing/Rewriting Projects Only

Issues listed above plus the following grammar and style problems.

• Ambiguous references
  • Original: Mabel cut the article out of the newspaper and tossed it in the recycle bin.
  • Revision: Mabel cut out the article and tossed the newspaper in the recycle bin.
• Awkward transitions
  • Original:
    The wide gate rolled aside, and the breeze blew harder free of the fencing. The city had replaced the old sewer lines to stop the streets from flooding when it rained. The trees along the alley had been chopped back to branches five inches thick, which meant that when they budded out all the leaves would hang close to the stumps. It would be very hot.
  • Revision 1:
    The wide gate rolled aside, and the breeze blew hard through the opening. The alley outside was a patchwork of old and new asphalt where the city had replaced the old sewer lines to stop the streets from flooding when it rained. The trees along the alley had been chopped back, leaving stumpy branches five inches thick. When the trees budded out, the leaves would hang close and give little shade, and the alley would be very hot.
  • Revision 2:
    The wide gate rolled aside, and the breeze gusted through the opening. The alley outside was a patchwork of old and new asphalt where the city had replaced the old sewer lines to stop the streets from flooding when it rained. The trees along the alley had been chopped back, leaving stumpy branches five inches thick. Even fully leafed the trees would give little shade; heat would smother the alley.
• Dangling participles
  • Original: A tomboy at heart, Rosie’s father irritated her by warning her to stay out of the trees.
  • Revision: Her father’s warning to stay out of the trees irritated Rosie, who was a tomboy at heart.
• Parallel structure
  • Original: Her favorite pastimes are swimming, reading, and to play golf.
  • Revision: Her favorite pastimes are swimming, reading, and playing golf.
• Passive voice
  • Original: He was gratified by their praise.
  • Revision: Their praise gratified him.
  • (Sometimes, such as when the entity performing the action is unknown, passive voice is preferred.)
• Wordiness
  • Original: Many of those ideas Gretchen barely comprehended and they sounded ridiculous since it felt to her that no one in their right mind would ever have thought such a thing without being told to. [34 words]
  • Revision: Gretchen barely comprehended many of those ideas and felt no right-minded person would think such ridiculous things on their own. [20 words]

Substantive Editing/Rewriting Projects Only

Issues listed above plus the following content problems.

• Clarity
  Is the meaning clear at first reading?
• Flow of ideas
  Do thoughts flow logically? Would paragraph 4 make more sense if it were above paragraph 2?

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