Hire a Freelance Editor

Not sure if you need a freelance editor or a proofreader?

Read on.

Confusing proofreading with editing isn’t just a common error, it’s a common and expensive error.

If want to produce something  good, you need to do both – edit and proofread. And here’s why doing it can keep your costs down and make for a better end result.

In most cases, unless a professional writer has has done the writing, you need an editor.  At the very least a copy-editor. But if it’s a big piece of work, then someone comfortable with substantial editing.

Editing and proofreading in the production cycle

If you’re creating a designed document (whether for print or simply as an electronic document) the sequence should go: Write – Edit – Design – Proofread.

Unfortunately, all too often it goes: Write – Design – “Proofread” – Redesign – “Proofread” – Redesign – Proofread.

It’s usually because the writer believes that skipping ‘Edit’ and just getting someone to proofread will save them time and money.

It won’t! And I’m not saying this because I’m trying to convince you to hire me as your editor. I’m saying this because chances are that if you aren’t using a professional writer and you skip out ‘Edit’ you’re going to increase your costs on the ‘Design’ and ‘Proofread’ stages.

Unless your designer and proofreader have had the misfortune of giving you a fixed quote, you’re going to pay them a whole lot more than you planned on, or you’re going to end up with a disgruntled pair who will never want to work with you again.

And chances are excellent you’ll also end up with a less-than-perfect final document.

When to edit (in an ideal world)

ALWAYS. And before you send it to the graphic designer.

An editor’s job is to:

• Spot and correct factual, grammatical and spelling errors
• Check that the writing is as clear as possible
• Delete any information that has been unnecessarily repeated or is irrelevant to the reader
• Make sure the document reads smoothly and logically.

You might not want to hire a freelance editor. Fair enough. We do cost money. But whether you choose to outsource your editing or  get someone in house to do it, the most important thing is that the person editing the document needs to be a someone other than the writer.

Why?

Because the writer knows what they want to say. They also have extensive background knowledge that informs how they read what they’ve written. Ideally you need a ‘blank mind’ to read and make sense of the information. (No, I’m not advocating a dim-witted editor, but someone outside of the writer’s ‘jargon circle’ is a good place to start. A representative of your target audience, even better!)

Should you still bother with proofreading?

Yes. A proofreader is there for a final check of the document once it’s been sent to the designer and been laid out. The proofreader’s job is to:

• Do a final check for spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors
• Check nothing has been cut off or left out
• Check the formatting is consistent: that the font sizes are correct, the bullets all indented equally, headings have been formatted, etc.
• Check any numbers and references.

The proofreader is there in case the editor missed something, which  may happen, and to catch any errors that creep in when the text is imported into the design program. There is no other way of checking this except manually.

If you haven’t used an editor, and there are obscurely complex sentences, inaccuracies, duplicated information or illogical leaps in your designed document, the proofreader is going to do one of two things:

1. Ignore the chaos and only sweat the small stuff, because they were hired to proofread the document, not edit it.
2. Suggest changes to make it more logical and coherent, as well as checking for typos, formatting, etc.

Number two is what inevitably happens, because most proofreaders have a flaming obsession with accuracy.

And number two  is where it gets expensive. Because now your proofs need to go back to the designer, who needs to make the changes, then back to the proofreader again. And this cycle might need to repeat itself a few times before you get a final document.  If they’ve quoted you a fixed cost on your project, chances are they’re going to be fed up at this point and not do the best job they’re capable of.

So, if you take the time to edit before your document goes for design you’re saving the cost of two people’s extra time, and potentially also their sanity.

Of course, you might get a proofreader who goes with option one and does what they are being paid to do – proofread. Then you’re going to end up with a well-spelt, grammatically correct but potentially sub-standard document. In which case, why bother with a proofreader at all?

What if you can only hire  an editor or a proofreader?

Not all jobs will need you to hire both. If it’s a small job your editor will usually check the final designs for you, and you can get someone in house to do it too.

But if it’s a big job – a book, a chunky research report or a prospectus, for example –  you need to get someone to edit and proofread it if you can.  Just don’t skip the editing!