What is it?

Proofreading is your last line of defence. It is the pass through of the final version of the manuscript and is usually done after all the formatting has been completed. It is different from other types of editorial services in that it doesn’t provide in-depth feedback on your book.

Proof readers come in at the end to tweak and polish, not to overhaul your content. This is an essential part of the process. Typo-free text and professional presentation are non-negotiable if you want your book to be taken seriously by readers.

A proofread checks the entire manuscript. It ensures that spelling, punctuation and style are correct using the style sheet provided by either the copyeditor or the author. Style checks include fonts and point sizes, spacing, headers and footers, alignment and justification on the page. In digital editing (for eBooks and websites) it will also check that any links or URLs are correct and that they go to the intended places.

Who needs it?

Authors who are almost ready to publish, have completed their manuscripts and been through the copyediting and formatting processes.

What I will do for you

To ensure your book is ready to publish, I double-check everything. I make sure that your book is free from spelling mistakes, grammatical errors, and other issues which could spoil a reader’s enjoyment of your writing. 

I look for every minor error in your text, from missing commas to homophones. I also check typographical and layout issues, such as incorrect typefaces or awkwardly spaced lines within the text.  In addition to checking the main body of the manuscript, I cross-check chapter names and numbers in a table of contents, check the dedication page, acknowledgements, and everywhere that text appears.