DO YOU NEED AN EDITOR OR A PROOFREADER?? Most people outside the editing and publishing business do not know the basic difference between editing and proofreading. Most people don’t know there is an existing difference. So, for those researchers who do acknowledge that they need help with their research paper but don’t know what they exactly need help with. When should you hire a proofreader and when do you need an editor? Editing and proofreading could be more far apart, yet closely knit when it comes to the publishing industry. Most universities and academic journals prefer writers with English as their second language to use professional academic editing and proofreading services. So, here is an attempt to clarify the blurred lines that run between them for the readers. Editing declassified: Editing is working on the overall quality and accuracy of your paper, which includes language, structure, clarity, flow, logic, grammar, readability, grammar, consistency, and punctuation. Editors meticulously and thoroughly review your paper. They will check for technical appropriateness with every possible aspect of your text, not only English. So, an editor is an individual who should have some amount of expertise in a specific subject area. They will also refine and upgrade what your paper is trying to articulate. So, if a researcher is Santa Clause then editors are elves. They will help you develop the idea you have and make it more target audience adjacent. Proofreading decoded: After you have the final draft ready, everyone “does” or “must” proofread, knowingly or unknowingly. Proofreading is basically like separating rice and wheat grains mixed in plate. A proofreader will focus on the grammatical, typographical, and spelling errors in your paper. They will look for errors and inconsistencies in each and every line of your text, including the headings, tables, and figures. Proofreaders are like the metal scanners at the airport who scan through your documents for all the aforementioned errors. Why should you know the difference? The biggest reason why you should know the difference because (A) it is your paper and (B) it is your money you will spend to hire academic editing and proofreading services. If you are an objective researcher, who can be honest about your work, then no one can know better than you what your work exactly needs. So, knowing the difference between editing and proofreading will only help you make an informed and wise choice. Which service do you need? Editing and proofreading, ideally, come at different steps of your revision process. If you were a potter, then editors would probably work on your piece when the mud is still wet and moldable, whereas the proofreaders would work on your piece when the pot has been left out to dry for a while. So, if you seek help in the relatively early stages of drafting your manuscript then you probably would need an editor and the later stages would mean that you need a proofreader. WRITING EDITING PROOFREADING How do I choose? Most academic editing and proofreading service providers charge you by the hour. It is always easier on your pocket to choose those who charge you by the word count rather than the hour.
