What Is Proofreading? Australian Authors’ Guide to Proofreading

The Complete Guide to Proofreading for Australian Authors!

We’re often asked, “What is proofreading, and how is it different from other types of editing services, such as copyediting and developmental editing?” It’s a good question. Regardless of your preferred genre, fiction or non-fiction, YA, fantasy, romance, or a children’s book, proofreading is one step you can’t afford to miss. Don’t skip your proofreading! If the budget won’t stretch to professional proofreading, there are effective self-editing methods you can utilize.

Personally, I’m guilty of not always proofreading my work. It happens to the best of us. It’s especially true when I’m writing blogs and articles for Author Services Australia. If you find any errors, please forgive me. In the following article, we’re going to dive headfirst into what proofreading is and why it’s an essential step in the self-publishing process.

If you’re just getting started in your self-publishing journey, be sure to check out The Best Self-Publishing Platforms to Self-Publish Your Books! We cover everything you need to know about self-publishing platforms, Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP), IngramSpark Publishing, and many others for Australian and New Zealand authors.

We also have a great article on The Complete Guide to Self-Publishing in Australia. Check that out! It’s full of useful self-publishing information, tips, and guides for Australian and New Zealand authors.

If you have any questions about the self-publishing process, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

What Is Proofreading?

The Cambridge Dictionary defines proofreading as the process of finding and correcting mistakes in a text before it is printed or published online. The most common errors found during proofreading include grammatical mistakes, punctuation errors, spelling mistakes, and capitalization issues.

The proof in “proofreading or proofreader” refers to the publishing term for an early printed or review copy of a book. When printing presses were operated manually, and every letter had to be placed individually into the press, printers would make a proof copy first. This had to be approved by the publisher to avoid printing hundreds or thousands of copies with a typo.

Although we’ve moved to digital printers and computers, proofreading remains an essential step in the self-publishing process. While most professional editors use Microsoft Word and its track changes function, some authors still prefer the old-fashioned method of printing their manuscript and manually proofreading it.

Self-Editing Tip – One of the easiest ways to do a final check of your manuscript is to read it aloud. It sounds daunting, but it’s really not too bad. Find somewhere quiet and work your way through the manuscript from start to finish. Reading aloud will help you find those pesky errors that look good on the screen but sound out of place when read aloud. It’s surprising how often a sentence reads well on screen, but sounds bad when you read it aloud.

What’s the Difference Between Editing and Proofreading?

Proofreading is the final step in the editing journey. After a manuscript evaluation, developmental edit, or copy edit, you would then proofread. It’s your proofreader’s job to look through the final manuscript, sometimes before formatting, or after, to find any mistakes that may have slipped through the cracks during previous editing passes.

That doesn’t mean that you won’t find one in your printed copy. Like us, even the best proofreader isn’t perfect.

It doesn’t matter how good an editor you have, or how good a writer you are. There are always typos and edits. Even after several rounds of editing and proofreading, it’s not uncommon to find a few mistakes. This is especially true with lengthy or complicated manuscripts.

Why Is Proofreading Essential for Authors?

Proofreading may be directly related to books and written text, but doing a final check before publishing anything, including videos, movies, and TV shows, is a good idea. Unfortunately, it’s a step that many of us, myself included, forget.

In Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, one of the Stormtroopers walking into the room accidentally bangs his head on the set. Laurie Goode, the actor, believed he was out of the main shot and that someone would cut the scene, but it wasn’t cut. It ended up in the film’s final version, much to his delight when he saw it at the cinema for the first time.

In Game of Thrones, arguably one of the most-watched TV series of all time, viewers were quick to spot the infamous Starbucks coffee cup. A coffee cup was inadvertently left on the table during a pivotal moment of the show. In another scene, a water bottle was left behind someone’s leg. It was another big oops moment for producers.

A scene from the cult-classic Pulp Fiction, where Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta’s characters walk into a house to pick up a briefcase, includes bullet holes in the wall. The bullet holes are present before any of the shooting takes place a few minutes later. Oops.

So, you can see that even with dozens of experienced editors, even major motion films and TV shows aren’t immune to making mistakes. It doesn’t matter how good your book is. A bunch of typos and edits will quickly result in a negative review. However, no one’s perfect. If a mistake or typo slips through, update your internal files and keep moving forward.

For many new authors, it’s tempting to skip a proofread or even assume that a copyedit will pick up most mistakes. However, copyediting and proofreading are two different editing processes. Your copyeditor will pick up on some errors and typos, but their primary role is to look at the style and tone of your book. It’s your copyeditor’s job to ensure the main character doesn’t get different coloured hair in chapter four, and to keep the name of the town consistent throughout the book. This means they’re not always focused on full stops and commas.

Working with A Professional Proofreader on your Book or Manuscript

The primary role of your proofreader is to find grammatical errors, typos, and spelling mistakes. While they may spot potential continuity issues, it’s not their primary job. If they do spot any possible problems, they’re more likely to highlight the potential error for you to fix, rather than making changes to your manuscript. As you review your proofreader’s work, check if they left any comments.

Most professional proofreaders will work on your manuscript in Microsoft Word. This allows them to utilize the track changes function to review their work. You can also review it using the same function. It’s essential to note that even professional proofreaders aren’t immune to errors, so don’t expect a 100% error-free manuscript, especially with long books.

Pros and Cons of Professional Proofreading

Traditionally published novels and books will all undergo proofreading, but even a Wilbur Smith or James Patterson novel can’t escape the odd typo or spelling mistake. Typos and spelling mistakes feel inevitable at times.

Self-published authors, especially on a tight budget, often look for ways to reduce costs. Don’t try to save money by skipping proofreading. Programs such as Grammarly Pro are a good start, but even they can’t replace professional proofreading by an experienced proofreader. However, they’re a good part of the self-editing process. So, don’t dismiss them entirely.

Pros of Professional Proofreading:

- - - - A professional proofreader isn’t just an experienced person looking at your manuscript. Your proofreader is a fresh set of eyes taking in and absorbing your manuscript for the first time. They haven’t spent hundreds of hours writing and editing it, so you get a good first perspective.
        
        It’s much faster for experienced proofreaders to go through and proofread your manuscript. Some proofreaders will do multiple passes, focusing on specific areas each pass.
        
        With all that experience comes knowledge. Your proofreader will often come up with a suggestion or plot idea you hadn’t considered.

Cons of Professional Proofreading:

- - - - It can take time to find a proofreader you enjoy working with. You also need to factor in the additional time required for proofreading your manuscript into your expected publication or release date.
        
        Using a professional proofreader can incur additional costs.

How Much Does Proofreading Cost?

Proofreading can range from $0.02 to $0.04 per word, but at Author Services Australia, we typically base all our editing and proofreading costs on individual manuscripts. We believe that this is a fairer way to quote on editing projects. It ensures our customers aren’t paying exorbitant proofreading fees when their manuscript doesn’t require it.

Some genres are also more complex or more complicated to proofread than others. A non-fiction book may be far more complex than a romance book, even though they’re the same length.

Tips for Self-Editing and Proofreading Your Book or Manuscript

Proofreading your own work or self-editing before publishing isn’t an alternative to professional editing and proofreading. However, it is an essential part of the self-publishing process.

Below, we’ll cover some self-editing and proofreading tips that any author can put into practice before they even approach an editor:

- - - - Identify Your Weaknesses – All authors or writers are prone to making mistakes. However, after reviewing your work, you may notice that you keep repeating the same mistakes. When a professional editor works on your manuscript, they often include a style sheet. Your style sheet lists these repetitive mistakes, so you can work on improving and removing them from your writing.
        
        Read It Aloud – Reading aloud is an excellent way to identify hard-to-find errors and typos. It also identifies any clunky sentences. Find somewhere quiet, grab a cup of coffee, and settle in for some reading.

Proofreading FAQs

- - - - Do you offer proofreading services only, or do I need to purchase copyediting and proofreading together? – We offer standalone proofreading services from experienced editors with decades of combined experience. We even offer multiple editors so that no editor works on the same manuscript.
        
        What’s the best way to get a proofreading quote? – Contact us via email and have your manuscript, or 2 to 3 chapters as a sample, ready. We’ll be able to provide a proofreading quote and an estimated completion date.
        
        What’s the best file format to supply my manuscript in? – A Microsoft Word document is the most universally used document format. It allows your editor to utilize the track changes function.
        
        Do you charge upfront for proofreading? – We charge a 50% deposit on all editing and proofreading. The balance is due before delivery of your final files.

What Is Proofreading? The Australian Authors’ Guide to Proofreading | Conclusion

There you go! The answer to the old author’s question, What is proofreading? As self-published authors with limited time, tight deadlines, and even tighter budgets, it’s always tempting to find shortcuts. However, you should never skip proofreading. Reading a two or three-star review that could have been a four or five-star review because it lists a bunch of spelling mistakes and typos that could have been avoided is not a good feeling.

Invest in your book, and that investment should pay dividends.