PART OF LINE-BY-LINE EDITING

Copy editing: consistency, accuracy, and a clean manuscript

Copy editing is not a separate stage; it is part of the line-by-line editing pass. It is the manuscript’s careful middle distance: close enough to catch the details, wide enough to keep those details in service of the book.

Grammar and usage

Copy editing corrects errors and makes deliberate choices about grammar, punctuation, usage, and spelling.

Consistency

Names, dates, capitalization, terminology, headings, and references should belong to one coherent system across the manuscript.

Accuracy and citations

The pass can flag questions in facts, quotations, notes, and citations so the author can resolve them before publication.

A clean manuscript

The copy edit leaves a manuscript that is easier to read, easier to design, and less likely to distract from its argument.

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