What's the Difference Between Proofreading and Editing?

What is Proofreading?

The difference between proofreading and editing is essentially the amount of work required and the amount of involvement I, as your proofreader or editor, am allowed with your words.

To best demonstrate what I mean, I asked ChatGPT to generate two random 100-word paragraphs that required proofreading and editing (I then further added mistakes for me to correct). I then corrected them both to the required level, hopefully giving you a clear picture of what to expect when you employ me as a proofreader or an editor.

First off, here is a 100-word paragraph from a tech book or manual, which requires proofreading rather than editing. See if you can spot the mistakes:

To properly assemble the device, please follows these steps carefully. First, insert the battery into it's designated compartment, ensuring the polarity is correctly aligned. Next, attach the cover securely by fastening the screws tightly. Then, connect the power cord to the device and plug it in a nearby wall socket. After that, turn on the switch and wait for the indicator light to turns green. Once the device is activated, make sure to not touch any of it's internal components, as it may cause damage. Finally, refer to the user's manual for further informations on operation and maintenance.

…And here is my proofread version. See if you can spot the changes:

To properly assemble the device, please follows these steps carefully. First, insert the battery into its designated compartment, ensuring the polarity is correctly aligned. Next, attach the cover securely by fastening the screws tightly. Connect the power cord to the device and plug it into a nearby wall socket. After that, turn on the switch and wait for the indicator light to turn green. Once the device is activated, make sure to not touch any of its internal components, as it may cause damage. Finally, refer to the user's manual for further information on operation and maintenance.

This example only required proofreading because the content was correct, well-ordered, and had almost correct spelling and grammar. It has likely been gone through several times, possibly by another editor. I did, however, have to make the following changes:

• Changing “plug it in a nearby…” to “plug it into a nearby…” so that it reads more professionally.
• Changing “it’s” (always short for “it is”) for its where necessary.
• Correcting the spelling of “turns” and “informations” (turns isn’t misspelt, but is wrong in the context used; the plural of “information” is “information”).

​I haven’t made any major changes, and were this a real book, I might go another page before finding another correction, but if I hadn’t made the changes I did, this paragraph would be far less professional, blighting the book. (And believe me, I’ve learned from experience what happens when you publish something without getting a third party to proofread!)

What is Editing?

Now let’s look at editing, which requires more work and allows me, as your editor, more scope to sculpt your words.
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For this example, I asked ChatGPT to generate a 100-word paragraph from the introduction to a non-fiction book about a random subject (it chose the human mind, which may or may not be a bit spooky). I asked it to include examples of common things that editors pick up on and alter:

In this book, we embark on an exploratory journey into the intriguing realm of mind, and consciousness. Preare to delve into the deep perplexing depths of the human psyche as we unravel it’s brilliant, mysterious labyrinth. From the intricate neural networks deep within our brains to the enigmatic nature of dreams, we'll navigate through the vast ocean of cognitive processes. Discover the dizzying, complex kaleidoscope of thoughts, emotions and perceptions which shape our colorful understandings. Through the complex prism of scientific research and philosophical ponderings, this book aims to illuminate the wonderous tapestry of our inner worlds, shedding light on the unexplored frontiers of human cognition and consienceness. So, embark on this thought provoking odyssey and let your minds horizons expand like a burst of crazy, awe-inspiring vibrant fireworks in the twilight November skies!

And here's how I edited it:

In this book, we embark on an exploratory journey into the intriguing realm of mind and consciousness. Prepare to delve into the depths of the human psyche as we unravel its mysterious labyrinth. From the intricate neural networks of our brains to the enigmatic nature of dreams, we'll navigate the vast ocean of cognitive processes. Discover the kaleidoscope of thoughts, emotions, and perceptions that shape our understanding. Through scientific research and philosophical ponderings, this book aims to illuminate the tapestry of our inner worlds, shedding light on the unexplored frontiers of human consciousness. So, embark on this thought-provoking odyssey and let your mind’s horizons expand!

As you can see, I’ve made some small changes and some larger ones. I have:

• Corrected the obvious and more subtle spelling mistakes.
• Deleted commas that were in the wrong place and added ones that were missing.
• Removed unnecessary words that say the same thing twice (“i.e. the deep depths”) or are overused (“complex” appears three times in the unedited example, only once in the edited one).
• Tidied the grammar up (“its” instead of “it’s”, “mind’s horizon” instead of “minds horizon”, “that” instead of “which”, hyphenating words where needed, etc.).
• Cut down on adjectives (in the unedited paragraph, the author is clearly passionate about their subject — which I want to preserve — but they are trying to convey their passion with lots of lively describing words, and these are obscuring the message).
• Removed the final simile because it’s what is known in the trade as “purple prose” (over-the-top writing, which, like overusing adjectives, can make writing appear less professional and harder to read).

This example conveys how editing is more active than proofreading in suggesting where writing could be tightened or improved — without losing the essence of your unique voice. When you work with me on your project, all changes are “tracked” in Microsoft Word, meaning you can review them and accept or disregard as you see fit.

Got a book, story, blog, manual, course, or website that would benefit from proofreading or editing? If so, I'd love to hear about it. Drop me an email or give me a call, and let's make it as good as it can possibly be!