All About Proofreading
What Is It?
Proofreading is for last-minute touch-ups before publishing.
Some things a proofreader might look for are errors in punctuation, grammar, spelling, and simple formatting. They’ll make sure all the cross-references that say, “See page X for more information about this,” actually line up and have the correct page number. They’ll make sure a chapter number isn’t skipped or duplicated, that words aren’t cut off by graphics, that the pages look nice and clean. All the little details that you don’t really want to take the time to check are important, that’s what a proofreader will do for you—in addition to checking for typos, punctuation errors, and inconsistent grammar.
Proofreaders do not suggest better ways of saying things (like editors). The text is not up for debate anymore—it’s past that. This is just for double-checking there are no lasting errors and ensuring consistency throughout the book.
When Should I Have My Book Proofread?
Proofreading is done after an editor has already taken a look at the text and it has been typeset. At this point, you should be able to send the proofreader a PDF directly from the formatter.
Sometimes I proofread on Word documents (before it’s formatted), and that’s fine. But you’re missing out on the proofreader checking for a lot of important details after it’s been formatted.
How Does It Work?
You’ll send the proofreader a PDF document. They’ll do their thing, then they send it back to you. This PDF will be marked up (written on). There will be no changes in the real text because marking up a PDF is like drawing on a picture of the text (unless they actually did edit the PDF with fancy software). This means you (or more likely the formatter) will need to go through each page of the PDF and individually input each change the proofreader suggested into the working document. (Formatters might be using InDesign, so they’ll put the changes directly into InDesign.) Once that’s done, the book is proofread and ready for publishing!
What Should I Expect When I Get My Book Back?
Inputting each individual change into the document sounds really meticulous, and it is, but there shouldn’t be too many changes. It’s not like editing. Remember, proofreaders aren’t suggesting ideas; they’re only pointing out errors. Real, indisputable errors. So there should be very few.
You can probably expect one change every page or two. More than that means the book might have benefitted from some more copy editing before the proofreading. Less than that and you’re golden.
If you think only having one or two changes per page makes proofreading a waste of time and money (because it looks so different from editing—so few changes), know that without it, there would be one error every one or two pages. That’s a lot! If people find one or two errors throughout the whole book, they’re upset. This makes proofreading incredibly important!
How Long Does It Take?
Great question. I’m going to give you some very rough numbers just to give you an idea, but this can vary so much depending on a ton of factors.
For me, proofreading a 50,000-word book would take about two weeks. A 100,000-word book would likely take three or four weeks.
Here are some factors that will influence how long it takes to proofread your book:
How clean is it? Cleaner = faster
How many other projects does the editor already have scheduled?
How many hours does the proofreader work per week?
How many projects does the proofreader normally stack at once?
When are you ready to start, and when is the proofreader available to start? (Remember that proofreaders are likely booked out at least a month. Even if your book will only take two weeks to proofread, they may not be able to start for a month; that will push your deadline back a lot! Make sure to contact them a few months before you’re ready to start.)
With all that said, don’t take those numbers too seriously. That’s how long it takes me, but I’m sure there are proofreaders who would quote for half that time and some who would quote for double that time.
The best way to ensure your book is finished on time is to contact editors and proofreaders sooner than later. Just ask them! It’s totally fine to email a proofreader saying, “Hi, I need proofreading, but it won’t be ready for four months. I’m not quite ready to sign; I’m just researching. Can I get a quote so I can budget accordingly? And how far in advance do you normally book out?” I love getting those emails. It helps me plan for the future as well. :)
Still have questions about proofreading? Email me!
If you need a proofreader for your nonfiction book, contact me for a quote!