More often than not, writers are confused as to whether they need editing or just proofreading. While for many these might seem the same thing, there is a drastic difference between the two activities. And technically, when you are submitting academic writing, you will need both services.
Very briefly explained, editing refers to ensuring that a certain piece of writing says the right things in the right way for the right audience. But proofreading looks into the document to check if it complies with the accepted language use rules. Therefore, editing is more about the message conveyed while proofreading is mostly about mechanics. It is entirely possible that you might need only dissertation proofreading, and not an edit because your work is already written well.
That being said, both these are ideally done by experts. It is difficult to proofread your own writing because the chances are that you will overlook mistakes.
In this blog, we will explain the difference between editing and proofreading –
What is Editing?
An editor is responsible for ensuring that the author’s work is in alignment with the subject. He focuses on –
- Clarity – to understand if the overall message (or story or thesis) is clear and obvious. He also checks whether the text can be clearly understood by the target audience
- Cohesiveness – checks whether every part of the work can fit together
- Continuity – focuses on whether every segment of the work flows smoothly into the rest of the text and whether it has a satisfying end
- Content – critiques if the message is relevant and understandable for the target audience, especially if it is a sensitive one
- Tone – assesses if the work resonates with target readers
The reasons why you will need the experts at HKNETS to do the editing is that peer editing can sometimes lead to over-editing. The experts will understand where to balance the work and not dominate it with the author’s voice in the name of editing. Editing is done to make the writing better and not turn the entire piece into something that it never was.
What is Proofreading?
You will need a proofreading service from the experts in the final stages of manuscript or dissertation preparation. Proofreading focuses on the nitty-gritty details of the grammar and the language used. They check the physical layout of the work, but don’t criticize the message or intent or the work.
Depending on the need, some works follow specific style guidelines such as the Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA), or Chicago Manual of Style.
The key areas that proofreading addresses include but are not limited to –
- Punctuation – whether all the proper punctuation marks are present throughout the document
- Grammar – whether the writing uses the normally accepted words in the context and notes whether the grammar is correct throughout the entire content
- Spelling – it is vital to check whether all the words are spelled correctly, for instance ‘there’ versus ‘their’
- Formatting – this checks the readability, that is whether the eye can easily follow the text with all the layouts, headings, and more
- References – in academic writing, references play a very important part in proofreading; the experts check if all the footnotes, table of contents, bibliography, and other references are mentioned
While there are a number of editing and proofreading tools online, it is still a human activity. It needs a trained eye to carry out the tasks.
Please follow and like us:
