Types of Editing
Substantive (developmental) editing
The most intensive form of editing is substantive editing. The document is evaluated as a whole and problems of structure, organization, coherence, and logical consistency are corrected. Sentences may be removed or added. Paragraphs may be rewritten, condensed, or expanded. Blocks of text may be moved from one section to another. Turnaround time must be negotiated.
Average Time for Editing: (heavy edit; possibly including some rewriting): 1-2 pages per hour
Copy editing
The editor corrects problems of grammar, style, repetition, word usage, and jargon.
Average Time: Medium edit: 4-6 pages per hour
Average Time: Light edit (skim document, correcting obvious errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation, consistency and completeness): 8-10 pages per hour
Proofreading
Proofreading is the lightest form of editing. Minor errors are corrected. Minor errors include:
• errors of grammar and style (e.g., verb tense, units such as ml, use of numerals and words such as “5” or “five”)
• errors of capitalization, punctuation (e.g., the use of commas, semicolons, colons, periods, dashes, apostrophes)
• errors of spelling and word usage (e.g., to/too, affect/effect)
Average Time: Light edit (skim document, correcting obvious errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation, consistency and completeness): 8-10 pages per hour
Average Time: 20 pages or more per hour (varies widely depending on what’s involved)
Formatting
The editor will amend document text to ensure that it complies with the required format, such as the format required by a specific journal. Turnaround time can be negotiated.
References/Literature Cited
Literature citations are checked to ensure that each citation that appears in the text is also included in the list of citations. Citations are also checked to ensure that each citation that appears in the list of citations also appears in the text. The format of the citations are corrected so that it conforms with requirements, such as the style preferred by a specific journal.
Other documents
Other documents also may be edited. For example, the editor may rework tables, figures, and figure legends to represent the data more clearly.
Review
The editor may provide a one to two page diagnosis of the manuscript that highlights the areas where changes might be most beneficial. Criticisms that are likely to arise during peer review, such as repetitive, ambiguous, or incomplete information, will be noted. Turnaround time must be negotiated.
(Taken and adapted from http://www.mseditoronline.com/types.html)