Will a publisher edit my book?

I get a lot of emails from people who want to find a publisher for their book, often asking what kind of edit they need before they submit their work. Here’s what I always tell people who want to pursue traditional publishing: you absolutely don’t need to hire an editor before you submit. It’s not required.

The types of editing publishers provide

A publisher will always edit your book before it goes to print. There are three major stages your manuscript will go through with a publisher.

The developmental edit

This is sometimes called structural editing, story editing, or dev editing. An editor at a publishing house will usually do some rounds of developmental editing on a manuscript, to get the foundations of the work as solid as possible. This type of edit will focus on the big picture: things like the plot and any subplots, character development, character relationships, world-building/shaping the setting, upping stakes, improving pacing, and so on.

This edit sometimes comes in the form of an editorial report on its own, which the author uses to guide them when they revise the book, or it might come in the form of an editorial report and notes in the manuscript itself.

The copy or line edit

Once the foundations are strong, the publisher will move on to sentence-level work. A copyeditor will comb over a manuscript to sort out the technicalities of spelling, grammar, word choice, continuity, formatting, and so on, as well as ensuring everything is consistent, and that the publisher’s preferred house style is applied. (A house style is a set of rules and conventions a publisher has for all their publications.)

A line edit is more stylistic and in-depth and might be performed if an author needs additional help with things like passages that could read better, point-of-view issues, redundancy, awkward phrasing, scene break locations, etc.

The line between these two types of editing is blurry: there’s no one-size-fits-all definition. Some editors don’t even distinguish between them, referring to “light” or “heavy” copyediting instead. A publisher might ask a copyeditor to do a “copyedit” but ask for additional tasks that fall under line editing if the author needs them.

Proofreading

Proofreading is the last line of defence before a book goes out into the world – but it’s more than just checking for the odd typo. The publisher will ask a proofreader to go over everything to ensure no errors were missed, and often, to check that the “proof” (the formatted and laid-out version of the book) looks correct, and that there are no design flaws. I have a whole post on what goes into proofreading here.

If a publisher will edit my book, why would I hire an editor before submitting?

As I said before, hiring an independent or freelance editor is not required to submit to agents and publishers. Be very wary of anyone who tells you otherwise!

But we all know that literary agents and publishers get hundreds, if not thousands, of submissions. Competition is fierce. There are some editorial services that can help you if you intend to publish traditionally. Some authors choose to work with a freelance editor for developmental work on their full manuscript, or getting their submission package and query letter honed, before they submit. Of course, there are no guarantees in publishing, and it doesn’t mean you’ll definitely be picked up, so weigh the pros and cons carefully before you decide. Some authors view it more as an educational investment in their writing craft – similar to taking a course or mentorship program.

Again, hiring a freelance editor is not required. Be wary of any editor who tells you that you have to do this. And also be wary of any editor who says they can guarantee you an agent or a publishing contract if you work with them on your book.

Other options for feedback

There are lots of other ways to improve your manuscript before submission – you could find beta readers or work with critique partners, take writing classes, read books or listen to podcasts on developing your work and story structure. Whether or not you want to enlist the help of a freelance editor is a personal choice, and entirely up to you.

If you’d like some help with your manuscript, check out my editorial services – I’d love to hear from you about your project!

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