01
Grammar and usage
Copy editing corrects errors and makes deliberate choices about grammar, punctuation, usage, and spelling.
03 · Copy editing
Copy editing: consistency, accuracy, and a clean manuscript
Copy editing is the manuscript’s careful middle distance: close enough to catch the details, wide enough to keep those details in service of the book.
02
Consistency
Names, dates, capitalization, terminology, headings, and references should belong to one coherent system across the manuscript.
03
Accuracy and citations
The pass can flag questions in facts, quotations, notes, and citations so the author can resolve them before publication.
04
A clean manuscript
The copy edit leaves a manuscript that is easier to read, easier to design, and less likely to distract from its argument.