Episode 7
In this episode I go over the various forms of editing available and my views on how self-publishers should use them.
There are three main kinds of editing:
- Developmental Editing – based on improving book/story structure and giving guidance about the book. They do NOT check for spelling errors.
- Copy Editing – grammar/spelling checking and continuity and potentially legal checking.
- Proof Reading – spelling checking and potentially positioning of text, e.g finishing with one word on the top of a page (for print).
I mention professional bodies in the US (PEN – Professional Editors Network) and the UK (Society for Editors and Proofreaders) for editors.
I talk about my own experiences of using my mum as an editor and where you might want to spend money and my view that you absolutely shouldn’t try and edit your own work. I also mention my view that running your work through a text-to-speech service like Natural Readers can be very useful to pick up spelling errors and those situations when you book doesn’t sound “right”.
I mention the video I’ve now added to Episode 2’s show note page (BSP Episode 2) – where you can see me going step-by-step through the process of releasing a book using the KDP service.