Which one comes First, Editing or Proofreading?

We have asked a group of proofreaders whether editing or proofreading comes first when it comes to academic work, and this is what they had to say.

Answer 1

Proofreading is the final stage in the editorial process and takes place throughout the production phase. People have become perplexed by the term in our digital age, however the term originates from reading and verifying page proofs. As a result, proofreading.

Page proofs are the publication’s initial layout forms, the pages as they will appear in the final layout. A proofreader’s job at this point is to seek for glaring errors, not to improve the readability of something or to polish a clunky sentence (which should have been done earlier during the editing stages). Thus, the proofreader is mainly concerned with spelling and grammatical faults; missing words; typographical errors; ineffective or confusing line, paragraph, or page breaks; and evident factual inaccuracies. (While fact-checking is performed earlier in the process, a proofreader may occasionally notice an error based on their understanding of the subject at hand.) Additionally, proofreaders search for layout errors, such as an omitted folio, uneven type size, or an inaccurate chapter title in the page header.

Many of these tasks may be split amongst numerous people on particularly big and well-funded projects. For instance, one proofreader may be assigned just to the text, while another may be assigned to proofread for layout errors such as wrong photo placement. If the project is large sufficient (e.g., a presidential biography), numerous people will be involved in simply proofreading the material. This is why, in a book of 100,000 words, you will find relatively few (if any) errors.

Answer 2

Proofreading is the final step before a document is printed or published online, and as such, it is always the last step. This makes sense when the objective of proofreading is to ensure that the text is free of errors prior to publication. A proofreader will look for typos, overlooked grammar, capitalization, and punctuation flaws, as well as concerns with formatting or layout.

Because the purpose of proofreading is to identify and delete problems before a work is released, performing a proofread prior to editing is meaningless. Again, this makes much more sense when the aim of editing is understood. There are two primary types of editing (though their definitions and nomenclature vary by country): formative editing and copy editing. The former considers the larger picture and strives to improve the text’s structure, message, and content. The latter is more concerned with the details, such as syntax, language, and sentence structure.

Because the document may vary significantly during the editing process, proofreading should be performed only after the document has been edited to its final state. Otherwise, it results in a significant amount of rework for the proofreader.

Answer 3

Proofreading is the final step before a document is printed or published online, and as such, it is always the last step. This makes sense when the objective of proofreading is to ensure that the content is free of errors prior to publication. A proofreader will look for typos, overlooked grammar, capitalization, and punctuation flaws, as well as concerns with formatting or layout.

Because the purpose of proofreading is to identify and delete problems before a work is released, performing a proofread prior to editing is meaningless. Again, this makes much more sense when the aim of editing is understood. There are two major kinds of editing (though their definitions and nomenclature vary by country): formative editing and copy editing. The former considers the larger picture and strives to improve the text’s structure, message, and content. The latter is more concerned with the details, such as syntax, language, and sentence structure.

Because the document may vary significantly during the editing process, proofreading should be performed only after the document has been edited to its final state. Otherwise, it results in a significant amount of reworking for the proofreader.

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