proofreading
Almost ready to submit your work? Then a final check for typos and grammar, punctuation, and consistency errors is all you need.
Proofreading is the final step in the publication process, usually after many rounds of revision involving rewriting, editing, and formatting. If your text hasn’t undergone these stages, then it is probably too soon for proofreading (see also the differences between proofreading and editing).
A professional proofreader makes sure that all the i’s are dotted and all the t’s are crossed before your final text is published.
What you get:
1. A thorough word-for-word check
I will carefully examine your English or German text with a trained eye—word for word, letter by letter—to check the following:
- spelling, typographical, syntax, punctuation, and grammatical errors
- any ambiguities that could be misleading
- consistency in usage and presentation, especially involving numbers, capitalization, abbreviations, and hyphenations.
2. Comments and suggestions
I will use the comment function in Word to explain some of my changes, inform you about which rules apply, or point out areas that may require further revision on your part.
At the end you will receive two versions of your proofread document from me:
- “Changes visible”: Your proofread text with Track Changes recorded. You will see the entire markup and have the opportunity to accept or reject any of my changes using the Review tab in Word.
- “Clean”: Identical to the “Changes visible” version, except that all my changes have already been accepted. This text is much easier to read because you will only see my comments in the review pane.
If you’re not familiar with Track Changes in Word, check out the guide I’ve provided in my Writing Tips.
3. Style sheet
If you didn’t send me a style sheet detailing your document’s style decisions on hyphenation, numbering, capitalization, spelling, and punctuation, I will create one for you.
Don’t know what a style sheet is? See my article on style sheets, why they are important and why I include them in all my proofreading and editing services.
I will proofread any text of any subject area in English or German, whether it is fiction or non-fiction, creative or technical, academic or practical (see also my overview of some of the most common types of documents I proofread).
Got a thesis or dissertation that you would like to have professionally proofread? Then you might be interested in this article I’ve written on the ethics regarding hiring an academic editor or proofreader.