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Can you expect perfection?
My work as a professional editor involves going over my clients’ documents with a fine-tooth comb to find as many errors and inconsistencies as possible. This task requires tremendous concentration and great attention to detail—and having a perfectionist attitude doesn’t hurt either. My goal is to polish the writing so that it meets the standards of the publishing industry.
Does that mean that you can expect perfection from me?
Will your translated, edited, or proofread text be 100% error-free?
No. I guarantee that I will treat your text with the respect and professional mindset it deserves. However, this does not mean that it will be perfect or that you should send it off to the publisher without reviewing it one last time.
In this article, I will discuss why it’s unrealistic to try and produce a “perfect” result, why some margin of error is still acceptable even within the publishing industry, and what you can expect when you commission a translation, an editing, or a proofreading service from me.
1. Aim for perfection—but understand what’s achievable
Many of us—especially editors and other language specialists—strive for perfection. I want my work and my writing to be flawless. I can spend half an hour on a single word, agonizing over how to best translate it into German or English so that it accurately conveys the author’s intended meaning in the source text. (Good thing I charge by the word and not by the hour for translations, right?)
Have you ever returned to a scientific paper or a creative writing project you completed a while ago and noticed how much you would like to change about it?
When I look at my M.Sc. thesis, written in 2018, I see inelegant wording and stylistic flaws that had slipped past me at the time, although—or perhaps because—I was working on the paper for several hours every day for many weeks. I didn’t have the fresh perspective I have now.
I was happy with my thesis at the time, but now I can see its weaknesses.
There is always room for improvement.
No text is ever perfect, but I count myself among those idealists who want their writing to achieve the highest level possible.
You may feel the same way about your work. And I get it. It’s your baby. I’ve been in your shoes and know what it’s like. That’s why I take my job as an editor, proofreader, and translator very seriously and give every manuscript the attention and respect it deserves.
Achieving perfection is an admirable goal, but it is not realistic. You are bound to be disappointed because your target will always be just out of reach. Return to the same text a week later, a month later, a year later, and I promise that you will find something you can improve on each time.
Perhaps it won’t be a typo or grammar issue, but you can move sentences around, rephrase segments, and choose other words ad nauseam. It never ends—until you decide to put a stop to it and leave well enough alone.
And that can be hard. I know because I struggle with my own desire for perfection on a daily basis. (How long do you think I spent drafting and revising this article?)
When I edit or proofread a client’s manuscript, I make hundreds—sometimes thousands—of changes. Many of those are actual errors that need correcting; others are amendments that will improve the clarity and flow of the writing.
I do my best to catch every single error or inconsistency by going over the text multiple times. Nevertheless, an error may fall through the cracks, especially when it’s a complex or particularly long document or when the client has a tight deadline and asks for a quick turnaround time.
Nobody likes to make mistakes.
Just recently, I received a scientific manuscript from a returning client who had revised her peer-reviewed paper and now wanted me to proofread it one last time before she resubmitted it to the academic journal. I had edited an earlier version of that manuscript.
To my dismay and embarrassment, I discovered an error I had missed the first time around (I checked my files, and the error was indeed in the handover documents). It wasn’t a grave oversight—just a small issue that perhaps not many readers would have picked up on anyway. I had missed it, my client had missed it, and the journal editors had missed it in their reviews, too.
Still, it bugged me that I hadn’t caught it during my initial edit several months before. This time, I made the correction and pointed out my earlier slip to my client. She wasn’t upset and graciously acknowledged that her editor, too, is not perfect.
It is at moments like this I have to remind myself of the same point I’m trying to make here:
Perfection is an admirable goal, but we all make mistakes. We must admit them, assess how we can avoid making the same error again, and move on.
2. Professional editing bodies and publishers expect—and accept—a certain margin of error
A 95% correction rate is generally considered excellent. That means that if your proofreader corrects 950 out of 1,000 errors in a manuscript (with 50 errors remaining), they’re still considered to have done a great job on the text.
Of course, chances are that a lot less than 5% of errors are left because professional proofreaders tend to be very good at spotting them. So, having a few errors left in your document doesn’t mean that your proofreader did a poor job.
The Chartered Institute of Editors and Proofreaders (CIEP) answers the question, “Will a proofreader make my text perfect?” as follows (emphasis in original):
“No professional proofreader should promise to make your text perfect. This is partly because no matter how well trained, experienced and diligent they are, they are still human (and that’s a good thing!). It’s also because perfection is a subjective concept. While some errors are indisputable, others are not.” (CIEP, 2022)
Publishers also understand this and accept a certain error rate in all of their published materials—even though they have multiple pairs of eyes making several passes over the numerous layers of a manuscript before it goes to print.
You’d think all the errors would have been found by then, right? Well, no.
There are many famous examples of novels that were published with typos at first, including J.K. Rowling’s debut novel Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.
That’s why published books are improved on and republished as new editions all the time. Take your favorite novel and check in the front matter how many editions it has gone through. Generally, the older the book, the more editions there are. Each new edition is an improvement on the previous version.
Of course, this is not meant to serve as an excuse for sloppy work of any kind—whether that’s the first draft, the various stages of editing, or the final proofread.
As language professionals we work very hard to improve our clients’ writing. We strive to meet the professional standards in our industry every day for every client and for every text.
But we must remember that editors and all other individuals involved in the publishing industry are only human, too.
What makes matters more complicated is that even editors don’t always agree on what they consider the “best” editorial decision.
3. No two language specialists are alike
We all have different backgrounds, levels of training, perspectives, experiences, and specialisms. And these characteristics, which make us who we are as professionals in our field, evolve over time, too.
I’m not the same translator or editor I was back in 2017 when I first started my business. Nor do I expect to be the same in five or ten years’ time.
What does this mean for you and your text?
Well, it means that if you were to send off your manuscript to five different translators/editors—let’s assume they all have similar backgrounds, experiences, and levels of training—you’re going to receive five slightly different translations/edited documents from them.
Why?
Because language is an art, and art is subjective. So are translation and editing.
What one translator considers a perfectly acceptable translation for a particular term, another specialist may find a different translation more suitable in that context and for that audience. Similarly, what one editor believes they must change in a text, another editor may find that the same phrase or expression represents the author’s unique voice and leaves it as it is.
Even perfection is subjective. There often isn’t a plain right or a plain wrong.
There are, of course, errors that must undoubtedly be corrected and words that cannot possibly be correct translations of a word in another language—but there are many instances where the editor or translator must use their judgment.
And this judgment often varies among language professionals. The trick for us editors is to hone our skills so that we improve the text as much as possible but don’t overedit the writing either.
A professional editor will intervene in a text as little as possible but as much as is necessary.
I want to be able to explain to my clients any and all of the word choices or edits I’ve made in their document. If I’m unable to provide a good reason, I have to ask myself whether those particular actions were necessary and appropriate.
It is this sense of editorial judgment that only experience and professional development can give us. My fellow editing and translation colleagues and I continually improve our skills and stay up to date on the latest conventions in our industry.
We’ll never know everything there is to know in this constantly changing field, but we acknowledge this fact and can do our best to keep up.
What you—the client—should remember is that not every editor or translator will be the right fit for your project.
It’s worth spending some time searching for a suitable language expert with a background in your subject area or genre who understands and can meet your needs. In addition, it should be someone that you find easy to communicate with.
4. No two projects are alike
It is also important to remember that every piece of writing goes through different stages and evolves over time. When I first get approached by a client about a text, I want to get an idea of which part of the writing process their document is in.
- Who has worked on the text before?
- Has it already been assessed or reviewed by others, such as a professional editor, a colleague, a supervisor, or beta readers?
- How many rounds of revision has the document gone through?
- What level of intervention does the client want, and what level does the document need? (The gap between “want” and “need” can be surprisingly wide!)
- How much time does the client have until the final submission date?
- Does the client’s budget allow the level of intervention that is necessary?
The answers to these questions strongly inform my approach toward the project and my ability to provide a first-class service.
A manuscript that has undergone several revisions by multiple pairs of experienced eyes before coming to me for an edit or a final proofread will be much less likely to contain errors or inconsistencies when it’s published.
That’s because the text is already at a more advanced writing level when I receive it, so the chances are high that I can find and correct any remaining errors.
If, however, a manuscript was drafted in a hurry by a less experienced writer, and nobody else—such as a friend, colleague, or supervisor—has provided any constructive feedback by the time I receive it, well, then chances are that the text requires a lot of work.
I’ll likely have to make thousands of changes and am bound to miss stuff, especially if the client’s budget only allows enough time for one thorough pass.
The more carefully a document has been drafted and revised, and the more opportunity for input a professional has throughout the process, the better the final product tends to be.
That’s not to say that you have to break the bank for your writing project: I can guarantee that no matter your available time and budget, I’ll do my best to help you. I want you to achieve your goal and be successful with your text, no matter your circumstances.
But you also need to understand what you can realistically expect from me within the limitations of your project.
5. What you can expect from me
It is crucial that we manage expectations before I begin any work on your text.
Prior to accepting a job, I’m transparent about what I can—and can’t—do for you, including the following:
- If you ask me to proofread a text that really needs a proper editing job first, I’ll tell you.
- If you ask me to edit a text that requires developmental work first, I’ll tell you. I don’t want you to spend all that money on a line or copyedit when the text needs restructuring first, thus necessitating another editorial pass and a final proofread. I don’t like wasting money, and I’m sure you don’t, either.
- If you ask me to translate a text that isn’t clear enough in the original for me to provide an accurate translation, I’ll tell you. I prefer that you spend a little longer polishing the original text rather than send me a mediocre draft that will likely result in an average translation. Ideally, I’d like to make the translation sound even better than the original, but a lot depends on the quality of the source text.
Once we decide to collaborate on a project, I’ll approach your text with the same care and dedication as I do for my texts.
But please bear in mind that, as much as I would like to, I cannot guarantee perfection—whichever definition of “perfect” you choose to use.
I can guarantee I’ll do my best to weed out all errors and inconsistencies, have the manuscript satisfy current publishing standards, and meet or surpass your expectations (see also My Five Promises).
In my final handover documents, I’ll let you know if there are sentences or segments in your text that you should review before you submit your work. But in the end, it’s up to you to decide what to do with my suggestions.
If you have a question about a change I’ve made in your text or how I have translated your work, please do not hesitate to let me know. I’ll do my best to explain why I believe that decision was necessary.
If you want the opinion of my colleagues on a particular issue, I’ll be happy to reach out to my network of qualified editors and translators. My aim is for you to understand what I have done—and why—and for you to be satisfied with and proud of your final product.
TAKE-HOME MESSAGE
- Let’s aim for perfection, but remember: we are all human—and there will always be room for improvement.
- The notion of perfection and language is subjective: what one professional considers acceptable, another language specialist might change.
- Publishers expect a certain error rate and know that the material gets a little better with each new edition.
- We—the professional language experts—continuously improve our skills and keep up with changes in the writing and publishing industry to serve our clients to the best of our abilities.
- Every project (and budget) is different, so be sure to clearly communicate your desired and required services with your language professional and understand what is feasible.
Not sure if your manuscript is ready for an edit or a proofread? That’s okay. I can advise you on how to proceed before you decide whether to commission one of my services. If I find that your text could benefit from a developmental or substantive edit first, I’m happy to help you get in touch with one of my qualified colleagues.
Christina Stinn is a professional translator, proofreader, and editor with a background in ecological research and experience in publishing peer-reviewed articles in academic journals. She is a Professional Member of the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP) and has a M.Sc. degree in International Nature Conservation. So far her work has included fiction and non-fiction books, academic journal articles, and marketing materials in English and German. She loves working with clients who strive to bring their writing to the next level and enjoys taking part in their journey. Find out more
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