Editing 101: Understanding the 6 Different Types of Editing
You’ve spent hours (or maybe months) tweaking your manuscript, thesis, script, or cookbook. You’ve fixed some sentences, rewritten whole paragraphs, and stared at the same paragraph so long your eyes are threatening mutiny. Now it’s time to take it to the next level. That’s where editing comes in.
But here’s the thing: editing isn’t one-size-fits-all. There are different types of editing, each with a specific purpose, scope, and outcome. Understanding them helps you self-edit more effectively, communicate clearly with professional editors, and make better decisions when preparing your work for publication.
Our guide breaks down the six main types of editing, what they achieve, and how they fit into the bigger editing process.
Table of Contents
Main Types of Editing
1. Developmental Editing
Think of developmental editing (or substantive editing) as the stage where your manuscript gets a reality check. This isn’t about grammar or spelling – it’s about everything else. Developmental editing approaches a piece of writing in the same way a jury approaches a case: from all sides.
Take J.K. Rowling’s original Chamber of Secrets: the scene with Harry and Ron crashing the Ford Anglia into the Great Lake? Gone. Why? Pacing and foreshadowing. That’s developmental editing in action. Examining your work from all angles and asking: Does it hang together?
Developmental editors focus on:
- Plot and pacing
- Characterisation or argument flow
- Overall readability
- Audience expectations
If your manuscript feels scattered or missing something essential, a developmental edit is the tool that brings it into focus.
2. Structural Editing
If developmental editing is the jury, structural editing is the lawyer: methodical, sharp, and focused on the integrity of your work.
In practice, structural or content editing involves assessing the flow of chapters or sections, checking that the voice and tone remain consistent throughout, and ensuring that the arguments or narrative are clear and easy to follow.
Example: A thesis with repeated phrases or casual expressions could lose credibility. Structural academic editing reorders, trims, and clarifies without changing your ideas.
3. Line Editing
Line editing is where your manuscript gets its rhythm and style checked, sentence by sentence. Think of it as zooming in with a magnifying glass: the big picture is fine, but the details (word choice, phrasing, and clarity) need refining.
For example, imagine a character in your novel says, “I can’t believes this is happening, it’s terrible!” A line editor might adjust it to, “I can’t believe this is happening – it’s awful!” The meaning stays the same, but the sentence flows better and reads naturally.
Line editors also watch for:
- Syntax and sentence structure
- Word choice and phrasing
- Dialogue consistency across scenes
Reading your dialogue out loud can help you spot awkward phrasing. Line editing ensures your words make sense and sound right, making your writing smoother.
4. Copy Editing
Copy editing is where your manuscript gets a careful technical sweep. It makes sure your writing reads smoothly, looks professional, and is free of distracting errors.
For instance, a sentence like, “The cat runned fastly across the garden, it was scared of the dog” would be corrected to, “The cat ran quickly across the garden; it was scared of the dog”. The meaning stays intact, but the sentence now flows better, and the grammar and punctuation are corrected.
Copy editors focus on:
- Spelling, grammar, and punctuation
- Minor inconsistencies or formatting issues
- Awkward phrasing or redundancy
Even seasoned authors rely on copy editors. In his book, On Writing, Stephen King gives an example of copy editing his story, “1408”. He changes the title, cuts words and entire paragraphs, and rewrites sentences to be more succinct. He’s making the story better by smoothing out the kinks.
5. Fact-Checking
Speaking of smoothing out kinks, the next editing type is fact-checking. As the name implies, fact-checking requires a look at the accuracy of information. This often involves thorough research to verify details and ensure reliability, especially in specialised fields like medicine, law, and science. However, it’s equally applicable to all forms of writing. Fact-checking is essential for avoiding:
- Anachronisms
- Homeric nods
- Duplicate errors
If you’re editing a story about a science class in the 90s, ask yourself: How many planets do we have in our solar system? Encyclopaedias from the 1990s would say we have 9. But modern sources say we have 8. Pluto lost its status as a planet in 2006. It might be relevant.
6. Proofreading
Proofreading is the last line of defence before your manuscript goes out into the world. Think of it as the steam press for your writing: it won’t change the story, but it will smooth out any remaining wrinkles.
For example, you might catch a sentence that says, “Their going to the market later” when it should be “They’re going to the market later”. Or a tiny typo that somehow slipped past copy editing (because editors are also only human, after all), proofreading catches it.
Proofreaders focus on:
- Spelling and grammar
- Misplaced or missing words
- Minor formatting issues
Even the sharpest editors miss things. Proofreading is your safety net, ensuring that small errors don’t distract readers or undermine your credibility.
How the Types of Editing Work Together
The six types of editing usually build on each other, moving from the big picture down to the finest details:
- Developmental editing shapes the overall structure, pacing, and content of your manuscript.
- Structural editing organises sections and refines the flow so that ideas or plotlines progress clearly.
- Line editing polishes sentences for clarity, tone, and style, making each line read smoothly.
- Copy editing checks grammar, spelling, punctuation, formatting, and consistency.
- Fact-checking verifies accuracy, from historical details to technical information.
- Proofreading is the final sweep to catch anything missed before publication.
Understanding this progression helps writers plan their workflow and shows exactly where a professional editor adds the most value. Think of it as a relay race: each stage hands the manuscript off, making it stronger and more polished by the time it reaches the finish line.
Why Should You Care About the Different Types of Editing?
Knowing the differences isn’t just trivia. It’s practical. Understanding the different types of editing helps you make more informed and professional decisions with regard to your work. The point of editing is to make writing better. If you understand the types of editing, you’ll be able to improve your self-editing skills and adapt editing principles more effectively.
You’ll also understand what you’re paying for when it comes to hiring professional editors, communicate with them more clearly, and know what to expect from writing that’s been through the editing process.
At Blue Leaf Editing, we guide manuscripts through every stage of the editing process, from indie fiction to academic publications. The result? Higher-quality work, better collaboration, and final products that readers actually enjoy.
Types of Editing: The Secret to Confident Writing
Understanding the types of editing means shaping your writing so it resonates and convinces. Each type of editing brings a different lens to your work, from big-picture structure to the tiniest typo, and knowing how they fit together helps you make smarter decisions as a writer.
More than that, appreciating these stages can change how you approach your work. You start spotting patterns in your writing, anticipating potential issues, and knowing when to seek professional help. It turns editing from a chore into a strategic tool, one that takes your manuscript, thesis, or script from “finished” to confident and reader-ready.
At the end of the day, mastering the types of editing is about respect – for your work, your readers, and the craft of writing itself. Whether you’re self-editing or working with a professional, each stage is a step closer to a manuscript that shines.
FAQs
It’s a valid question. You’ve probably been looking at your writing so long that you can’t tell right from wrong. The most effective way to determine the type of editing your writing needs is to request an evaluation from a professional editor. Depending on the company, an evaluation like this can either be included in the quoting process or it can be done for a specified fee.
Each piece of writing is different, which means that the answer to this would depend on various factors, including:
- The state of the writing (Have you dotted your i’s and crossed your t’s?)
- The type of writing (Short story? Novel? Newspaper article? Thesis?)
- The development stage of the project (Is it a first draft? Has it been rewritten several times?)
This depends on the fees of the editor, the type of edits your writing requires, and/or the price per word/hour charged by the chosen company. It’s important to note that developmental and structural editing are more expensive, since they’re very comprehensive, while copy editing and proofreading should be more affordable. Again, it depends on multiple factors. The only way to know for sure is to request a quote.
Of course! Lots of writers edit their own writing, but using a professional service is usually what separates average writers from good ones. Professional editors are trained to know what to fix and how to fix it. They’ll be able to give you insights into your potential audience and assist you in improving the quality of your writing.
Blue Leaf Team
The Blue Leaf Editing team has over 10 years of combined editing, publishing, and book industry experience. We’re passionate about content and storytelling, and sharing our knowledge with others.
info@blueleafediting.com