Types of fiction editing: how to choose the right one for you

When it comes to choosing the right editor for your manuscript, one of the most important things is to understand what type of editing it needs. This often depends on the publishing route you’ve decided on, as well as what stage you’re at with your book. Let’s look at the main types of fiction editing and the best times to book your editor.

Structural Editing

Also known as developmental editing, content editing, “big picture” editing, or substantive editing, structural editing focuses on the foundations of your book, such as plot, characterisation, pacing, narrative, voice, conflict, and world-building. Many developmental editors prefer to work with completed drafts that have gone through a few rounds of self-editing. Self-editing may include using beta readers and implementing their feedback, taking a break from your manuscript in order to gain some distance and editing it afterwards with fresh eyes, or workshopping it in a writing group.

However, some editors are happy to do a “big picture” edit before your draft is complete as it can be beneficial if you’re stuck on foundational elements and need a professional opinion. This may take a form of on-going coaching or one-off sessions that focus on a specific issue such as plotting or characterisation. A manuscript assessment can also sometimes be appropriate in this situation as it can bring to light any potential issues to address.

Whatever the case, developmental editing should be done before sentence-level editing, as structural edits usually result in rewriting at least some of your manuscript and there is no point in sentence-level editing until your main elements are in place.

Sentence-level Editing

This type of editing is exactly what it sounds like: working on sentences, their flow, style, voice continuity, transitions, POV issues, word choices, as well as more technical points such as grammar and spelling.

It can be roughly divided into two separate subtypes: copyediting and line-editing. Let’s look at each of them in more detail.

What is copyediting?

Copyediting is the more technical side of sentence-level editing and focuses on grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choices, and generally continuity throughout the manuscript. It also ensures consistency in fonts, headings, captions underneath any illustrations, photography, or artwork, as well as continuity of character and place names, ages, descriptions, etc.

What is line editing?

Line editing is sometimes also called heavy copyediting because it looks at deeper issues at sentence level, such as flow, transitions between paragraphs and chapters, POVs and any issues with them, clarity, readability, general writing style, and voice continuity. This is where any clunky or confusing writing goes to get polished and tightened.

Both copyediting and line editing should be done after all structural editing is finished.

Proofreading

Proofreading is performed at the very final stages of the editing process, after structural and sentence-level editing. The reason for that is that if you get your manuscript proofread and then make changes to it, you will need to proofread it again.

Proofreading focuses on picking up on anything that was missed during copyediting, such as grammar, spelling, continuity and consistency, chapter headings, page numbers, illustrations or other artwork, and any formatting.

What type of editing do you need for your manuscript?

The type of editing you choose often depends on the publishing route you’re planning to take.

Traditional publishing (the Big Five and small presses)

If you’re planning to pursue traditional publishing for your book, all the editing will be provided by your publisher as part of your book deal. However, you may still decide to have your manuscript edited if, for example, you’re struggling with getting an agent and feel that a professional edit will improve your chances. This is by no means a requirement and it’s important to be careful with any editor who tries to pressure you into hiring them.

Other reasons you may choose to hire a freelance editor if you’re planning to publish traditionally could be that you’re unsure about your grammar or spelling and feel that your manuscript would benefit from a professional copyedit or proofreading, or that you’re getting consistent feedback on a specific issue with your manuscript but have been unable to fix it by self-editing or workshopping with writing groups.

Self/indie publishing

If you’re self-publishing / indie publishing, you will be responsible for all editing and it is often beneficial to hire a professional editor for some or all of the edits above.

When to Book Your Editing

Freelance editors can get booked up several months or even years in advance, so it’s important to plan ahead. Use this general guide to figure out when to book each type of editing.

When to Book Developmental Edits

For any big picture editing, including editorial/manuscript assessments and full developmental edits, book several months in advance and check if your preferred editor only edits completed drafts or whether they would be able to help with “big picture” elements before you have finished your draft. This might mean that you will need to start choosing your editor while you’re still writing or self-editing your draft.

It might be worth adding a month or two after your estimated completion date in order to self-edit or get feedback from any beta readers.

When to Book Sentence-Level Edits

For copyediting and line editing, book for the time after your manuscript has been through at least one round of developmental edits and has been subsequently self-edited to reflect any feedback from your editor. Give yourself enough time for reflection and self-editing so you don’t end up rushing.

When to Book Proofreading for Your Manuscript

Book this final stage of editing for after any developmental and sentence-level edits have been finalised. This is the type of editing that you will do right before you publish your book, if self-publishing, or before you send it to agents and editors if you’re pursuing traditional publishing.

How to tell if you’re ready to hire a developmental editor

1. Do you have a finished draft?

Developmental editors usually work on finished drafts because it’s important to see the whole manuscript in order to understand its structure. Developmental, or substantive editing, looks at big-picture elements of your book, such as character development, plot, voice, themes, and structure. It could be tricky to tell if those elements are working or not when editing a draft that is still unfinished.

However, there are some exceptions to this. If you’re working on a non-fiction book, especially in the self-help or business-related categories, then a developmental editor could help you with the initial structuring of your manuscript before you write it.

If you’re writing fiction or narrative non-fiction and are struggling with deciding on a structure, you could benefit from a developmental consultation where we would brainstorm your ideas together and would come up with the best structure for it before you begin or continue writing. You can book a session with me here.

• 2. Have you edited your manuscript?

Once you’ve written your first draft, you need to edit it. Even if you tend to edit as you write, it’s a good idea to leave your manuscript alone for a couple of weeks in order to get some distance from it, and then to come back and self-edit. At this stage, self-editing will help you pick up on any obvious issues with your manuscript. This will save you money in the long run, as you won’t need quite as many ‘passes’ of developmental editing.

You could also send your book out to beta readers for feedback and then use it to help you with self-editing. Watch my video on finding the right beta reader here.

• 3. Are you ready to pursue publication?

Most writers want to publish their books at some point. There are three main ways to get your book out into the world: traditional publishing, self-publishing, and indie publishing. Each of these routes can be a great way to get published, and more and more authors are combining some or all three at some point in their writing career. There are pros and cons to each, and I will write more on that soon.

Whichever route you choose for your current manuscript, there is a difference between considering publication at some point in the future and actively planning to publish your book. Hiring an editor can be costly so it makes sense to do it only once you’re ready to become a published author.

• 4. Are you prepared to receive editorial feedback?

If you’ve already had feedback from beta readers or have attended writing courses or groups, you may be used to receiving feedback on your writing. However, if this is your first time receiving feedback, or if all the feedback you have ever received has been 100% positive, you may find this part tricky. For many neurodivergent writers, feedback can be also a sore point due to previous unpleasant experiences when receiving or providing feedback. This could be due to rejection sensitivity dysphoria or differences in feedback delivery and reception between neurodivergent and neurotypical writers.

When you hire a professional editor, their job is to provide you with the feedback that they think will improve your book. It is entirely up to you if you act on that feedback or not. Editing, just like anything else in art, is subjective, and the final decision is ultimately with you, the author.

Whatever you decide, the whole point of hiring a professional editor is to make your book as good as it can possibly be, so it is important that you feel comfortable with receiving editorial feedback and that you understand that you have the power to decide whether to accept the editor’s suggestions or not.

As a neurodivergent editor, I discuss this with my clients before I start the edit, so that we can agree on ways to make this part of the process as easy and productive as possible. These could include a specific way to deliver feedback that you know has worked for you in the past, for example only written or only on Zoom, telling me if you have specific trigger words that make it harder to receive feedback, or agreeing on strategies that have worked for you or other neurodivergent writers.

Each editor is different, and the way they provide feedback is different too. I strive to provide honest and gentle feedback, and I always recommend having an initial chat to see if we are a good fit before we begin working together. You can book a free short consultation with me here.