Madilyn Cable

Among authors, it’s a common misconception that proofreading and copyediting are interchangeable. It can be difficult to understand the difference between the two, mainly because the overall aim for both types of edits is to find and correct errors. When we look deeper, however, it becomes clear that they are two different, distinct parts of the editing process. Copyediting focuses on improving manuscript clarity while it is still developing; proofreading is the final quality check after the text has been typeset and designed for print.