Calm blue water, tall grasses, and pretty bird calls surround me on a somewhat muddy trail I have nearly all to myself. It’s late afternoon and I’m exploring the path of an unassuming wetlands preserve nestled within the city. I see several red-winged blackbirds jumping around the tall grasses, and a great blue heron soaring above the water. The experience feels like a slow, warm breeze in a month full of gusty, loud wind. That I’d found such a spot without a long trek into the countryside makes it feel even more like a secret adventure, even if photos of my little oasis give away that I am merely a ten minutes’ walk from a traffic light.
After a few more contemplative breaths and careful steps, I find my way back to the entrance of the park. Just in time—a group of preteens with toy water guns are about to enter the trail for their own adventure. I can guess which of the two sections of trail they will have to be careful in navigating, and which they will quickly run through (pictured below).
Walking the contrasting segments of trail in the wetlands preserve reminded me of the two types of editing I do, copyediting and proofreading. The first path is messier, trickier; I have to slow down and pay closer attention to where I put my feet or I’ll get muddy. A manuscript with the essence of the top photo may be similarly “muddy” and less stable. It needs to be navigated slowly and thus by a copyedit. Copyediting is an earlier stage of the editing process with texts that need more care and attention. This is where typos, grammar issues, and flow get addressed so that the edited result is one that a reader can more easily understand and navigate. I wouldn’t run through this path or text as is, and neither would a reader.
Proofreading, meanwhile, is taking on a text more similar to the path in the bottom photo. This path isn’t muddy or haphazard, and I can even run alongside if I want. This is like a text that is already orderly and relatively easy to navigate. A reader can breeze through with only a few snags or bumps. Proofreading is the stage that checks for missing words, minor typos that missed the first round, and perhaps an extra comma to give it that finishing touch.
Both paths are part of the editing adventure that leads to that calm blue oasis—which stage are you ready to navigate?
Is your writing project looking more like the top photo or the bottom? Read more about the phases of editing on my Services page.
Natalie Roth Editing Services 