COVERAGE

What does a copy-editor do?
'Copy', in this sense, means a piece of writing. This is often an author's typewritten - or computer-printed - manuscript which is to form the basis of a published book, though it could just as easily be a journal article, an instruction manual, a leaflet or brochure... in fact, anything that someone has taken the trouble to put down on paper (or disk). One dictionary definition of 'edit' is 'to assemble, prepare or modify for publication'. The copy-editor's task, therefore, is to weed out any errors or inconsistencies in the author's copy before it is published. Such errors can take a number of forms. It is a common conception that 'finding spelling mistakes' forms the basis of the job, and it is true that this is an important element, but there are also many other things to watch out for: errors in punctuation and/or grammar, inconsistencies of presentation and/or style, and so on.

What does a proof-reader do?
Once a manuscript has been copy-edited it is sent to a typesetter, who produces a loose-leaf proof copy of the book (or article, or brochure, or whatever) prior to publication. These proofs, together with the copy-edited manuscript, are then sent to a proofreader who checks (a) that the setter has not made any errors while typesetting the manuscript and (b) that the copy-editor has not missed any errors in the original copy. Again, the proofreader's task consists of rather more than simply 'checking the spelling'.
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