Proofreading is the process of reviewing a written document for errors in spelling, grammar, punctuation and formatting. It is an essential step in ensuring that your writing is clear, concise and error-free.

Editing involves more than just proofreading. It includes reviewing the content of the document and making suggestions for improvements in tone, style, voice and structure. It can also include fact-checking and research verification.

The timeline for completing a proofreading job depends on the complexity of the document and the level of detail required. Straightforward final proofing of a document, will generally be between 1,500-2,000 words per hour. However, that doesn't mean that a 30,000 word document will be returned in two working days - to ensure clear oversight, a good proofreader will break away from a job to return and review it with fresh eyes at least once.

Short documents are likely to be turned around in 24-48 hours. For longer documents, contact me for an estimate.

This depends on the document format.

For Word documents, I will provide two versions back to the client, one will be a 'tracked changes' copy - this will show all* changes made to the document to be reviewed.
The second is a 'clean' copy - this is almost ready to use. Comments where the client's attention is required appear in the document and need reviewing and accepting/deleting prior to the document being complete.

*unless otherwise agreed - sometimes, formatting changes will not be shown at this stage.

For PDFs, the client will receive an 'edited' copy - this will have comments visible for the client to make changes to their original document.

Can I guarantee 'perfection'?
In short, no - however, that does come with an explanation.

I cannot guarantee perfection because editing and, to a lesser degree, proofreading are subjective*.

However, I can guarantee that:

•     I will do my absolute best for you, and always aim for the very highest editorial standards.

•     the changes I make will result in a substantively, and substantially, higher quality document/publication

•     I will respect your work, your voice, your privacy and your confidentiality.

*and, ultimately, we're all human.

No, absolutely not.
A lot of people are asking why should they pay a human to proofread when AI 'can do it for you'. Well, AI programs search the internet for information and, as we know, not everything we read online is factually correct! Also, many AI programs do not have a good grasp of grammar or the nuances of language. AI is a useful tool for other tasks, but it won’t pick up the errors that a proofreader is looking for – particularly those based around consistency or words that are spelled correctly but are incorrect in the context of the sentence or the overall text. Think of words like affect and effect, or principle and principal.