TYPES of EDITS
DEVELOPMENTAL / CONTENT EDIT
An ongoing, virtual brainstorming session in which the author and editor collaborate to answer some fundamental questions: Who is this book for? Why am I writing it? What is it about? Who is the narrator? Why are they telling the story? What does the world of the story look like, and most importantly, why will the readers care?
WHEN IT HAPPENS
At the very beginning, often before you have a complete draft.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
An idea, a concept, or a half-finished manuscript and a willingness to collaborate.
SUBSTANTIVE EDIT
A big-picture edit of the themes, characters, pacing, structure, and plot. If your book is a house, this is the edit where we ask, "Is a third kitchen really necessary here?"
WHEN IT HAPPENS
After you've completed a full manuscript and edited it yourself so many times, your eyes have started to cross.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
A complete but not necessarily polished manuscript.
COPY / LINE EDIT
The foundation is sound, the bones are solid, and the plot holes filled. Now comes the editorial equivalent of drywalling, painting, laying carpet, and bringing in the furniture. A copy/line edit is extremely granular, focusing on syntax, grammar, word choice, consistency, accuracy, punctuation, flow, and sentence structure.
WHEN IT HAPPENS
After you've revised your manuscript in light of any substantive edits.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED
A complete manuscript that's been through a substantive edit.