Book editing may appear easy. All you have to do is read your manuscript and identify errors to improve them. However, professional editors will tell you otherwise. Editing is more than finding errors and improving grammar. Grammatical correction relates to proofreading or line editing.
So, if it’s not about errors and corrections, what’s editing all about? It’s well-known among professional book editing service providers that book editing is about improving the quality of your draft. This improvement can come from improving grammar or sentence structure. However, mostly it’s about improving the presentation, checking the logical flow of text, and checking the continuity, tone, style, and structure of the whole draft.
The process of editing a book involves many steps. These include reading to detect plot holes, determining the irresistibility of the presentation, and improving the flow of your book. Finding grammatical mistakes and correcting words and sentences is only one part of this task.
Beta reading and developmental editing are two important parts of this process. They are distinct but many book writers mistake them to be the same. They aren’t. Let’s explore the two tasks and help you find the best option for your book.
Who Is A Beta Reader?
A beta reader is a reader. He or she will be assisting you, the writer by commenting on your raw manuscript from the lens of an actual reader. Oftentimes, authors invite beta readers from their writer community. They do this because fellow writers know better about the quality of a book and its presentation than those who have never practiced writing as a craft.
What Does a Beta Editor Do?
A beta reader is a reader. He or she will be assisting you, the writer by looking at your raw manuscript and commenting on it from the lens of an actual reader. Oftentimes, authors invite beta readers from their writer community. They do this because fellow writers know better about the quality of a book and its presentation than those who have never practiced writing as a craft.
Although most beta readers are fellow writers, being a writer is not a prerequisite to being a beta reader. One can be a beta reader because he has read quite a few books in the past. You will want to invite several beta readers to review your project. At the same time, you should also include a couple of folks who haven’t read a lot of books till now. These folks will help you assess if your book makes sense to less-learned people as well.
A beta reader comes into the picture immediately after the completion of the first draft. First of all, they will tell you if your book is interesting enough. Of course, only a reader from the same genre as your book can give you this opinion. A science-fiction enthusiast can never tell you if your horror book is interesting.
Other than that, these readers will tell you if they understand your characters. They will comment on the flow of your story as well as its comprehensibility and readability. Usually, you would select beta readers from your social circle including fellow authors. If that is the case, you can schedule a meeting with them for a detailed discussion of what could be improved in your draft.
When you invite or hire a beta reader, keep in mind that they will not give you book editing services. It means that they will not improve your sentences for you. They will also not re-write the whole passages to make them more captivating or to enhance the flow of ideas and events.
Who Is a Developmental Editor?
A development editor is an editor who polishes your manuscript from a rough draft to a polished, logical story. They are qualified editors with dependable experience in editing books and know a lot about plot development, character introduction, and improving the flow of ideas and story.
What Does Developmental Editors Do?
In the world of editing, a development editor does all the heavy lifting. He looks at the book as a whole and deciphers it before shifting its pieces from one place to another to improve the flow. You would need a development editor only after you have gained surety about the marketability of your book. That’s because developmental editors are costly. You have to pay $45 to $200 per hour for their services. Some editors charge per project and their costs can go up to thousands of dollars.
So, why are developmental editors so costly? For starters, they are trained for this role and often bring years of experience to the table. They have to check every word and phrase of your book and understand the theme to improve it. Although their services do not focus on improving the overall viewpoint or idea of your book, they will improve the tone and presentation making an otherwise boring book into an exciting masterpiece.
Relationship Between How Developmental and Beta Readers
You would want beta readers’ opinions before you give your manuscript for developmental editing. That’s because a beta reader will tell you about the interest factor of your book and its idea. On the other hand, an editor will only improve its tone.
The process allows editors to make some changes in the document and for other improvements, they only make recommendations. Once they have edited and commented on the document, the writer has to consider these editing comments and see how to respond. After reviewing the changes and developing the draft in light of these comments, the writer sends back the draft. Usually, drafts have to go through multiple rounds of development before they are ready for publishing.
Do You Need Beta Readers or Developmental Editors?
Both roles are important for the book editing services. If truth be told, beta reading isn’t part of the editing process. On the contrary, it is an essential element of book marketing services where the writer invites opinions from potential readers on the likeability of his book. Don’t skip this part of the editing process if you don’t want all your book editing and publishing efforts to go in vain.
At the same time, development editing services are essential if you want to keep your readers engaged till the end of the book. Even professional authors who have mastered the art of captivating their readers through trial and error benefit from the services of these editors. You don’t want to leave flaws in your book and want to improve its quality. That’s why, hiring professional book editing services is a must for you.
Wrapping Up
Beta readers are non-technical people who love reading books. You only choose those beta readers who are ready to read your book and give you an opinion about your book’s engagement and likeability. Developmental editors are trained and experienced editors who transform your raw manuscript into a love-worthy book by developing its presentation and tone. Both professionals are important for book writers as both render important book marketing and editing services.
