PROOFREADING

PROOFREADING

Proofreading can be considered surface level and only corrects errors that can be proven to be incorrect, such as spelling, punctuation, grammar, editorial style, and any other errors that contravene the style guide, dictionary, grammar book, or other official reference sources. Proofreading, generally, doesn’t involve revising, rewriting, or restructuring any text; it involves only correcting typographical errors that remain within the already-edited text. 

This service is recommended for work that is already considered to be of a high standard, is formatted in its final layout for publishing, and requires just one last round of checking for any errors that may have been missed. If you think your work may require more in-depth attention, please refer to my copyediting service for more information. Alternatively, you can send me a sample of your work and I will advise on what level of service your work needs in order for it to be polished to perfection!

I charge a fixed rate of £12 per 1000 words (£0.012 per word) for my proofreading service. I charge a £12 fixed fee for documents under 1000 words. My rates are guided by those suggested by the Chartered Institute of Editors and Proofreaders (CIEP). 

My proofreading service includes:

  • working on already-edited text that is in its final layout for publishing
  • checking for typos and errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar
  • ensuring your house style has been applied (if applicable)
  • ensuring consistency in style, eg tense, spelling variations, capitals, hyphens, date and time format, numbers, units of measurement, emphasis (eg bold or italics), straight or curly quotes, and single or double spacing after full stops
  • checking numbering, titles, and descriptions for tables, figures, and illustrations
  • checking for formatting errors, eg font, font size, and line and paragraph spacing
  • checking title pages, contents, lists of illustrations, cross-references to in-text sections, appendices, indexes, footnotes, and pagination
  • ensuring consistency in the use of regional English (UK or US)
  • ensuring acronyms are presented correctly
  • ensuring abbreviations are presented correctly
  • ensuring references and citations are formatted consistently
  • ensuring numbered and bulleted lists are formatted consistently
  • verifying URLs


The most common format I work with is MS Word. I make corrections and suggestions, and note any queries, using the ‘Track Changes’ function. This allows you to see every correction and choose whether to ‘accept’ or ‘reject’ each one. I will also provide you with a ‘clean’ copy (ready to publish), which includes every change I’ve made, without any visible markup.

I also work with PDF files. I use the ‘Comment’ function (and associated annotation tools) in Adobe Acrobat Reader to annotate PDFs. However, there are restrictions when working with PDF files, and I can’t edit the text directly. Therefore, you will be required to return to your source file and manually implement the necessary amendments I’ve suggested.

For websites, I either request your source files (usually MS Word) or I can ‘copy’ and ‘paste’ the required website content into MS Word, and edit from there (using the ‘Track Changes’ function, as described above). You can then go through the 'accept' or 'reject' process, or use the 'clean' copy I provide, before you upload the amended text to your content management system. 

My proofreading service does not include:

  • content planning and development
  • designing layouts or typesetting
  • producing artwork and graphics 
  • research and fact-checking
  • solving defamatory or other legal issues
  • looking for plagiarism
  • content creation
  • checking the accuracy of references and citations
  • substantial rewriting