CONTENT AND LINE EDITING

what is content and line editing?

What is included?

Content and line editing looks at the bigger picture of your manuscript. It’s closer to developmental editing, and is often used as a way of getting some developmental editing features at reduced cost. 

It looks at the structure of your novel. What is the overall motive of the characters, is there enough tension? Are phrases and paragraphs repeated or do they all start and finish in similar ways? Do all the chapters and sections move the story forward? Does the book get where you’re intending it to go?

It also looks at info dumping, POV and tense, and show VS tell in detail. 

  • Major grammar points 
  • Syntax
  • Redundant words, overused words, and phrases
  • Show vs tell in detail with suggested rewording
  • Head hopping, and POV drops
  • Plot holes discussed with ways you could plug them
  • Info dumps, and places you could split them or remove them to help the flow of your manuscript. 
  • Tense shifts. 

Time and cost

A content and line edit on 80,000 words takes between fourteen and eighteen working days. The first thing is a readthrough of your manuscript. I will note any point where I stumbled, got confused, or lost interest in the plot and story movement. I will then add questions in comments such as ‘this is out of character,’ or ‘how does your character know this?’ for you to consider.

The second part of a content and line edit includes comments and suggestions to remove or add detail to enhance the flow. Suggestions to remove overuse of either telling or showing, restructures for info dumps, and places to build character tension. Comments and suggestions will be in track changes—Word—or in comments—Google Docs. 

I will then return the manuscript for you to look through and make adjustments. At this point you need to mark any changes you have made that you want looking over before return it for a final tidying pass. 

In the final pass I will not re-read the entire manuscript, I will look at the changes you have marked and comment if I feel they’ve made the differences you intended. 

This is not a final edit, and inconsistencies may remain. I suggest proofreading or ARC readers before final publication.  

Content and line editing is priced at 0.006pw