Getting your book proofread

Find out why it's imperative to have your book proofread professionally if you want to self-publish. Proofreading What is proofreading? It is a systematic scrutiny of your manuscript to pick up spelling mistakes, as well as the odd one or two grammatical errors. It is carried out as the final phase of your project, prior to the manuscript being saved to CD and sent to the printer. Unlike editing, where the editor's goal is to help you improve the flow, plot and grammatical sense of your book, and you, as the author, may disagree with that editor's ideas - in other words it could be construed as subjective - proofreading is most definitely objective - if something is incorrectly spelled, there can be little argument. Having a book proofread, the same as having it edited is really worth its weight in gold. I personally read the first chapter of someone's book, it hadn't gone to print, but had been read by at least five different people, and I picked up an error that had been duplicated further on in the book. It goes to show that however good we think we are at picking up mistakes, it's extremely difficult to do. Also remember that proofreading, like layout and editing, is usually a one-time fee; in other words any subsequent print runs can be taken directly from the CD held with the print house. Meet the Pathfinder Team of Proofreaders Jenny Hewitt "Your critique of the work is wonderfully fine, insightful, and shows a dedicated skill and professionalism, which I rarely observe in any endeavor by anyone. I say this not only because of your proven talent and not because you have made some complimentary remarks about the story but because of the thoroughness and enthusiasm you put into your critique." (R.H. Texas, USA) Judith Hampson "--- listening to her professional opinion and advice, will guarantee you one thing... the difference between failure and success---" Don Lucey Michael McIrvin Thank you for the excellent job you have done on my manuscript, and I appreciate the highly professional way in which you have dealt with my queries." - Oscar Cappelli Sophie Lockyer - UK "Excellent work - I can't believe so many mistakes were missed! And I had proofread it myself! I will contact you when I have my next manuscript ready." - CB