Proposal to Publication – Part 4 of 5

Pre-Production

→ Once the major editing is completed, your manuscript normally goes to copyedit. A copyeditor will take a detailed look at your manuscript, correcting grammar, typos, and punctuation. She/he will also flag anything that seems unclear; checking footnotes for accuracy and format; making sure all necessary elements are in place; and making sure all required permissions have been received.

→ The copyeditor sends you a hardcopy of your manuscript, so that you can see the copyediting that’s been done, as well as answer any final queries. You’ll have about two weeks to read it and send it back to the copyeditor with your response and any final changes.

→ The copyeditor inputs all final changes.

→ Some publishing houses send the manuscript to a proofreader at this stage.

→ Once the copyedit is complete, the manuscript is sent to typeset. A typesetter lays out your entire book exactly how it is going to look on the page once published. Often the typesetter is in frequent consultation with the editor and in-house designers to create an appropriate layout.

→ Once the typeset is complete, the galley is sent simultaneously to the author and proofreader. This is your last opportunity to spot any typos or glaring content errors.

→ Based on notes from you and the proofreader, the final layout is created and the book is about ready to be sent to the printer.

→ It still might be a few months until your pub date, and this baby is finished. Time to be thinking about marketing this book, and writing your next book.

You’re almost there…