The goal of developmental editing is to ensure your manuscript has a firm foundation and structure. During this stage, new approaches may be suggested. Information is likely to be rearranged or even challenged. In a book-length work, whole chapters may be added, taken out, or rewritten. Because of this, a developmental edit usually involves a very rough or even incomplete draft.
By the end of a developmental edit, your manuscript should have a logical flow of ideas. Documentation (citation) format should be decided, if relevant. For narrative work, plot holes should be filled, and worldbuilding should be complete. (To learn more about my fiction-editing services, including developmental editing for novels, visit this page.)
A developmental edit does not include the smaller details of grammar and style. I may address some of these smaller details, especially in article-length work, but they are not my focus. If a paragraph might not even make it to the final draft, there is no reason to fix its grammar during a developmental edit.
The Process
The process can vary depending on the project. For simplicity, the following process assumes you are an independent writer and not currently beholden to a publisher’s expectations.
- We establish expectations.
- You send me the text. I will read through the whole draft at least twice as I edit. I may email you questions if I cannot make a suggestion without further information. I will make some clearly marked changes directly to the document. Other edits will come in the form of “queries”—comments throughout the document.
- I email you the marked-up document and an editorial letter. The letter may be in the content of the email itself, or it may be attached. This letter summarizes the edits and lists big-picture or persistent concerns. Depending on our agreement, I may send you the invoice at this point as well.
- You email me with any questions. If needed, we may discuss the edits in a scheduled phone call.
I have trained in developmental editing for both fiction and nonfiction. If your manuscript falls under one of the below categories, we may be an especially good fit!
- nonfiction that communicates across cultural or demographic divides
- works touching on neurodiversity and mental health
- text involving anime and online culture
- text involving the Bible and Christianity
- coming-of-age stories and memoir
- fantasy and other speculative fiction (see fiction editing)
Nonfiction manuscripts that only need a light developmental edit may be a good fit for my comprehensive editing service.
More Editing Services
Comprehensive Editing
Comprehensive editing packages combine two stages of editing—often substantive editing and copyediting. These packages may be customized based on client needs. Learn more.
Substantive Editing
Substantive editing, content editing, and line editing can all refer to the same thing. This is the step between developmental editing and copyediting. Learn more.
Copyediting and Proofreading
Copyediting and proofreading deal with the nitty-gritty: the smaller grammar errors, typos, and formatting issues that slipped through the previous stages.
Words Unbound 